DJ Jackson: “Tererê’s one of my heroes! It’ll be an honor to fight him in Lisbon”

Fernando Terere

It is only the first competition of the year and we already have some great moments to look for.

The male adult black belt middleweight division of the 2013 European Championship is sure to offer the crowd some great battles.

One of this battles could be a generation clash between a Brazilian living legend and an American new talent that already did some damage in the black belt category.

Fernando Augusto da Silva hardly needs an introduction.

Tererê is one of the most famous Jiu-jitsu competitors of all times, considered a technical phenomenon and filled with charisma.

Two times world champion as a black belt and five times overall and the last (and maybe the only) to have tapped out Marcelo Garcia in his weight division, Tererê’s history is also filled with drama.

Suffering from severe depression and drug abuse for years, the Carioca from the Cantagalo community, almost gave up on Jiu-Jitsu, and wrose of all, on life.

With the help of his friends and most of all his relentless family, Tererê is back on his feet, just opened an new school in Rio, and is ready to compete.

DJ Jackson

DJ Jackson is 24 years old and came to Jiu-Jitsu after a successful run in highschool and college wrestling.

Strong in takedowns and guard passes, he has become the first member of the Team Lloyd Irvin to ever win a World Championship gold medal as a black belt.

That he did when he defeated Clark Gracie, last November, at the 2012 Worlds No-Gi.

As he is getting ready for the 2013 season, with the first stop in Lisbon, Portugal, he is very happy to learn that Fernando Tererê is in the same division as he is.

DJ knows exactly who Fernando is: “Tererê has always been one of my heros. I have looked up to him since I was a white belt I am super excited about the opportunity to fight one of the sports all time greats!”

The American also took the time to analyse Tererê technically: “As far as him technically he is unbelievable. He is one of the few people to have never besn tapped in his weight class and I only know of a handful of matches he has lost, period. It will truly be an honor to fight him.”

If that was not enough, the middleweight division also features the likes of Claudio Calasans Jr, Alan “Finfou” Nascimento, among others.

Check it out two videos of DJ and Tererê and don’t forget that when it comes to championship coverage, GRACIEMAG is the best source there is. Keep an eye on GRACIEMAG.com and our social medias to catch all the latest about the 2013 European Open Championship, from January 24 to January 27.

DJ Jackson vs. Clark Gracie (2012 World No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu IBJJF Championship – Middleweight black belt final)

Fernando Tererê vs. Marcelo Garcia (2003 World Jiu-Jitsu IBJJF Championship – Middleweight black belt final)