Fellipe Andrew – Multiple Times IBJJF Gold Champion

Fellipe Andrew is a famous Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) black belt champion and multiple-time IBJJF gold medallist. He trained under Rodrigo Cavaca (a top fighter in the Pesadissimo division of jiu-jitsu) for several years in order to become a world-class BJJ athlete.

Andrew represented the Zenith JJ academy in the international jiu-jitsu circuit for several years, where he achieved popularity. However, he left the Zenith Academy in 2020 and joined the Alliance affiliation.

While fighting in the lower belt categories of BJJ, Fellipe Andrew built a reputation for himself with his fan-pleasing grappling style and accomplishments, including titles in the IBJJF, Pan American, and Copa Podio Grand Prix (black/brown belt mixed class).

Born in 1994 in the state of Pernambuco in a Brazilian city, Fellipe Andrew is among the top 10 BJJ men’s fighters today.

Andrew’s background was heavily influenced by sports from the beginning, but his interest in martial arts did not arise until his mid-teens when he started practicing kung fu on a daily basis which ultimately led his way toward BJJ.

In April 2011, Andrew was persuaded by his friends to try Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, a martial art that he immediately fell in love with.

Andrew’s first instructor was Adriano Estanislau, with whom he maintained a close bond during his journey from white to black belt.

Luckily, Adriano’s academy was in alliance with the Checkmat team (a jiu-jitsu organization) at that time. So Adriano often used to invite Rodrigo Cavaca, a member of the Checkmat team, to his gym where Fellipe Andrew got a chance to be trained by this distinguished BJJ trainer.

Rodrigo Cavaca was one of the most creative coaches during the 2010 era, being responsible for training great athletes at that time e.g. Gabriel Marangoni, Marcus Almeida, etc. Cavaca left the Checkmat in 2013 to join Zenith JJ, but his relationship with Fellipe Andrew and Coach Adriano remained constant.

In 2016, Fellipe Andrew was promoted to the purple belt after he won first place in IBJJF World Championship.

Soon after winning the purple belt, Fellipe decided he was ready to focus 100% on his jiu-jitsu career. So he moved miles away from his family to Santos and joined Cavaca’s Sao Paulo State Headquarters.

Fellipe's career took flight from there on while fighting in Brazilian national and international circuits.

Andrew's skills came to the limelight after his epic performance in 2017 at the professional Copa Podio Grand Prix in Jiu-Jitsu, where he competed against some of the world's best black belts and earned second place.

In December 2017, Fellipe was promoted to black belt for his many accomplishments on the mats. Rodrigo Cavaca and Adriano Estanislau presided over the ceremony.

From that point, Andrew never looked back and kept on winning back-to-back tournaments, establishing a name for himself in the sport.

Fellipe won his first 11 matches as a black belt, including the ACB American Championship, where he defeated Guilherme Augusto in the final, and the Mexico Winter Open, where he defeated Nick Schrock and Sergio Rios to win double gold.

Curitiba Open and Brasileiro Championship

Fellipe had a fantastic year in 2018, winning 42 matches and losing only six. Fellipe won many gold medals, including a double gold at the Curitiba Open, defeating Fernando Reis and Henrique De Lima, and the Brasileiro Championship, where he won against Dimitrius Souza.

Copa Podio Grand Prix and ACBJJ World Championship

Fellipe won the Copa Podia Grand Prix and defeated Ruan Oliveira at the SP BJJ Pro, defeating various high-level black belts. At the ACBJJ World Championships, Fellipe won both the gold and silver medals, defeating Kaynan Duarte in both finals.

Four Golds at Curitiba Spring Open

Fellipe Andrew had a fantastic year, winning four gold medals at the Curitiba Spring open, including victories over Lael Rodrigues, Admilson Gobi, and Felipe Cesar.

Fellipe only lost five of his 48 matches in 2019, continuing his winning streak.

European Open and Curitiba Pro

Fellipe started with a win against Helton Jose in the European Open final, then went on to win the Curitiba Summer Open over Fernando Reis.

Pan Americans 

Fellipe won the Pan American Championship in his weight class against Muhammad Aly by a score of 18-2 but lost in the quarterfinals of the Absolute Division to the fiery Lucas Barbosa.

Fellipe went on to win three gold medals at the Florida Fall Open, as well as a gold medal at the Curitiba Pro. At the Brasileiro Championships, he advanced to the final but was defeated by the excellent Nicholas Meregali.

SP BJJ Pro and Floripa Opens 

Fellipe concluded the year with a gold medal in the SP BJJ Pro and Floripa Winter Open. Andrew also won a gold medal at the Sao Paulo Open in the Gi and No-Gi divisions, including a victory against the renowned Marcus Riberio.

 Double Golds - IBJJF American Nationals 

Fellipe also won two gold medals in the Absolute and Super Heavyweight Divisions at the IBJJF American Nationals.

European Open

Fellipe opened 2020 with a win in the Absolute Division of the European Open. Santeri Lilius, Patrick Gaudio, and Felipe Trovo were all defeated before he faced Keenan Cornelius in the final, securing his victory.

After losing to Patrick Gaudio, Fellipe won the silver medal in his weight class. Fellipe avenged his loss to Patrick Gaudio by defeating him in a super fight at Sub Stars using an ankle lock. Fellipe defeated Elliot Kelley and win another gold medal at the Kansas Open.

Miami Grand Slam and Pan American

Fellipe’s winning streak continued at the Miami Grand Slam and Pan American Championship. Fellipe lost his last fight of 2020 via heel hook against William Tackett at the Third Coast Grappling.

Double Gold - American Nationals

Fellipe continued winning everything there was to win in the BJJ World. He won two golds at the American Nationals, followed by another single gold win at the Austin Open.

Andrew did not stop there and went on to compete at F2W 181, where he won the fight against Max Gimenis via referee decision.

Andrew also fought at F2W 183 and 185, losing to Yuri Simões and winning against Felipe Trovo via kKatagatme.

Double Golds - IBJJF Pans Championship 

Andrew again won two gold medals in the Absolute and Super Heavyweight Divisions at the IBJJF Pans Championship.

He defeated all of his opponents to advance to the Heavyweight finals, where he defeated Augusto in a phenomenal display to win the gold medal with a score of 4-2.

In the Absolute Division, Fellipe competed against Gustavo Batista and won the match via points.

Two Gold Medals - Rio Summer Open

Fellipe is undefeated with 13 wins so far in the year 2022. He won two gold medals at the Rio Summer Open after defeating Matheus Marques, Davi Souza, and Maique Azevedo.

Two Gold Medals - European IBJJF Jiu-Jitsu Championship 2022

Fellipe Andrew won two gold medals again at the European IBJJF Jiu-Jitsu Championship 2022 by defeating Vinicius Ferreira and Martins Bueno in the Heavyweight and Absolute Divisions respectively.

Fellipe Andrew is a well-known name in the BJJ world today, not only for winning championships but also for creating a full submission hunting course to teach the art of submission including foot locks, triangles, and side control .

Fellipe Andrew competed against Gustavo Batista at the Absolute Division final of the 2021 IBJJF Pans Championship and won the match by earning more points.

Gustavo was also Fellipe’s opponent in 2020. The match followed a similar pattern to their previous 2020 match, with Gustavo pulling guard early on but failing to create a strong enough offensive to overcome Andrew's devastating guard-passing and top-game.

Andrew won the second fight by an even larger margin than the first, scoring an amazing 18 points to Batista's eight to claim victory.

Fellipe Andrew achieved another historic victory against Yatan Bueno at the 2022 European Jiu-Jitsu IBJJF Championship. Yatan took a dominant position at the start, pinning Fellipe to the ground while staying on top. Fellipe fought back with his remarkable grappling skills and took Bueno down in a 50-50 guard position. Fellipe then went for a foot lock which Yatan managed to escape.

It was a tough match, with both fighters coming strong at each other throughout the fight. But Fellipe was able to take the lead in the end and won the match with more points.

In 2021, Fellipe faced Mahamed Aly for the third time at the IBJJF Jiu-Jitsu Grand Prix. Previously, Fellipe had won two matches against Mahamed Aly in 2018 and 2019 at the World IBJJF and Pan Championships respectively.

It was a heated match as Aly was all set to take his revenge for the previous two defeats. There was a lot of action and back-to-back exchange of techniques between the two fighters. Despite Fellipe’s spectacular performance, Mahamed dominated the fight and won the match.

• IBJJF American Nationals
• CBJJ Brasileiro Nationals

• European IBJJF Jiu-Jitsu Championship
• ACB World Championship
• ACB South American Championship
• IBJJF Pans Championship
• IBJJF World Championship

Records/Medals
Event	Year	Medals
IBJJF Pan Championship	2021	2 Gold Medals
IBJJF Pan Championship	2019, 2020	1 Gold Medal
CBJJ Brazilian Nationals	2018	1 Gold Medal
IBJJF European Open	2022	2 Gold Medal
Boise International Open IBJJF World Jiu-Jitsu Championship	2022	2 Gold Medal
Rio Summer Open	2022	2 Gold Medal
IBJJF European Open	2019, 2020	1 Gold Medal
UAEJJF Grand Slam, MIA	2020	1 Gold Medal
IBJJF American Nationals	2019	2 Gold Medal
ACB World Championship	2018	1 Gold Medal
ACB South American Championship	2018	1 Gold Medal
Copa Podio HW Grand Prix	2018	1 Gold Medal

Methods 87 Wins 20 Losses

Fellipe Andrew VS Vinicius Gazola

Fellipe Andrew VS Marcus Vinicius

Fellipe Andrew v Guilherme Augusto

Nicholas Meregali vs Fellipe Andrew

Fellipe Andrew VS Keenan Cornelius

Felipe Pena vs Fellipe Andrew

Photo credit: @fellipeandrew