2012 World MMA Lightweight Scouting Report: #1 – Fabricio Guerreiro

Name:	Fabricio de Assis Costa da Silva
Nickname:	Guerreiro
Age:	< 30
Height:	5'10"
Location:	Santana, Amapa, Brazil

Closing out the 2012 World MMA Lightweight Scouting Report, Brazil's Fabricio Guerreiro (12-1) tops our list as the #1 prospect on this year's countdown. The Amapa native has amassed a 12-1 record over the course of a three-year career in the sport. His current three-fight winning streak hasn't featured the strongest competition, but Guerreiro did finish worthy veterans Adson Nascimento, Rafael Bastos, and Joao Paulo Rodrigues de Souza in previous encounters. Those three fighters alone boasted a combined record of 93-38-4.

Guerreiro's lone loss came against Rafael Bastos at W-Combat 14 in July. The outcome was, however, marred by the referee's decision to stop the fight prematurely, thus a rematch was scheduled a little over a month later at King of Combat. As expected, Guerreiro shined in front of an enormous crowd of supporters, submitting Bastos via arm-triangle choke in the third round.

Guerreiro's appeal stems from his well-rounded skill-set and ability to put opponents away. In thirteen career bouts, Guerreiro has finished all but three, usually putting away his opponents within the first five or ten minutes of the fight. He has an incredibly slick Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu base that's supported by a strong foundation in traditional Judo, and his striking is brutally effective.

Incredibly, Guerreiro has learned all of these skills while remaining in the remote northern region of Brazil known as Amapa. While the region does have its own growing MMA scene, it's similar to that of Mossoro in that it doesn't have all of the luxuries that larger metropolitan areas can offer fighters. Guerreiro learned how to strike by picking up bits and pieces of technique from teachers and teammates, similarly to how bantamweight prospect Leandro Higo was able to learn.

Furthermore, Guerreiro's gym, the Ronildo Nobre Judo Club, is, in fact, a Judo academy that focuses on Judo and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Guerreiro, under the tutelage of Nobre, has won multiple regional championships in both martial arts, but he's found the knack for knocking out his opposition with brutal ground and pound and speedy, powerful punches on the feet. It's surprising considering the lack of high-level training at his disposal in the striking department.

Among our top five, there are fighters who have glaring weaknesses that they need to work on, but Guerreiro stands out as one of the most well-rounded among all of our rankees. His technique needs some additional work, but his skill-set boasts all of the weapons we like to see from a top-tier fighter. It's a ballsy pick on our part when stacked up against Alessandro Ferreira, but we're confident Guerreiro will prove his worth in 2012.

Check out video footage of Fabricio Guerreiro after the jump...

Fabricio Guerreiro vs. Joao Paulo Santos de Melo
Equinocio Fight - November 26, 2011

Fabricio Guerreiro vs. Rafael Bastos
King of Combat - August 20, 2011




Fabricio Guerreiro vs. Adson Nascimento
Iron Man Vale Tudo 22 - June 19, 2011


Fabricio Guerreiro vs. Eliel 'Topete Dourado' dos Santos e Santos
W-Combat 3 - July 3, 2010

Fabricio Guerreiro vs. Carlos Augusto
Ultimate Finus Fighting 2 - January 15, 2011

Fabricio Guerreiro vs. Billy Mendigo
Evolution 3 - July 4, 2009

Fabricio Guerreiro vs. Tibucha

Fabricio Guerreiro vs. Bruce