Rafael Lovato Jr had just signed on to make his college wrestling debut in 2026, despite being 42 years old. He will be representing Oklahoma City University in the NAIA division and is confirmed as eligible, because he has actually dropped out of college previously. Lovato Jr attended back in 2004 but decided to leave school behind and uproot his entire life in order to move to Brazil, where he threw himself into a professional Jiu-Jitsu career. That decision proved to be a good one in the end, as he made history by becoming the second American to win an IBJJF World Championship just 3 years later.
Lovato Jr has spent almost two whole decades at the top of the sport and has set new standards every step of the way. Even as recently as last year he became the first person to win all 4 of the major IBJJF tournaments in both gi and no gi. He also took some time away from Jiu-Jitsu in order to pursue a professional MMA career and he retired from that sport with a perfect 11-0 record. Lovato Jr became the Bellator middleweight world champion during his undefeated run in MMA and even finished 9 of his 11 fights inside the distance too, showcasing fantastic wrestling and striking alongside his Jiu-Jitsu.
Lovato Jr was always known for having great standing grappling but he reached an even higher level while he was competing in MMA, and he’s continued along that trajectory ever since. He already put those skills to the test too, winning a bronze medal at the freestyle wrestling US Open last year. Lovato Jr is not content with that achievement though and 2026 will hold even more wrestling matches for him than before, against young competitors right in their athletic prime. This isn’t a permanent switch though, as Lovato Jr will be back in Jiu-Jitsu competition as early as the Spring.
Rafael Lovato Jr announced that he would be making his college wrestling debut in a recent post to his official Instagram account:
