Roberto “Cyborg” Abreu - Ultra Heavyweight BJJ Champion

1. Roberto Abreu’s Details

2. Roberto Abreu’s Biography

Roberto de Abreu Filho a.k.a Cyborg born on December 20, 1980, in Campo Grande, Brazil, is a seven-time Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu No-Gi champion. He has won plenty of gold medals in both national and international tournaments. He fights in the ultra-heavyweight divisions for no-gi grappling and BJJ but is most famous for inventing the tornado guard.

He is currently living in Miami, Florida, where he is a head instructor at his own gym, Fight Sports.

3. Roberto Abreu’s Early life and Amateur Fighting

3.1. How did he start?

When Roberto was little, he came to the countryside in Campo Grande, Brazil. He was not aware of jiu-jitsu, so he started training in judo, capoeira , and karate. One day, Roberto’s friend challenged him to a fight. Roberto was amused by the challenge as his friend was very skinny and small. But Roberto’s friend defeated him three times by only using Árte Suave. At that point, Roberto knew what martial arts he wanted to pursue, so he joined the Claudionor Cardoso Gym and began training in jiu-jitsu. Within two weeks of training, Roberto won his first tournament.

Roberto always had a dominating personality which helped him get through tough competitions right from the beginning.

3.2. Roberto Abreu’s Historic Fights

Roberto then moved to Idaho, U.S., and trained under a Black belt named James who was from Marcello Alonso. He gave Roberto his blue belt.

After returning to Brazil, Roberto started training with Luis Claudio Isaias. He trained with him for almost six months and won the state championship in the open class weight division. He continued to win 10 times in a row.

Roberto Abreu’s Accident

In 2000, Roberto moved to Iowa, USA, where he got into a car accident that shattered his left arm. He kept struggling with recovering from his injury, trying to overcome it as soon as possible. He won the Brazilian Nationals a few months later. His drive to never give up earned him the nickname of “Cyborg” by the black belt, Carlson Gracie.

Professional Brazilian Jiu-jitsu Career

Roberto was determined to compete professionally. He often used to travel to Rio de Janeiro and fight in the world tournament. During his visits to Rio, Abreu became close to and created a strong bond with Nova Geracao of Francisco Albuquerque.

3.3. Roberto’s Gym “Fight Sports,” Miami

Roberto, as a purple belt, opened his own gym, Fight Sports, in Miami. The gym’s reputation rose quickly as a place one can ardently learn Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Roberto was successful in training a strong team with hundreds of world-class fighters. His students won both national and international tournaments, Pan American competitions, Brazilian Nationals, Mundial World Championship, and other high-ranking tournaments.

Roberto remained a purple belt for a year before being promoted to brown belt by winning various tournaments. He remained a brown belt for nine months.

Roberto Abreu as a Black Belt

In December 2004, after five years of training, Roberto earned his first black belt which was given to him by Master Francisco “Toco” Albuquerque.

Roberto and Pedro Gama Filho

In 2005, when Roberto was in Brazil, he met with one of his friends and the president of the Brazilian National Wrestling team, Pedro Gama Filho. Roberto requested Pedro to sign him up for wrestling at the Brazilian Nationals. He had to weigh under 100KG to get into the competition. Luckily, the next day, Roberto went to the Brazilian Nationals, weighed, and got into the competition where he won several matches.

In 2007, Roberto signed a contract with the Brazilian National team and defended Brazil in the Pan-Ams.

In 2010, Roberto joined a few world-class competitors and friends, such as Marcus Buchecha and Rodrigo Cavaca, who were training at The Armory in Florida to form a team called “The Avengers.” The team fought in a few local and international competitions.

Rodrigo eventually had to return to Santos, Brazil along with Marcus which resulted at the end of their partnership.

Tornado Guard by Roberto Abreu

Roberto is famous for his creation of the tornado guard, a high-level method to defeat the opponent. Roberto has been perfecting this position since he was a blue belt. The tornado guard is an inverted half-guard, where one presses the advantage on the opponent by putting pressure on the competitor’s extended leg and sweeping them vertically from above. There are several transitions from the sweep to a triangle to the omoplata.

Multiple World Championship Winner

Reborto has been in a number of professional fights. He is a 5x Ultra Heavyweight World Champion and won the ADCC 2013 Absolute, multiple ADCC competitions, and IBJJF World Championships.

3.4. Roberto Cyborg Abreu Instructional DVD “Flow: Top Game”

“Flow: Top Game” is a gi-oriented instructional DVD that is four volumes long. Every volume covers top techniques used in BJJ like the half guard passing, open guard passing, mount philosophy, side control, etc. It is a masterpiece that covers all the top techniques, featuring Roberto himself as the demonstrator.

