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MATS NILSSON was born December 5th 1983, is a Swedish grappler and mixed martial arts fighter. He is the current FILA Grappling world champion and a bronze medalist in FILA Grappling European Championship. Nilsson currently holds a mixed martial arts record of 4-1-1, with four wins one draw and one loss.[3] He is currently fighting out of Kaisho Martial Arts, Helsingborg, Sweden.
Judo Career
Nilsson started practicing judo in he’s teens and this became a natural gateway into he’s interest for other martial arts. Nilsson’s first success in Judo competition came when he secured first place in the Skåne junior class division in 1999. Nilsson’s premier achievement within Judo came when he placed in third at the Swedish junior championships in 2002. He also took third place in the Swedish youth championships in 2000. Nilsson is currently holding a black belt in Judo. Nilsson’s Judo background can be seen in both his Submission wrestling and MMA arsenal as he utilizes Judo sweeps, throws and takedowns.
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Alongside Judo Nilsson is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) practitioner. After some years training Nilsson gained great success in the first Scandinavian Open in Brazilian jiu-jitsu in 2003. He placed second in the 210 Lbs division and came in third in the open weight (Absolute Class). The following years resulted in many trips to the podium including a first place in the Danish Brazilian jiu-jitsu open where he competed in the 205 division. Nilsson holds a brown belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu which he received from Ricardo Carvalho in 2010.
After some years training Nilsson gained great success in the first Scandinavian Open in Brazilian jiu-jitsu in 2003.
Submission Wrestling
Prior to the Fighter Extreme 2 championship many of Nilssons training partners practiced submission wrestling, this form of competition intrigued Nilsson who started practicing the discipline. He’s first success came at the Copenhagen Open SW where he took first place in the 200 Lbs division. This was the beginning on a successful career within submission wrestling. Three years after the initial success in Copenhagen Nilsson took third place at ADCC- Germany in the 190 Lbs weight class. In 2009 he competed in the Swedish Championships in Submission wrestling for the first time. He left the championship with two medals; He placed third in his natural 200 Lbs weight class, in the open weight competition Nilsson took home the silver medal.
After these results in the Swedish Championships as well as prior success in the sport Nilsson was selected to represent the Swedish national team in the FILA Grappling World Championships in Crakow, Poland. In Crakow Nilsson defeated Takanori Kudo in the final to become 2010 FILA World Grappling Champion.[4]
Following his win in the FILA Grappling World Championship Nilsson was invited to Sportaccord Combat Games, which is the martial arts equivalent to the Olympic Games. Sportaccord Combat Games was held in Beijing between August 28th and September 4th 2010. After two hard fought 1-0 losses Nilsson missed the podium and finished on fourth place.
Between September 24th and Septptember 26th FILA’s European Championship in Grappling was held in Gorlice, Poland. Nilsson fought three fights and finished in third place, ending up with a bronze medal.[5]
Shootfighting
Following Nilsson’s success in Submission Wrestling, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Judo Nilsson decided to try Shootfighting. In 2007 Nilsson started competing in the Swedish Shootfighting league. Later the same year Nilsson took placed first in the Swedish Shootfighting Championships. Nilsson’s Shootfighting record stands at 5-1-0, five wins with a single loss.
Mixed Martial Arts
May 7th 2010 Nilsson competed in his fifth professional fight, this time for the organization The Cage in Finland. The name of the event was Spring Break and Nilsson secures the win with a TKO. This earns him a shot at the champion of the -84 division, Timo Suhonen.[6] At Cage Challenger on the 18th of September 2010 they fought for the belt, Nilsson lost the fight after three rounds on a decision. Nilsson currently holds a 4-1-1 record with four wins one draw and one loss.[7] Nilssons next bout will be on October 27th when he will face an opponent still to be announced at The Zone FC 7 –