Carlos André Pederneiras de Castro (born 22 March 1967) is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) and mixed martial arts (MMA) coach and promoter.
A former BJJ competitor, holding today a Red and Black 7th Degree Coral belt, Pederneiras is a six-time Brazilian National jiu-jitsu champion.
During his short career as an MMA fighter, he challenged Pat Miletich for the UFC Welterweight Championship in 1999,[5] and fought at the Shooto-run Vale Tudo Japan events.
[2] Pederneiras is the co-founder of Nova União, one of the top BJJ/MMA academy and team, acting as its leader and MMA head coach until stepping down in 2018 after 21 years.
[2][13] In 2019, the International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation (IBJJF) promoted Pederneiras to 7th degree Coral (Red and Black) Belt.
[2][14] This attracted controversy and his old master, Carlson called him a Creonte (meaning traitor) although anti foreign sentiment eventually faded away as time passed.
[2] Eventually after several years of disputes, Pederneiras allowed Nova União to return to IBJJF tournaments and CBJJO was dissolved.
[17] Later on, Pederneiras decided make Nova União branch out more into MMA because he saw it as a viable way for many of its gym members who had poor backgrounds to earn a living.
[2] In 2017, Pederneiras attracted some attention when he urged Brazilian fighters to move to the United States as it offered better opportunities for training and development.
[18] In 2018, Pederneiras stepped down from his duties as leader and head trainer of Nova União to focus on building another gym called Academia Upper.
[14] Aldo grew up poor with little money but was allowed to train and live at Nova União provided he helped out at the gym.