The Metamoris 4 event scheduled for August 9th in Los Angeles will feature a grappling super-fight between two of the most decorated BJJ artists from a decade ago, Rodrigo ‘Cumprido’ Medeiros versus Saulo Ribeiro. Ribeiro is even money to win, while ‘Cumprido’ is an ever so slight underdog returning at (+160).
The contrast between the two physically is interesting. Whereas ‘Cumprido’ is long and lean, Ribeiro is stocky and short. The most likely start to the match will see Ribeiro working from the top as Cumprido either pulls guard or accepts the back position. Now this is where some of Ribeiro’s tendencies in BJJ and Submission wrestling don’t benefit him under the Metamoris rules.
Ribeiro made his reputation as a winner with a strong game of control and guard passing. Once a position is point scoring, Ribeiro had a tendency to slow the pace of the match down and maintain his advantage. Though he is obviously skilled at submission, his track record speaks to a game with other strengths. Riding out the clock while ahead on points is precisely the reason that Metamoris established their competition rules.
For ‘Cumprido’, he has always been a n athlete who can work from the bottom, and his long legs and flexibility make him capable of finishing submissions on even high level competitors. In particular, he is dangerous with his triangles.
But Ribiero is a fighter who has had the book thrown at him in terms of submission attempts. With his grinding, slow it down style, he has frustrated many grapplers who have not been able to finish him. And with both fighters now in their 30s, their sharpest days of precision are past them. Neither has been extremely active in competition, so do not look for anything out of this world on the mat for this match.
Not sure the odds are right on for this fight, as of the two, the more likely to finish the fight is Cumprido, based on his track record and style. Ribiero however is a winner, and he has found a way to win. But he will not have his full bag of tricks to help him when it comes to time management and positioning to get the ‘W’. Most likely outcome is a draw.
