Will Ribeiro (born February 17, 1983 in Campo Grande, Brazil [1]) is a Brazilian mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter as well as a Luta Livre Esportiva (brown belt) practitioner, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. On December 16, 2008, Ribeiro was critically injured while riding on the back of a motorcycle on rain-slick wet roads without a helmet. He was in a hospital in a comatose state and has lost vision in one eye. Doctors gave him a 50/50 chance of ever waking from the coma.[1] By December 23, doctors reported that he had not awoken from the coma, but that his condition was improving.[2] This very unfortunate incident has effectively ended Ribeiro's Mixed Martial Arts career. At the time of his accident Will was ranked as the #7 Bantamweight fighter in the world by the MMAWeekly Worldwide MMA Ranking System.
Will Ribeiro has reportedly awoken from an induced coma and is recovering well after being hospitalized since December. According to Tatame.com, Luiz Alves, Ribeiro’s Muay Thai coach, recently visited him in the hospital and was surprised to see that Ribeiro was able to talk to him and is currently under going therapy after doctors stated he had a 50-50 chance to live due to his injuries suffered in the accident.
Almost two months after the serious accident that almost cost his life, Luiz Alves, his Muay Thai trainer, commemorates the excellent recovery of the WEC fighter.
“I had visited him at Christmas and then in January, but I left very sad and swore I wouldn’t return there anymore. He was swollen, very thin… But I was there yesterday and left very happy, because he spoke with me, remember everything that happened, kissed me”, revealed Luiz. “He is already in the ward, it’s better because he can watch TV now, he’s doing physiotherapy, is eating well and is excited”.
| Professional record breakdown | ||
| 16 | 9 wins | 2 losses |
| By knockout | 5 | 0 |
| By submission | 2 | 1 |
| By decision | 2 | 0 |
| Record | Date | Result | Opponent | Event | Method | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
| 9-2 | 12/3/2008 | Loss |  Brian Bowles
|
WEC 37 | Submission (Guillotine Choke) | 3 | 1:11 | Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
| |
| 9-1 | 6/1/2008 | Win | Chase Beebe
|
WEC 34: Sacramento | Decision (Split) | 3 | 5:00 | Sacramento, California, USA
| |
| 8-1 | 1/26/2008 | Win |  Andre Lobo
|
Shooto - Brazil 5 | KO (Punches) | 1 | 0:09 | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| |
| 7-1 | 10/27/2007 | Win | William Vianna
|
Shooto - Brazil 4 | KO (Punch) | 3 | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| ||
| 6-1 | 5/12/2007 | Win | D'Angelo de Souza Vieira
|
Conquista Fight 3 | KO (Knee to the Body) | 1 | 0:16 | Brazil
| |
| 5-1 | 3/24/2007 | Loss | Erinaldo Pitbull
|
Shooto - Brazil 11 | Decision | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| |||
| 5-0 | 10/25/2006 | Win | D'Angelo de Souza Vieira
|
Top Fighter MMA 2 | Decision (Split) | 2 | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| ||
| 4-0 | 4/8/2006 | Win | Daniel Siqueira
|
Juiz de Fora - Fight 3 | KO (Punches) | 1 | Brazil
| ||
| 3-0 | 2/10/2006 | Win | Washington dos Anjos
|
Submission PC: Pantanal Combat | Submission (Americana) | 2 | Brazil
| ||
| 2-0 | 5/21/2005 | Win | Rogerio dos Santos
|
Minotauro Fights 1 | TKO (Punches) | Macapa, Amapa, Brazil
| |||
| 1-0 | 12/20/2003 | Win | Gabriel Barros
|
Conquista Fight 1 | Submission (Side Choke) | 2 | 4:05 | Vitoria da Conquista, Bahia, Brazil
|