Rio Heroes ,Bloody fights broadcasted live to the entire world.

Bloody fights broadcasted live to the entire world. That’s what happened in a vale tudo cage closed this week by the Brazilian police. Investigation thinks that this improvised fight club was part of an outlaw betting system with tentacles to other countries.
“Fingers, eyes, back. You get bruised, right?” says vale-tudo fighter Leiarte Azevedo.
(fights with no time limit or protection).
“Who enters this world knows the risks he’s facing”, states Leiarte.
Rio Heroes was a clandestine vale tudo association, broadcasted to the entire world via internet, since March 2007.
Despite the name, Rio Heroes happened in São Paulo, without the mayor’s authorization.
“It was well disguised, because the building’s front had no sign or inscription”, says Police director Arquimedes Veras Júnior.
The fighters took on each other, bare-knuckle, inside a cage, and that’s against MMA rules. The fight only finishes by knock out or submission. The mastermind of the event, Jorge Pereira, spoke with “Fantástico” (Brazilian TV show) by telephone, from Miami, and tried to justify his acts.
“We are taking people out of the streets, out of robbery and crimes, and giving a chance for many fighters to live decently”, said Jorge Pereira.
“This is absurd! It has to be stopped because it’s not supported by any Brazilian federation or confederation”, stated Sérgio Batarelli, president of the Brazilian Confederation for Vale Tudo fights.
The tournament was an attraction for young athlete that could receive a purse of 2.000 USD (a good value in Brazil).
“It’s not worth, right? It’s such a little amount. Are you selling yourself for that? But you’re an athlete, you live to fight and you love doing it”, says Leiarte.
Betting websites, from Costa Rica and the USA, sponsored the competition.
“We make some money from this companies to finance the production of our events”, states Jorge Pereira.
The Brazilian law prohibits gambling.
“All the chain involving who was producing this event committed legal offenses”, explains lawyer Jair Jaloreto Júnior.
But, if the bet was made on other country, and it that’s legal there, it’s not considered illegal. The Police suspicious that the bets also took place on Brazilian soil.
“Fantástico” made a test to know if it’s possible to bet online from Brazil. They tried to register in 2 websites using an international credit card but they were blocked by the system.
“I don’t know how to bet, I don’t do that, I never gambled in my entire life, if you want to know”, says Jorge Pereira.
According to the Brazilian Vale-Tudo confederation, Rio Heroes violates all the International rules for MMA. The extreme violence of the matches is choking even for professional fighters.
But the organizers of the event will only be charged for minor criminal offenses.
“They’ll be charged for helping illegal betting”, says Police chief Arquimedes Jr.
It’s a minor crime, like many others in Brazil connected with common betting. In similar cases the defendant usually pays a light money fee.
Police closed the fight club this week. The investigators know that it’s only a matter of time for them to move somewhere else.
“They are like gypsies”, says the Police chief.
“When an athlete die they’ll blame the sport but the guilty is who’s promoting and letting this happening” finalizes Sérgio Batarelli.
Sweat more now, bleed less later.
"Unreasonable and reckless rogues, whose heated brain is not to be calmed by reason, expose themselves easily to the gravest danger"