Emmanuela Oliveira 
As a good leader, Marcos Cunha decided to reactivate his competitor spirit to further motivate Brazilian students from the UCLA project. At the IBJJF Austin Summer Open, the black-belt became champion after a long time without feeling the adrenaline of the competition. In an interview with VF Comunica, Marcos explained that he decided to compete to share an experience on equal terms with students who are about to return to Brazil.
“I decided to compete in Austin Summer three weeks before the event. I made this decision because it would be the last championship of the season for my athletes from the UCLA project here in the United States. Most of them are returning to Brazil at the end of the month. I wanted to go through this experience with them. I went through the weight loss process, trained with them and went to the competition. It was really cool to see all of them encouraging me and pushing me. I had a very difficult training phase in those three weeks and they didn’t let me give up.”.
In this same competition, which took place in mid-July, Marcos Cunha’s experience was even more complete due to the fact that he shared the title with his daughter, blue-belt Duda Cunha, champion in the middleweight division.
“Being a champion alongside my daughter is priceless. Jiu-Jitsu changed my life in every way and being able to share this experience with her, showing her how transformative Jiu-Jitsu can be, sharing the same mat and the same competition, is priceless.”.
Fighting in the lightweight division, Master 3, Marcos Cunha had two fights in the competition. In the final, he faced Eduardo Cordeiro, a Checkmat athlete who crossed his path on the journey to gold, sharing some similar life experiences with him.
“I had two fights and in the final I competed against an opponent from my city. In fact, he is from Rio de Janeiro like me and lives in Santa Catarina, like I did, and I was here competing in the final of a championship against this guy, Eduardo Cordeiro. He hasn’t been a black-belt for very long, but he has been competing in the main championships around the world, with a good pace. I was happy to compete in this final against him.”.
Marcos Cunha sees TMC among the main Jiu-Jitsu teams
Team Marcos Cunha is improving due to its commitment to the team’s expansion plans. According to leader Marcos, there are currently four units in the United States and interest in joining the team is only increasing. In Ohio, there is a recently opened TMC unit.
“Today, TMC is in the process of expanding. We are working on the standard, uniformity, and methodology, and this is being well received by everyone. The demand for new TMC academies has been growing. Today, we have four gyms in the United States. One of the achievements during this process was a new academy in Ohio; we now have two in the region. We are also growing in Canada, and this has made me very happy.”.
“These are details that we need to adjust”, says Marcos Cunha about the team’s improvement
In a review of the season’s achievements, Marcos Cunha made it clear that the team is on the right track to the place reserved for the best in the world. In important IBJJF tournaments, such as the Pans and Worlds, TMC did not go unnoticed, fighting among the sport’s elite. According to the black-belt, with 32 years of experience, it is all a matter of adjustments to rise even higher.
“With the end of the Grand Slam, I am happy with what we have achieved. We managed to get on the podium in the adult black-belt division at the IBJJF Pan, with Bruno Sena in third place. We also had a podium in the juvenile. This season, we managed to enter the Worlds with our largest delegation, which was also one of our goals. We had good fights and showed ourselves that we are not behind anyone. These are details that we need to adjust to reach the top next year. We are also happy with the team in Brazil. With me leaving the country, Professor Carlos has been doing a good job.”.
In the competitive team, there will be a bigger focus on No Gi
With care in each of the logistics aspects of TMC as a brand, Marcos Cunha said he has strengthened the administrative team so that there is no lack of support for new members. The methodology is also a priority, along with the improvement of the competitive team, which will train more grappling from now on, following a global trend in the sport.
“In the second half of the year, the goal is to continue working on the expansion process. We have set up an administrative team here in the United States, focused on supporting our new members. We are also working hard on the educational method for the TMC school. In the competitive process, in the US and Brazil, we will work hard on the No Gi, which was not our strong point in the past. In Brazil, the team is focused on competing in the AJP World Pro in Abu Dhabi. We will continue working on the athletes’ documentation as well, so that we can have more visas approved, allowing more athletes to come between January and February to strengthen the team for the Pans and the Worlds in 2025.”.