Volume 1: Flowing Against Open Guards

• Flow Mindset
• Dealing With Reactions
• Intro To Mobility
• Side To Side Mobility
• Headstand Butterfly Pass Drill
• Vertical Flying Cyborg
• Rolling Tire Drill
• 45-Degree Flying Panda
• Cyborg Warm Up
• Pieces Of The Puzzle
• The Missile Pass
• Faking Out Your Opponent
• Passing Half Setup

Volume 2: Top Half Guard Flow

• Half Guard Leg Smash
• Straight Jacket To Side Control
• Back Step Half Guard Pass
• Over Under Missile Pass
• De La Riva Leg Smash Pass
• Butterfly Pass
• Philosophy Of Side Control
• 100 Kilo Hip Control Concept
• Windshield Wiper
• Knee Block

Volume 3: Sid Control, Mounting and Unmounting

• Surfing Your Opponent
• Leg Smash Front Pass
• Leg Smash Without Under Hook
• Allowing Opponent Movement To Turtle
• Knee On Belly Control
• Knee On Neck Control
• Knee On Belly Leg Smash
• Knee On Belly Windshield Wiper Drill
• Knee On Belly Single Leg Defense
• Mount Foundations
• Leg Trap Mount
• Unmount
• Unmount Lift To Leg Smash
• Unmount To S Mount
• S Mount To Back Take

Volume 4: Flowing Back Attacks

• Forced Turtle Roll
• Turtle Knee Ride
• Panther Swipe
• Mop Sweep To Back Take
• The Crane Back Take
• Adjusting The Good Side
• Finishing From The “Bad Side”
• No Hook Choke
• Mindset For Connections
• Connections
• Connection Flow #1
• Connection Flow #2
• Connection Flow #3
• Connection Flow #4
• Connection Flow #5

3.5. Roberto Abreu “Fight Sports” Allegations

In March 2018, Marcel Goncalves, a 31-year-old MMA, and BJJ trainer, was arrested in Naples, Florida. He was charged for sexually assaulting a 16-year-old girl at the gym Roberto Abreu owned, Fight Sports.

Roberto was a lifelong friend of the man who was accused. He was highly criticized by the BJJcommunity for staying quiet and not taking a stand against the culprit.

In August 2021, he made an official statement on his Instagram saying “I’ve been attacked for my personal character for a crime I did not commit. All teams have bad apples. It is sometimes hard to get rid of those bad apples. I unequivocally acknowledge that I was ill-prepared to handle this situation and my response was confusing and not drastic enough. As for Marcel Goncalves, I'm stripping him off his black belt and have severed all ties between him and our organization.”

Roberto has now taken an oath to grow more positively, learn, and evolve as a person to ensure such issues will not arise ever again.

Read to find out more:
Roberto “Cyborg” Abreu Sued Over Alleged Sexual Assault Cover-Up

3.6. Roberto Abreu’s Championships and Accomplishments

• 5x ADCC Winner
• 7x World Nogi Champion
• 8x State Open Class Champion (Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil)
• Brazilian National Champion
• 3x Pan American Champion
• South American Champion (Weight and Open Class)
• European Champion
• 12x Grapplers Quest Open Class Champion
• 4x Copa America Open Class Champion
• 16x World Championships and World Cup Medalist
• Finalist at Abu Dhabi 2009
• Brazilian Wrestling National Champion (Brazilian National team member)
• No Gi Grappler of the Year at the Jitsmagazine BJJ Awards 2020
• 2020 FloGrappling No-Gi Grappler of the Year

4. Roberto Abreu’s Main Achievements

Position	Event	Year
1st	IBJJF World Championship NoGi	2021
2nd	IBJJF World Championship NoGi	2021
1st	Kasai Pro 264 lbs Grand Prix	2020
1st	IBJJF Grand Prix	2019
1st	IBJJF Masters World Championship	2018
2nd	AJP King of Mats	2018
1st	IBJJF World Championship NoGi	2017
3rd	ADCC World Championship	2017
1st	Grappling Pro Championship	2016
1st	ADCC World Championship	2013
3rd	ADCC World Championship	2013
1st	IBJJF World Championship NoGi	2012
1st	IBJJF World Championship NoGi	2011
3rd	ADCC World Championship	2011
1st	IBJJF World Championship NoGi	2010
2nd	IBJJF World Championship	2010
2nd	ADCC World Championship	2009
2nd	IBJJF Pan Championship	2009
1st	IBJJF Pan Championship	2008
2nd	IBJJF World Championship NoGi	2008
2nd	CBJJ Brazilian Nationals	2007
1st	IBJJF European Open	2005

5. Roberto Abreu’s Main Achievements (Belts)

Year	Belt
2004	Black Belt

6. Roberto Abreu’s Professional Record Breakdown

Professional Record Breakdown
Total Matches 176	136 Wins	40 Losses
By Points	59	17
By Submission	50	13
By Decision	11	3
By Advantages	13	6
By Penalty	3	0
By DQ	0	1

6.1. Submission Methods W/L

Submission Method	Wins	Losses
ARMBAR	11	2
CHOKE FROM BACK	8	2
CHOKE	10	1
STRAIGHT ARMLOCK	5	0
KNEE CHOKE	3	0
KNEEBAR	2	0
SUBMISSION	2	0
INVERTED TRIANGLE	1	0
CROSS CHOKE	1	1
RNC	1	0
CLOCK CHOKE	1	0
NORTH-SOUTH CHOKE	1	0
KIMURA	1	0
KATAGATAME	1	0
CHOKE FROM MOUNT	2	0
Botinha	0	1
Inside Heel Hook	0	1
Ezekiel	0	1
Choke from Crucifix	0	1
Mounted X Choke	0	1
Loop Choke	0	2

7. Roberto Abreu’s Fight History

8. Retirement

Roberto has not yet retired and still fights in national and international competitions.

Roberto has two gyms in Miami, one of them being Fight Sports. The gym also functions as a jiu-jitsu hotel since people from all around the world come to train at this place.

He is also the owner of Legacy Fit, a gym for grappling, MMA, and more. The gym has all the necessary training facilities.

9. Fighting Video Links

Photo credit: @cyborgbjj