After winning his third No-Gi World Championship featherweight title, on Saturday, Rubens Charles “Cobrinha” made an official statement to GRACIEMAG: “I’m done with retirement. I’m back! Next year I’ll be stronger than ever!”
Cobrinha playing guard / Photos: Deb Blyth; Homepage photo: Dan Rod
The 31-year-old superstar thought when he moved to Los Angeles last year and opened up his school, he’d have way too many responsibilities and no time to train or even think about competing but he says his students have been so supportive of his competition lifestyle, he doesn’t have any excuses not to get back out on the circuit and compete again. “My students keep asking me to compete,” he says, “They motivated me. Everybody supports me. My life is beautiful. Life is easy. We just make it hard. I realize now that my family is here in California, so I’m gonna stop saying I’m retiring. I’ve got a lot left to do in Jiu-Jitsu. I haven’t done enough. I can do more. I can win three or four more times in a row.”
Cobrinha has already done so much in his career, He has won the Gi Worlds and Pan four times apiece. Now, he can add three-time No-Gi Worlds winner to his resume.
Squeezing out the armbar
On Saturday, Cobrinha had two matches for the day in the featherweight division. In his first match, against Renan Borges of Brazilian Top Team, Cobrinha submitted him with a choke from behind. He did the same in the final, against Justin Rader of Ribeiro JJ, but Cobrinha says the two had a really great match. “It was a scramble,” Cobrinha laughs, “I showed that I still feel 22 years old! Justin was scrambling and I attacked. I played open guard and looked for submissions. I have to give him credit. I’ve fought him before. He’s a young kid, and he’s hungry. He did great. He deserves this win as much as I do.”
Cobrinha’s goals for 2012 have changed completely, and his fans will be thrilled with their transformation. “My fire’s back! I’m going to do every tournament – the Pan, the Worlds, the World Pro… I’m going to compete as much as I can. The one thing I learned from my mom was to be smart. She used to tell me, ‘When you open your mouth, make sure you’re right about what you’re saying.’ So, the next time you hear me mentioning retirement, it’ll be because I’m going to open my own bakery in L.A.!”
In Saturday, Cobrinha also fought in the absolute. “I did the absolute too. I ended up losing in the quarterfinals by the referee decision. It’s always great to compete in the absolute. I’ll be in it whenever I get a chance.”
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