Igor Tanabe

Igor Tanabe Guimarães is a Brazilian grappler and a jiu-jitsu black belt under Walter Lima Franco and Eduardo Telles, as well as a representative of the Nine-Nine Academy in the sport’s international circuit. Although originally from Brazil, Tanabe grew up in Japan, where he developed as an athlete and became known as one of the leading talents in gi jiu-jitsu, a reputation he conquered during his colored belt career after his wins in many important tournaments of the International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation (IBJJF) circuit, such as the World, European and Asian Open tournaments.

Igor Tanabe Jiu-Jitsu

Full Name: Igor Tanabe Guimarães

Nickname: “Fat Ninja” due to his Instagram tag.

Lineage 1: Carlos Gracie > Helio Gracie > Rickson Gracie > Marcelo Behring > Waldomiro Perez > Roberto Godoi > Marco Barbosa > Roberto Nakaya > Walter Lima Franco > Igor Tanabe

Lineage 2: Carlos Gracie > Helio Gracie > Rolls Gracie > Romero Cavalcanti > Eduardo Telles > Igor Tanabe

Main Achievements:

• 1st Place IBJJF All Japan Championship (2020 / 2021)

Main Achievements (Colored Belts):

• 1st Place IBJJF World Championship (2018 purple)
• 1st Place IBJJF World Championship NoGi (2018 purple)
• 1st Place IBJJF European Open (2017 purple)
• 1st Place IBJJF Asian Open (2018 purple, 2019* brown)
• 1st Place IBJJF World Championship Juvenile (2017 blue)
• 1st Place IBJJF Pan Championship Juvenile (2017)
• 1st Place IBJJF European Open Juvenile (2016)
• 1st Place IBJJF Asian Open Juvenile (2016)
• 2nd Place IBJJF European Open (2017* purple)
• 2nd Place IBJJF World Championship Juvenile (2016 / 2017*)
• 2nd Place IBJJF World Championship Juvenile NoGi (2016)
• 2nd Place IBJJF Pan Championship Juvenile (2016 / 2017*)
• 2nd Place IBJJF European Open Juvenile (2016* / 2017**)
• 3rd Place IBJJF World Championship (2019 brown)
• 3rd Place IBJJF Pan Championship Juvenile (2016* / 2017*)
• 3rd Place IBJJF Asian Open Juvenile (2016*)

* Absolute
** Weight and Absolute

Favorite Position/Technique: Modern Guard

Weight Division: Meio Pesado (88,30 kg / 195.0 lbs)

Team/Association: Nine-Nine (99 BJJ) / Igloo BJJ

Igor Tanabe Biography

Igor Tanabe was born on May 9, 2000, in São Paulo, one of Brazil’s largest cities, one with a very large Brazilian-Japanese community, of which Tanabe’s family was a part of. On January 2004, however, the Tanabe’s moved back to Japan, where Igor spent his formative years.

Although football (soccer) was his main focus as a child, in 2007, during his school’s holiday, Tanabe and his father visited a local jiu-jitsu gym where Igor’s uncle practiced the gentle art. The uncle invited both to train, making this visit Tanabe’s introduction to grappling.

The whole Tanabe family enjoyed the experience, becoming regulars at Gabriel Shibuya’s academy. This same place where Igor met his, later to be, wife – Ingrid Franco – who also attended the kids’ classes at Shibuya’s gym.

With time coach Shibuya moved to Brasil and Tanabe’s tuition was picked up by Igor’s own father – Rafael Guimarães, and his (soon to be) father in law, Walter Franco. A duo who promoted Igor to the blue and purple belt ranks, two stages in Tanabe’s career in which he became recognized as one of the hottest grappling prospects in the world.

During his many visits to the United States, to compete, Igor became good friends with Eduardo Telles at the Nine-Nine Jiu-Jitsu Academy (99 BJJ), an alliance that would bear fruit for many years. It would be Telles as well as Walter Franco who promoted Igor Tanabe with his brown and black belts, the latter in a ceremony that took place in May 2020.

Igor Tanabe vs Ilya Anisimov