In the 1984 film “Revenge of the Nerds,” characters Lewis Skolnik (played by Robert Carradine) and Gilbert Lowe (played by Anthony Edwards) lead a group of nerds to stop the constant harassment of the Alpha Betas fraternity of bullies at the fictional Adams College. At the end of the film, Gilbert appears before the college fraternities and gives a rousing speech about how to stand up to discrimination.
“I just wanted to say that I'm a nerd and I'm here tonight to stand up for the rights of other nerds,” he said. “Our whole lives we've been laughed at and made to feel inferior.”
In 2024, undefeated Brazilian middleweight Caio Borralho is championing nerds around the world. Unlike Skolnink and Lowe, however, Borralho’s MMA team, The Fighting Nerds, is bullying bullies at their own game.
“We're the nerds who like to fight,” the former math and chemistry teacher turned mixed martial artist told ESPN. “The real point is… [of The Fighting Nerds] “It's to inspire people,” Borralho said. “There's a message for all the people who have been bullied around the world. Some kids wear glasses but they don't like them because they feel they're ugly. Imagine.” [what it is like] Watching the best fighters in the world kicking people's asses and being proud to wear their glasses?
The San Paulo, Brazil-based collective has been on a remarkable run since Borralho’s UFC debut in 2022. Led by Borralho and head coach Pablo Sucupira, The Fighting Nerds include Carlos Prates (19-6, 3-0 UFC), Jean Silva (14-2, 3-0 UFC), Mauricio Ruffy (10-1, 1-0 UFC) and Bruna Brasil (10-4-1, 2-2 UFC) and have become one of the fastest-rising gyms in MMA.
Before making a living in MMA, Borralho and Sucupira were nerds in their own right who ended up bonding over commonalities. Sucupira worked as a copywriter for a marketing agency before pursuing a career as a boxer and kickboxer. A knockout loss in a Muay Thai fight in 2009 made the Brazilian realize that he was better suited to creating game plans than executing them because his body couldn’t carry out the ideas he had during a fight. He opened a gym in the small town of Barra Funda called Combat Club and met a young fighter named Caio Borralho who needed a striking coach. Sucupira took a liking to Borralho and took notice of his analytical approach to fighting. Unlike Sucupira, Borralho possessed both the intellect and athleticism to execute game plans that relied on deciphering trends and patterns to put himself in the best position to win.
“He was like me, we prefer to be rational than emotional when it comes to fighting,” Sucupira said. “We took it like a math problem and when you prepare for an exam, you have to be calm, relaxed and think before you answer, especially when the adrenaline kicks in, to do your best work.”
“We approach the fight in a different way,” Borralho said. “We are analyzing everything: statistics, [fighting] Mechanics, movements and patterns. In this game we are different.”
Due to their respective backgrounds and analytical approach to the fighting game, Borralho and Sucupira decided to call themselves The Fighting Nerds.
“Wrestling and nerds are two polar opposites that, when put together, make a strong mix,” Sucupira said of the collective's name. “Every wrestler wants to be smarter and every nerd wants to be brave.”
Borralho (16-1, 6-0 UFC) will look to add to The Fighting Nerds' success when he takes on former title challenger Jared Cannonier in the main event of UFC Fight Night on Saturday. A win would propel him into the middleweight title conversation. But just as important for Borralho is a win on Saturday, a chance to show off The Fighting Nerds' goggles of choice.
The glasses, taped together in the middle to symbolize the stereotype of nerds whose glasses are broken by bullies, have become the uniform of The Fighting Nerds.
Similar to the Papakha hat Khabib Nurmagomedov wore in homage to his home country of Dagestan, the Fighting Nerds wear their glasses to and from the Octagon and put them on whoever is responsible for the post-fight interview. Jean Silva placed the glasses on UFC analyst Joe Rogan after his win over Charles Jourdain at UFC 303.
“Our goal is to fight in a big stadium and with everyone wearing glasses,” said Borralho, who has worn glasses since he was 3 years old due to astigmatism and myopia, about the trend he hopes will catch on. What was once something he was embarrassed to wear has now become a symbol of intelligence and strength.
“These glasses go beyond the fight game,” Sucupira said. “If you're a nerd, you're probably top of the class, or in this case, top of the octagon. We Fighting Nerds aren't here to change the fight game. We're here to change the way people think about nerds, the ones who study to be the best at whatever they do. We want nerds everywhere to be proud of themselves.”
The Brazilian may not look like your typical nerd, with his 6-foot-2 frame and the words “Free Spirit” tattooed on his neck. But Borralho finds an intense game of chess or an evening of anime watching just as stimulating as plotting out an analytical game plan to analyze his opponents.
“In MMA, it seems so far-fetched that brains and intelligence can win like this,” MMA trainer Din Thomas told ESPN about the rise of The Fighting Nerds. “They're striking in a different way that seems more calculated than everyone else.”
Thomas has been impressed with the collective ever since Borralho appeared on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2021. As he began to see more fighters from the gym break into the UFC and find success, he noticed his highly competent striking ability that has left opponents disoriented and on the wrong end of a knockout.
Most recently, Prates became the first fighter to knock out Li Jingliang in the Chinese fighter's 17-year career at UFC 305. Thomas was amazed by Prates' patience and nuanced approach in securing the stoppage.
Prates isn’t the only member of the gym who has dominated with her striking. Women’s strawweight Bruna Brasil put on a striking clinic against stand-up specialist Molly McCann at UFC 304. Jean Silva’s stunning third-round knockout win over Drew Dober (two weeks after becoming the first fighter to knock out Charles Jourdain at UFC 303) raised eyebrows, while Mauricio Ruffy’s performance in his promotional debut at UFC 301 when he finished Jamie Mullarkey in the first round cemented the idea that something special was happening in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
“His pace, his timing and his ability to see what's happening is incredibly impressive,” Thomas said.
The Fighting Nerds still have a long way to go before they are recognised as one of the elite teams in MMA but, much like New Zealand's acquisition of City Kickboxing a few years ago, they have the talent ready and firing on all cylinders at just the right time.
“Every year is the year that The Fighting Nerds takes over and this is just getting started,” Borrahlo said. “Next year is going to be even bigger with me and my [middleweight] The title, Jean Silva and Carlos Prates entering the rankings and our army of fighters coming to the UFC. We are here to achieve our dreams.”
The world could find out when The Fighting Nerds frontman steps into the Octagon to take on a former title contender who is currently ranked fifth in the UFC middleweight rankings. As things currently stand, the top half of the UFC middleweight division could benefit from an injection of new blood into title contention, with mainstays Robert Whittaker, Israel Adesanya, Marvin Vettori and Cannonier all having already challenged for or achieved title contention. Should Borralho pass the test against the mighty Cannonier, Borralho could find himself squarely in title contention in 2025, with potential matchups against Nassourdine Imavov, Khamzat Chimaev or Sean Strickland within reach.
“I'm the next generation of the division,” Borralho said. “After I'm done with Jared, there will be no talks. I'll be the next contender in the middleweight division.”
After Skolnik and Rowe give their speeches at the Revenge of the Nerds finale, their Tri-Lambs fraternity ends up moving into the Alpha Betas fraternity house as the students of Adams College show their support by chanting “Nerds” as the credits roll.
If that movie is any indication, it's safe to say that The Fighting Nerds are well on their way to taking over the house known as the UFC.
