The year was 2007, the first year the World Championship moved to the USA.
In the Long Beach Arena, Roger gracie was a man under pressure.
Since 2003, he was a sure presence in the black belt open class final, but wasn’t able to secure the gold medal so far.
Year after year, Roger saw his dream of winning the most important title in competitive Jiu-Jitsu postponed by defeates to Marcio Pé de Pano, twice to Ronaldo Jacaré and Xande Ribeiro.
So, when he beat Robert Drysdale in the semifinal, he knew he couldn’t let another chance pass him by.
The opponent would be teammate Romulo Barral, who had defeated the sitting champion Xande Ribeiro.
A close-out was never in question and the two giants went for it.
In this rarity video, Roger talks about the final match and his feelings on the long awaited gold medal.
And you can also watch some of the highlights of that final.
After watching this amazing piece of Worlds history, hurry and register for the 2014 edition.
The registration period is open and if you do it until May 6th, you get a special discount.
Click here for more info and to register now!
The post Worlds: remember Roger Gracie’s first open class title and register now for 2014 first appeared on Graciemag.