Jean Jacques Machado has just been announced as the next member of the ADCC Hall of Fame, and he will become part of the 2024 class. He is only the second person to be announced as part of that year’s induction, after fellow former champion Xande Ribeiro. Machado made his ADCC debut in the very earliest days of the competition back in 1999, when there had only been one edition prior. He entered the 77kg division where the man to beat was the reigning champion and fellow ADCC Hall of Famer Renzo Gracie.
Machado actually never got to face Renzo Gracie at ADCC 1999 though, as Gracie went out in the second round of the division. Even though he didn’t get to face the champion directly, Machado still proved that he was the top competitor in the 77kg division by submitting all four of his opponents and taking home a gold medal on his first attempt. He returned the following year in 2000 to defend his title in the 77kg division, submitting his first two opponents and beating Leo Vieira on points to book the long-awaited match with Renzo Gracie in the final.
Although Machado had to settle for a silver medal then, he only lost on advantages. He was invited back for ADCC 2001 and although he went out in the second round of the 77kg division against Matt Serra, he competed in the absolute division for the first time as well. Machado earned another silver medal there and eventually returned for one final match against Dean Lister in the superfight at ADCC 2005, although he was unsuccessful in that final attempt at glory. All in all, Jean Jacques Machado is being inducted into the ADCC Hall of Fame with a career record of 11-4 and 9 submission finishes under the ruleset.
It was a series of fantastic performances over the course of 6 years and they were made even more impressive by the fact that Machado was already 31 when he made his ADCC debut. Even more impressive is Machado’s status as an elite grappler in general, given that he was famously missing several digits on his left hand. He also went on to become a prolific coach as well; teaching famous martial artists like Dan Inosanto, top competitors like Eddie Bravo, and even a number of celebrities as well.
ADCC announced the news that Jean Jacques Machado is going to be inducted into the ADCC Hall of Fame as part of the 2024 class in a recent post to their official Instagram account:
