Caio Boralho wants ‘everyone to wear glasses’ as ‘maniac fighters’ prepare to seize power

In the 1984 film Revenge of the Geniuses, Louis Skolnick (played by Robert Carradine) and Gilbert Lowe (played by Anthony Edwards) lead a group of geniuses to stop the ongoing harassment by the Alpha Beta fraternity at the fictional Adams College. At the end of the film, Gilbert stands before the college assemblies and gives an impassioned speech about standing up to discrimination.

“I just wanted to say that I am a queer person, and I am here tonight to defend the rights of other queer people,” he said. “All our lives we have been ridiculed, pressured and made to feel inferior.”

In 2024, undefeated Brazilian middleweight champion Caio Borralho stands up to nerds around the world. However, unlike Skolnick and Lowe, Borralho’s mixed martial arts team, The Fighting Nerds, bullies bullies at their own game.

“We are nerds who love to fight,” Boralho told ESPN. “The real goal (of the Fighting Nerds) is to inspire people. There’s a message for all the people who are bullied around the world. Some kids wear glasses but they don’t like it because they feel like they look ugly. Imagine (what it would be like) to see the best fighters in the world kicking people around and proudly wearing their glasses?”

The San Paulo, Brazil-based team has had an impressive run since Boralho made his UFC debut in 2022. Led by Boralho and head coach Pablo Sucupira, The Fighting Nerds features 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 has become one of the fastest-rising gyms in MMA.

Before they made their living in mixed martial arts, Boralho and Sucupira were both nerds in their own right, and they ended up meeting through a common ground. 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 at gameplanning than executing it because his body couldn’t execute the ideas he had during a fight. He opened a gym in the small town of Barra Funda called Fight Club and met a young fighter named Caio Boralho who needed a striking coach. Sucupira took a liking to Boralho and noticed his analytical approach to fighting. Unlike Sucupira, Boralho had the intelligence and physicality to execute gameplans that were based on deciphering trends and patterns to put himself in the best position to win.

“He was just like me, we prefer to be rational rather than emotional when it comes to fighting,” said Sokupira. “We looked at it like a math problem, and when you are preparing for an exam, you have to be calm, relaxed and think before answering, especially when your adrenaline levels are high, so you can give your best.”

“We approach combat differently,” Boralho said. “We analyze everything – stats, combat mechanics, moves, patterns. We’re just different in this game.”

Because of their different backgrounds and analytical approach to fighting, Boralho and Sucupira decided to call themselves The Fighting Nerds.

“Fighting and genius are opposites, and when they come together, they form a powerful combination,” Sucupira said of the group’s name. “Every fighter wants to be smarter and every genius wants to be braver.”

Borralho (16-1, 6-0 UFC) will look to add to The Fighting Nerds’ success when he faces former title challenger Jared Cannonier in the main event of UFC Fight Night on Saturday. A win would move him into the middleweight title hunt. But a win on Saturday is just as important for Borralho, as he gets the chance to show off his favorite Fighting Nerds goggles.

The glasses – glued in the middle to symbolize the stereotype of geniuses having their glasses broken by bullies – became the uniform of The Fighting Nerds.

Similar to the Papakha hat worn by Khabib Nurmagomedov in honor of his native Dagestan, the Fighting Nerds wear their glasses as they go to and from the Octagon and put them on whoever is in charge of their post-fight interviews. Jean Silva put the glasses on UFC analyst Joe Rogan after his win over Charles Jordan at UFC 303.

“Our goal is to fight in a big arena with everyone who wears glasses,” says Boralho, who has worn glasses since he was three due to astigmatism and myopia, about the trend he hopes will catch on. What he was once ashamed to wear has become a symbol of intelligence and strength.

“These glasses will go beyond the fight game,” said Sucupira. “If you’re a geek, you’re probably the best in the class or, in this case, the best in the octagon. Fight Geeks aren’t here to change the fight game. We’re here to change the way people think about geeks, those who study to be the best at whatever they do. We want geeks everywhere to be proud of themselves.”

The Brazilian may not look like a stereotypical geek, with his 6-foot-2 frame and the words “Free Spirit” etched on his neck. But Boralho found an intense game of chess or an evening of cartoons just as stimulating as drawing up an analytical game plan to dismantle his opponents.

“In MMA, it seems unlikely that the mind and intelligence could win that way,” MMA coach Dean Thomas told ESPN of The Fighting Nerds’ rise. “They hit in a different way that seems more mathematical than anyone else.”

Thomas has been impressed with the team since Borralho appeared on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2021. As he began to see more fighters from the gym make their way to the UFC and find success, he noticed their high striking ability that left opponents confused and on the wrong side 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 impressed by Prates’ patience and meticulous approach to ensuring his stoppage.

Prates wasn’t the only gym member to dominate the tournament with his powerful strikes. Women’s strawweight champion Bruna Brazil put on a show against freestyle fighter Molly McCann at UFC 304. Jean Silva’s stunning third-round defeat of Drew Dober — two weeks after becoming the first fighter to knock out Charles Jordan at UFC 303 — also raised eyebrows, while Mauricio Ruffy’s promo debut at UFC 301, when he knocked out Jamie Mullarkey in the first round, underscored the idea that something special was happening in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

“Their rhythm, their timing and their ability to see what’s happening is incredibly impressive,” Thomas said.

The Fighting Nerds still have a long way to go before they are recognized as one of the elite teams in MMA, but like the New Zealand team City Kickboxing acquired a few years ago, they have the talent ready and firing on all cylinders at the right time.

“Every year is a year of The Fighting Nerds dominating the tournament and we are just getting started,” Borahlo said. “Next year will be even bigger with me and my middleweight title, Jean Silva and Carlos Prates entering the ranks and our army of fighters entering the UFC. We are here to make our dreams come true.”

The world may find out when The Fighting Nerds leader steps into the ring to face a former title challenger who is currently ranked No. 5 in the UFC’s middleweight division. As it stands, the top half of the UFC middleweight division could use an injection of fresh blood into the title picture with mainstays Robert Whittaker, Israel Adesanya, Marvin Vettori and Cannonier all challenging for the title or already being champions. If Borrallo passes the test against Cannonier, Borrallo could find himself in the title picture by 2025 with a potential fight against Nasuruddin Imavov, Khamzat Chimaev or Sean Strickland up for grabs.

“I’m the new generation in the division. After I finish fighting Jared, there will be no talks. I’ll be the next contender in the middleweight division,” Boralho said.

After Skolnick and Rowe gave their speeches at the Revenge of the Geniuses final, their fraternity, the Tri-Lambs, moved to the Alpha Betas fraternity house where Adams College students showed their support by chanting “Geniuses” during the credits.

If this movie is any indication, it’s probably safe to say that The Fighting Nerds are on their way to taking over the house known as the UFC.