Inacio dos Santos

Jose Inacio dos Santos is a jiu-jitsu black belt and a regular competitor in the male ultra-heavyweight category (+100,50 kg / +222.0 lbs) who – despite having had 3 heart surgeries – made waves in the sport in 2023 after his silver medal performance at the International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation (IBJJF) Pan American Championships in the no-gi ruleset. Inacio would, once again, prove his worth as one of the main forces in the division after his win at the 2024 ADCC Brazilian Qualifier. Inacio Santos has also competed in powerlifting.

Inacio Santos Jiu-Jitsu

Full Name: Jose Inacio dos Santos

Nickname: N/A

Lineage: Carlos Gracie > Helio Gracie > Carlson Gracie > Orlando Saraiva > Marcelo Ferreira > Caio Barbante > Diego Ramos > Inacio Santos

Main Achievements:

• 1st Place ADCC Brasil BH Trials (2024)
• 2nd Place IBJJF Pan Championship NOGI (2023)
• #10 IBJJF Ranked No-Gi Athlete (2023)

Main Achievements (Colored Belts):

• 3rd Place IBJJF Pan Championship (2017 brown)

Favorite Position/Technique: Pressure Passing

Weight Division: Pesadissimo (+100,50 kg / +222.0 lbs)

Team/Association: SAS

Inacio Santos Biography

Inacio dos Santos was born on January 8, 1998, in Lençóis Paulista, a small municipality in the interior region of São Paulo, Brazil.

Initiated in sports at a young age, Inacio Santos began swimming classes at age 3 and kept this as a regular activity until he was 6. Although invested in swimming, his father was a big fan of martial arts and persuaded Santos to try a jiu-jitsu class at André Andrade’s (Rabiola) school.

Inacio began his jiu-jitsu tuition at 6, under Rabiola, and remained under his guidance until his orange belt, when he became a student of Ricardo Pereira. It was while training with Pereira that Santos became more invested in the competition scene, training and living particularly in his state’s famously strong grappling circuit.

MOVE TO THE USA

From when he was a teenager, Inacio dreamt of becoming a professional jiu-jitsu player. He visited the United States with his father in 2013 and competed as a blue belt in a few tournaments, winning gold medals. This was a turning point for Santos as he saw the sport booming in North America and opportunities to earn a living from the sport.

As a purple belt, Santos started training with Diego Ramos, earning his brown belt from the SAS team coach. Shortly after he earned his brown belt, his instructor moved to the US and not long after that, 19-year-old Inacio Santos followed his footsteps to teach at an academy in Syracuse, NY, where he earned his black belt in 2018. Although intending to compete while in North America, a series of heart complications set Santos back and forced him to have three surgeries, the latest in December 2021.

Finally healthy after his heart surgery with plans underway to compete on the international circuit, in January 2022, Inacio was let go from his position at the jiu-jitsu academy. Now jobless, he started working on a construction site, finally returning to competition in full force in 2023.

POWERLIFTING

Inacio Santos started paying more attention to weightlifting in the USA, influenced by a few friends. His love for that sport led him to compete in powerlifting on occasion, with his PRs as of May 2024 being:

Squat: 524.7 lb (238kg)
Bench Press: 407.8 lb (185kg)
Deadlift: 639.3 lb (290kg)