According to BJJ Heroes, 2007 was the last time Bibiano Fernandes competed in an IBJJF event. Well, that has come to an end and in spectacular fashion.
At the 2024 IBJJF Pan Jiu-Jitsu Championship, Fernandes competed in the Masters 3 black belt division.
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The Brazilian legend had two very talented competitors in his corner, Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza and Lucas Pinheiro.
He stepped onto the mats for the first time in over a decade against a Renzo Gracie black belt, Timothy McNamara. Moving through that opponent, he made his waay through two more, before making it to the semi-finals.
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In the semi-finals, Fernandes showcased his flash style and blitzed for a single leg takedown immediately. He rode it out in the top halfguard, attempting to pass with double unders eventually and went on to win 2-0 and advanced to the finals.
In the finals, Ferandes took on Bernardo Correa Da Cruz. Off a scramble, Fernandes was able to take the back and secure 4 points. After a reset in the center of the mat, Fernandes pulled guard and was able to secure a very slick armbar to win gold.
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Fernandes had won gold at the Pans previously in 2004, 2005 and 2006.This is his fourth gold medal at the Pans.
In 2004, Fernandes made the full time transition to MMA and amassed a fantastic career. He started out with a 3-2 record and was then signed to DREAM, which was a Japanese organization. Over his tenure with the promotion, he won the featherweight and bantamweight Grand Prix.
In 2012, “The Flash” signed with the largest Asian promotion — ONE Championship (previously ONE FC). In just his second ONE fight, the Brazilian won the interim bantamweight championship, defeating Koetsu Okazaki by unanimous decision at ONE FC: Rise to Power.
At ONE: Total Domination in 2013, Fernandes unified the championship, becoming the true bantamweight kingpin with a decision victory over Soo Chul Kim. He went on to defend the title an impressive seven times before losing the title in a very controversial split decision to Kevin Belingon, only to earn it back in the rematch. He went on to defend that title against Belingon one more time in 2019.
Fernandes did not return to the cage until 2022 and it was an unfortunate loss to John Lineker, losing his bantamweight gold. He fought one more time in 2022 against Stephen Loman. And in 2023, it was announced that the 43-year-old had parted ways with ONE Championship.
It is very exciting to see “The Flash” make his return to his roots on the jiu-jitsu mats. Hopefully this is a sign of things to come for the BJJ black belt.
