Ricardo Arona is one of a select few triple-crown winners at the ADCC world championships and now the feat of winning his weightclass, the absolute division, and the superfight championship has been recognized with his induction into the ADCC Hall of Fame. Arona will join his fellow triple-crown winners who are already part of the Hall of Fame, Andre Galvao and the man who was the first inductee to be revealed, Roger Gracie. In fact, to date there has only been one inductee who has not won the absolute division and superfight championship, the legendary giant-killer Marcelo Garcia.
Ricardo Arona burst onto the competitive scene in 2000 not only by winning the ADCC world championships at 99kg but also by kickstarting his impressive MMA career. Arona opted to not compete in the absolute division that year but did so when he returned in 2001, becoming the third double champion in ADCC history by taking home a gold medal there as well as repeating the feat in his own weightclass. He returned a final time in 2003 to take the superfight championship from Mark Kerr but did not return to defend it at the following event as his MMA career was picking up steam and he’s already had his first few fights in the PRIDE ring.
Arona’s resume looks impressive on paper to begin with, but it’s made even more so by the fact that he finished his ADCC career with an undefeated 13-0 record and never actually conceded a single point during his time on the mats. It’s these reasons combined with his four ADCC titles that have earned Ricardo Arona his place as part of the inaugural class of the ADCC Hall of Fame and the news was announced in a post to the promotion’s official Instagram account:
