Renato Canuto sends a message to the division after winning the UFC BJJ title: “Doors are open”
At the press conference, the new lightweight champion said he felt forgotten in recent years, found out he was the betting underdog and wants to show his jiu-jitsu in MMA; Claudia Gadelha got emotional with his win
Renato Canuto arrived at the UFC BJJ 12 press conference with the lightweight belt and a message for the division. After beating Canada’s Ethan Crelinsten by unanimous decision on Thursday, October 8, in Las Vegas, the Brazilian said he plans to defend the title for a long time and is open to anyone who wants to challenge him.
“If you don’t believe it, come try get it,” he said. “For now, we’ll be defending this title for a good while. And if there’s anybody out there that thinks they can get it from me, doors are open. Go ahead and make the call.”
Canuto recalled that he already lost one title match in the organization, in 2025, to the welterweight champion, and said he would love to get that one back one day. He also said he wants to face one of the former lightweight champions, Carlos Henrique or Lucas Valente, to make his title solid.
“Third times a charm”
When he was asked about his emotions, the champion had trouble answering. “Hard to put into words,” he said. “I’m just beyond grateful. You know, God is real.”
He talked about the title as a win for his family, which had already lost two title matches in UFC BJJ. He called the belt a reward “that I’ve been waiting for a long time.” He added: “I tried one time, my wife tried one time. So, we’re finally bringing one to the house. Third times a charm.” His wife, Raquel Canuto, used the same phrase when she celebrated on social media.
“I’m 30 and I’m still conquering bigger and bigger things in the sport. So, I’m like, I’m not done yet,” he said.
“I got forgotten for a little bit”
Canuto said his change of focus in recent years had a cost. He explained that around 2021 he started to move more toward MMA. “I feel like I got forgotten for a little bit,” he said, adding that many people who came into the sport after that may not know him or respect him as much in no-gi jiu-jitsu.
He also found out he was not the favorite against Crelinsten. “I was not favored by a lot. So, I’m happy to be able to upset people on this one, you know, and show them I’m not just jumping, guys. You know, I can do jiu-jitsu. I do the jumping for the fun of the people,” he said.
Doubts at the weigh-in and “dad strength”
The Brazilian moved down a weight class to fight for the title, and he admitted he was worried when he saw his opponent the day before. “Is this dude going to be as strong as everybody’s saying?” he remembered thinking. The answer came early in the match. “I was able to take him down. He felt a lot lighter than I expected and I felt so strong,” he said.
Canuto gave part of the credit to three years of strength and conditioning work, and he also talked about his new baby. “I just had a baby and everybody keep talking about the dad strength,” he said. “I just became like a superhero in a way.”
About the match, he said he went for the submission the whole time and was frustrated he did not get it. “Titles are fun and all, but at the end of the day, it’s about the scrap. It’s how people feel when they watch you,” he said. It was his eighth appearance in the UFC’s jiu-jitsu events and his fourth in UFC BJJ.
Jiu-jitsu in MMA
The new champion has an MMA fight scheduled for December and said he wants to use more jiu-jitsu there. “I really want to be able to show my jiu-jitsu my next MMA fights,” he said. He also said that “only 10% of MMA guys actually take jiu-jitsu serious. So they will find out soon.”
Asked if he dreams of holding a belt in UFC BJJ and, one day, another one in the UFC, he answered: “I think in my head I’m the closest guy to be doing that at this moment. I don’t know if the other guys are really trying to pull the trigger. I’m already on it. You know, I’m all in.” He added that winning a belt in MMA is “far from now.”
Claudia Gadelha: “I got emotional”
UFC BJJ president Claudia Gadelha opened the press conference and talked about the new champion. “Renato is with us from day one. So I got emotional in his performance, because he was one of the first athletes we brought in for the Fight Pass Invitationals,” she said. The Fight Pass Invitational was the UFC’s grappling series before UFC BJJ.
Gadelha used the Canuto family as an example of what the organization wants to build. “Renato and Raquel are one of the best stories that we have at UFC BJJ. They were able to buy a house with the money they made here with the Fight Pass Invitationals and with UFC BJJ. So that proves that we are going in the right direction,” she said. She also made it clear the challenges will continue: “I don’t think his life is going to get any easier as the UFC BJJ champion.”
Canuto is the third UFC BJJ lightweight champion and also won one of the performance bonuses of the night.
Who should be Renato Canuto’s first challenger? Leave your opinion in the comments.
