When Pride Fighting Championship fans recall the golden era of the
Japanese promotion, the rivalry between Chute Boxe and Brazilian
Top Team often comes to mind.
After all, the clashes between Carlson Gracie jiu-jitsu black belts
from Rio de Janeiro and the muay Thai aces from Chute Boxe team led
by Rudimar Fedrigo in Curitiba marked some of the most important
chapters of the Japanese organization between 1997 and 2007.
The world of MMA has changed a lot in the last 15 years. On Monday,
Conan Silveira, one of the first black belts under Carlson Gracie
and one of the founders of American Top Team, launched the first
Brazilian branch of ATT in Curitiba, the homeland of Chute Boxe.
Wanderlei
Silva and Royce Gracie
were also in attendance at the ceremony.
“Curitiba has always been one of the biggest producers of top MMA
strikers in the history of the sport,” Silveira said. “With this
new ATT branch here we will join together great strikers of Brazil
and some of the best American wrestlers helping the natural
(evolution) of talents at American Top Team.”
At the launch, Silveira introduced local business partner Bruno
Cividini, who owns the 12,916 square foot facility, which is
located inside of Tuiuti University.
In addition to the largest MMA training center in Brazil, Cividini
says the team already boasts a number of experienced
professionals.
“We have an official ring, a 5,000 square foot mat, an
Octagon that same size as the UFC Performance Institute and
experienced professionals like Fernando Falkenbach (striking,
muay Thai and MMA); Wallace “Sapo” (jiu-jitsu and grappling);
João
Paulo “Tuba” (strength and condition); Sergio “Bolacha”
(wrestling); Tiago Massa (boxing) and Paula Yousef (nutrition),”
Cividini said. “We started with 20 professionals and today we
already have 40 fighters with different experience levels.”
Although the team has been operating under the ATT name since
January, Cividini still wanted to have an official opening. Already
a personal friend of Silva’s, Cividini learned that Royce Gracie
was coming to Curitiba for a series of seminars, so he asked
Silveira to come to Brazil for the launch that same week.
“To open an MMA gym with the presence of these three legends
together was something really special to us,” Cividini said. “They
spent more than an hour talking to our professionals. Definitely it
was a great first step. They already have the biggest facility in
Brazil, some of the best trainers and now the whole structure of
ATT. The results will come naturally.”