Marcus “Buchecha” Almeida has expressed frustration over his lengthy absence from competition ahead of his return at ONE 169 on November 8th. The grappling legend has been out of action for over a year since his last bout in ONE Championship.
“To be sitting out for 15 months for me it was horrible, a bad experience for my career,” Almeida said in an interview. “I’m not getting any younger, so yeah, but it is what it is. I can’t complain – what’s past is past. Now I have to focus on the future.”
Almeida emphasized his desire to stay active, stating: “I want to keep active and I want to keep fighting.” He noted his preference would be to compete “three minimum times a year,” recalling that previously he “did four fights in 11 months.”
The 33-year-old indicated the extended layoff was not his choice, saying: “I was ready since like the last fight, you know, but unfortunately that’s not up to me. That’s because of the organization.”
Looking ahead, Almeida hopes for more consistent bookings, affirming: “100% yeah, things got to change about that.”
While focused on his upcoming bout against Amir Aliakbari, Almeida also expressed interest in potentially returning to grappling competitions to stay sharp between MMA bouts. “Maybe it’s something that I’m going to start doing again to just to keep more active and I love to compete, of course,” he said.
Almeida praised his upcoming opponent Aliakbari’s recent success, noting: “He’s been on a good winning streak…he’s a tough opponent, of course. Fought a lot of tough guys, and it’s going to be a good fight, grappler against grappler, so it’s going to be really interesting for the audience to watch the fights.”
The matchup pits two accomplished grapplers against each other, with Almeida’s world-class jiu-jitsu credentials facing off against Aliakbari’s wrestling pedigree. Buchecha emphasized the stylistic intrigue, stating: “It’s going to be a good fight, grappler against grappler, so it’s going to be really interesting for the audience to watch the fights.”
While coming off a loss in his last bout, Almeida remains focused on the task at hand rather than looking too far ahead. He explained his mindset: “I always think one step at a time, so my focus is on this fight right now, and after the fight, I like to set my next goals.”
In addition to his MMA ambitions, Almeida has revealed he’s been contemplating a return to grappling competitions as a way to stay more active.
“Being honest with you, I thought a lot and maybe to fight grappling again because I was so being like not active, so I almost fought grappling by then, so maybe it’s something that I’m going to start doing again to just to keep more active and I love to compete, of course,” Almeida stated.
The grappling legend last competed in a jiu-jitsu tournament in 2019 before transitioning to MMA full-time. However, after being sidelined for 15 months, Almeida is looking at grappling as a way to scratch his competitive itch.
“If I can fight like grappling to keep active and to keep like competing to keep their adrenaline going on, it’s something that it’s not going to make me harm anything in my career,” he explained. “So that’s why I want to do it. There is like a lot of new events coming up, and I have a big name in jiu-jitsu, so for me it’s easy to get like in those shows, and so it’s something that I’m planning to do next year for sure.”
While Almeida emphasized his focus remains on MMA, he sees grappling competitions as complementary to his fighting career rather than a distraction. For a competitor used to an active schedule, the opportunity to compete more frequently is appealing.
As one of the most decorated grapplers in history, Almeida’s potential return to the mats would be a major story in the jiu-jitsu world.
