When photos of Neymar’s visibly misshapen knee circulated on social media last week, Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion Joao Miyao had a straightforward response.
Miyao posted a side-by-side image showing that his own knee looks remarkably similar, and offered the soccer superstar some unexpected words of comfort.
“Just to reassure the Brazilian population, I personally don’t feel any pain… so Neymar probably won’t either… on the way to hexa,” Miyao wrote in the caption, a nod to Brazil’s pursuit of a sixth World Cup title.
The post drew reactions from both the BJJ and soccer communities almost immediately, as fans across Brazil weighed in on which knee looked worse and laughed at the absurdity of the comparison.
The comments section filled up fast. “Put two together, can’t put one,” wrote BJJ black belt Fellipe Andrew.
To understand the anatomical stakes: a healthy knee relies on four primary ligaments, the ACL, MCL, LCL, and PCL, along with surrounding muscles and a reinforcing joint capsule to prevent the joint from bending the wrong way. When those structures are compromised, the consequences range from muscle strain to full ligament rupture.
For anyone familiar with the Miyao brothers and their legendary refusal to tap during leg lock submissions, Joao’s casual attitude toward his mangled joint came as no surprise.
Over the years, Joao has been caught in heel hooks by Geo Martinez and Garry Tonon, a toe hold by Lincoln Pereira, and a calf crusher by Tonon again, each time refusing to submit.
His brother Paulo paid an even steeper price: after refusing to tap to a kneebar applied by a young Tye Ruotolo at ADCC 2019, Paulo later revealed that his MRI showed complete destruction of both his ACL and LCL, along with meniscus damage requiring surgery. His advice to everyone watching: tap.
Despite carrying what one commenter described as knees that “challenge the studies of orthopedics and biomechanics,” Joao has continued to compete at the highest levels of the sport. The sight of him walking, let alone grappling and winning world titles, has become something of a marvel to the Brazilian BJJ community.
Neymar, 34, is in the United States with Brazil’s national team for the 2026 FIFA World Cup and has been dealing with a string of physical setbacks. He missed the team’s opening 1-1 draw against Morocco, and sources indicated he could sit out the entire group stage due to a Grade II calf muscle injury picked up on May 17 while playing for Santos.
His knee history goes back even further. In October 2023, Neymar tore the anterior cruciate ligament and meniscus in his left knee during a South American qualifier against Uruguay, the same combination of structural damage that Paulo Miyao’s kneebar incident produced.
Since that knee tear, Neymar went approximately 700 days without playing for the national team, a stretch that included surgeries, recovery periods, and a platelet-rich plasma (PRP) procedure as recently as April 2026.
