The Rio Grappling Championship, a CBLLE tournament, was held on February 25th at Club Municipal, in Tijuca, Rio de Janeiro. The competition, which started the confederation’s competitive calendar, had a special meaning for Bernardo Passos. Returning to his home state, directly from Paris, Bernardo won the event’s gold medal and was honored for being a representative figure of Luta Livre, with international recognition.
“I was very happy to be able to compete again in the sport where I started my entire career. In my first fight, I finished with a heel hook. In the second fight, I won on points. In the final, I would fight my Master; so, we decided for the close-out. I had good fights against ranked CBLLE opponents.”, comments the athlete participating in the tournament that also served to define the Brazilian team for the sport.
The invitation to fight came at the last minute and Bernardo Passos accepted the commitment
Initially, Bernardo was only going to participate in Rio Grappling as an honoree, but two days before the event, he was invited to fight. The fact that he did not have enough time to prepare exclusively for this tournament, added to the performance that took him to the final unscathed, shows that the technical mastery of Luta Livre is already in his blood. Having already declared to VF Comunica that he would like to be remembered as the greatest representative of the sport in grappling and MMA events, the tribute received was more than fair.
“I already knew they would honor me, but it was an incredible feeling to see my work being recognized by everyone and by the sport in which I started. They gave me CBLLE certificates and I gave some interviews telling a little about my journey to the new generation of Luta Livre. This shows that a young man raised in the midst of life’s difficulties can become a reference for the sport and for the world.”, he says, happy to be an inspiration.