In both Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and in MMA, the city of Manaus and its surrounding region has produced such fighters as Jose Aldo, Bibiano Fernandes, and Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza along with many others.
Another fighter from Manaus now looking to make his name as well-known as the ones listed above now lives in South Texas and goes by the name of Carlos Diego Ferreira.
Moving to the lone star state just a few years ago, CDF began making his name known on the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu circuit, winning many regional tournaments and other competitions like the 2011 U.S. Open after arriving in the United States. That much isn’t too much of a surprise considering he started in the sport as a 10 year old under (now) 9th degree red belt Osvaldo Alves and Faustino Neto at Clube Pina in Manaus.
Ferreira’s passion still lies in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu as its always been but he has been looking to branch out recently as well.
Now undefeated with a 5-0 record as documented online (6-0 if you ask him), he says his biggest dream now is to keep progressing towards one day making it into the UFC and becoming a top fighter like fellow Manaus natives Aldo and Jacare.
“I know what I want… I have a dream, a goal and I will do whatever it takes to get there…through sacrifice, discipline and dedication. It’s not always easy but I work and train hard every day through the good and the bad times. I try to never let anything bring me down – which is not always easy. My last fight was really tough. My brother and my grandma passed away a couple weeks before the fight and it really affected my training in many ways, but I was able to pull through and come home with a win. My priorities are my family and people close to me so I just to do this for them.”
Moving forward, Carlos now faces yet another tough test when he takes on fellow South Texan Danny Salinas (10-4) for the South Texas Fighting Championship (STFC) lightweight title on February 22nd in McAllen. A worthy opponent as any, Danny has won three out of his last four fights and has his own aspirations of being the best fighter in the region. In short, it’s undoubtedly the biggest fight of his career and one that should be telling as far as where his future prospects lie in the sport.
“I’m super excited to fight him,” says Ferreira about the fight. “He’s the champ, so being able to match up with him is an honor. Knowing that the belt is on the line makes me work even harder. I want this more than ever. Like I said, my goal is to make it to the UFC and I know getting these wins will help me get there. I have an amazing group of people helping me get ready for this fight. I know I’ll be more than ready come fight night and I’m just super excited. I want to knock him out or get a submission. Whatever it takes, I want to finish the fight as fast as I can!”
“Thank you to all my sponsors, training partners, family, friends and fans. And special thanks to Team Ferreira!”