BJJ in Rio de Janeiro

January, 2023

Copacabana, new year and BJJ

Duration: 23 days, 23 nights

Location: Rio de Janeiro, BRA

Costs: Flight 350$, Hostel 250$, Airbnb 800$

Sadly, me last stop of a 4 months journey. I stayed 3 weeks to enjoy Rio.

First big thing, new year at Copacabana.

Training in different gyms in the City and the highlight at the end UFC283.

Getting here

Due to the big distance from Manaus I had to take the airplane.

BJJ

One reason moving to Flamengo after new year`s was that there are some gyms I wanted to train in.

The first Academy I trained in was Nova Uniao Azul Jiu Jitsu. Just a 5 minutes’ walk from home, in a not so nice part you will find this lovely dojo.

It`s around 60qm big, covered all with mats. Change the clothes you do in the entrance.

We were 12 people in the training and 4 of them Black belts. I enjoyed a nice training with some hard sparring’s.

The most of my 2 weeks here I trained at Upper Arena. This is an Arena and a gym at the same time.

Dede a coral belt and the owner of the arena organize sometimes MMA events there. If there are no events there is training.

I trained most of the time in the morning with the BJJ competition team and some days in the afternoon NoGi. They also offer Kickboxing, Boxing, Wrestling and there is a lifting area.

The level is crazy high. It can be that 15 or more Black Belts are showing up for a class. As well there are a lot of active fighter. I met UFC star Ketlen Vieira in the gym.

The training was free because Dede tries to bring people from the street into training. To support the Arena there is a commercial Fitness studio next to the Metro station Flamego named Upper Academia. I went there to do strength and support so the Arena.

In one of my last trainings I had the pleasure to train at the academy of Fernando Terere.

The Dojo is in the back of Ipanema close to the favela. It is on the first floor in an apartment building. The mat space is around 60qm most of it mats.

3 times per day they are offering classes. The BJJ level here was very technical.

Sadly, Fernando was in Switzerland and not in Brazil at this time.

Fernando has also a project to bring kids from the street to BJJ.

UFC 283

UFC 283 was promising a spectacle and the fighter`s delivered.

Already the Weight-ins were showing some heat.

Thanks to a VIP package we had the chance to see a bit more of the whole UFC and meet some of the Stars.

Two new champions and two retirements in a not fully sold out arena but the Brazilian`s made so much noise that it didn’t matter.

We saw many knock outs maybe also one for the knock out of the year.

Sadly, the co-main was stopped by the doctor after a clean shot of Morena closed the eye of Figueiredo.

The main event was a 5-round clash. Both fighters punched each other true the rounds and Hill took the title. Clover retired after the fight due to his age.

If this event is holden yearly in Rio I will be there!

Food and drinks

Churrasco is the first thing I went to eat. Sitting in a restaurant while the waiters are passing with different style of grilled meat, you can choose what you want and they chop it down for you.

Another big thing is Feijoda is made with black beans and salted pork and beef.

The most famous Brazilian snack known as Coxinha is basically a teardrop-shaped chicken drumstick.

In Rio another common thing in restaurants is to get a piece of meat (chicken or beef) with rice and some beans. It`s nearly everywhere available und always a not too expensive option.

Caipirinha are available at any time in different colors and tastes. You have to try all of them while you`re in Rio.

And of course there is more Acai to eat…

What to do

Two of the main attractions in Rio are the Christ statue and the Sugarloaf Mountain. For both of them are cable cars available. At the Sugarloaf you can do a small hike on the Morro da Urca next to it. It starts on a trail next to Praia Vermelha and takes around 20 minutes.

The city is full with museum`s and historical buildings. I recommend doing a free walking tour to get to know more about the city and the history.

Taking a picture at the Escadaria Selarón is a must. You can go there before heading to Lapa for party.

There is also a botanical garden. Totally worth to see it if you like nature. Inside you find Parque Lage with a lovely restaurant.

Going to a game at Maracanã stadium was one of the greatest experience I had in Rio. With capacity of 80`000 the stadium is massive.

If the weather is good, there is a reason to go to the beach, relax and have a beer or a Caipirinha.

Last but not least a tour to Rocinha favela with the beautiful view over the city.

My Google Maps list of Rio

Nightlife

Rio de Janiero is a party city! There is always somewhere a reason to celebrate.

The first night out I went to Lapa. A district in the City full of bars and Clubs. Pretty busy and wild.

The second night I went to the big new year’s party at the Copacabana. On this beach there are sometimes party’s or live music.

On a Tuesday we went to Pedra do Sal. This is a street that turns in to party by night. It was very full of people and music was playing out of speakers. We had to take care about our personal stuff.

There is a lot more party to find. Thanks to the hostel I was first we always knew where to go.

Good to know

I used the Metro and UBER to move around the City. The Metro is cheap and often faster but late night UBER is better

Entering was for me very easy no forms needed.

The currency is the Brazilian Real R$.