Filho made history by becoming the first non-Japanese (外人) to win the Karate World Championship in 1999.
He was also one of the few people to complete the 100-man Kumite Challenge more than once.
In 1982, aged 11, he started to learn Karate, at the Liberdade Dojo under Seiji Isobe.
Filho soon realised that Kyokushin Karate was the style for him. He also formed a close relationship with Isobe.
By 1985 Filho started competing in junior tournaments.
In 1987 age 16, Filho competed at the Brazilian Open, finishing in seventh place. The following year he improved to sixth place.
At the 5th South American Tournament, Filho won his first international title aged 18, in 1989. It was after this success that he dreamt of becoming world champion.
Between 2-4 November 1991, Filho competed in the 5th World Open Tournament, his first world tournament. In an earlier round, he was involved in a controversial bout against Andy Hug of Switzerland. In their bout, he knocked out Hug with a fearsome roundhouse kick that landed after the bell, to end the round. However, the result was upheld, even though the Swiss team lodged an official protest. He eventually lost to Kenji Yamaki in the final 16 of the tournament. The match was tied, but Filho lost the match because he broke fewer boards in the tameshiwara (board breaking) round. Oyama presented him with the award for the best technique in the tournament.
Filho’s loss gave him a renewed drive to want to become a world champion. For the next four years, between world tournaments, he trained even harder with the sole aim of becoming a world champion.
In 1995 Filho was invited to attend the 100-Man Kumite Challenge. In preparation, he trained around eight hours a day.
A month before the challenge was due to take place in Japan, Filho successfully completed the challenge in Brazil. On 22 March 1995, he took the challenge at the IKO Hombu. He recalled feeling nervous before the challenge. He finally relaxed after the first thirty fights After the sixtieth fight, his nerves returned. His body had started to cramp up. After the eightieth fight, he found his body was slow to respond. With 76 wins; 24 draws; and 0 losses, he completed the challenge in a time of 3 hours 2 minutes.
Being one of the few people to complete the challenge twice, Filho did not need to be hospitalised after the challenge. He was one of the few challengers not needing hospital attention. However, many of his opponents needed hospital treatment.
After the 100-Man Kumite Challenge, Filho toured Europe. He visited several dojos where he trained and learnt new techniques.
Between 3-5 November the 6th World Open Tournament (IKO-1) took place. He was one of the favourites for the title. He reached the semi-final where he faced Hajimi Kazumi. Kazumi had defeated Filho’s teammate Glaube Feitoso, earlier. In an epic encounter, the fight went into three overtime extensions, with no clear winner. In the tameshiwara (board breaking) section Filho broke 22 boards, with Kazumi breaking 24 boards making him the winner. In the final Kazumi lost to Kenji Yamaki.
On his return to Brazil, Filho fell into a bout of depression. In his pursuit to become world champion, he felt he had sacrificed a lot, with nothing to show for it. His disappointment made him come close to quitting Karate. Physically, he had been in the best possible shape, however, his mind and body were out of sync.
Titles in Karate:
1999 Gold, 7th Kyokushin World Open Karate Tournament IKO 1 (defeated Hajime Kazumi)
1997 Gold, 1st Kyokushin World Weight Tournament Heavyweight
1995 Bronze, 6th Kyokushin World Open Karate Tournament IKO 1 (lost to Hajime Kazumi)
1995 Gold, Brazilian Open
1994 Gold, Mundialito Open
1994 Gold, 7th South American Championships
1993 Gold, Brazilian Open
1992 Gold, 6th South American Championships
1992 Gold, Brazilian Open
1991 5th Kyokushin World Open Karate Tournament final 16 (lost to Kenji Yamaki)
1991 Gold, Uruguayan Open Karate Championships
1990 Gold, Paulista Championships
1990 Gold, Brazilian Open
1989 Gold, 5th South American Championships
1989 Gold, Paulista Championships
1988 Gold, Paulista Championships Juniors
1988 Brazilian Open, 6th place
1987 Brazilian Open, 7th place
1987 Gold, Paulista Championships Juniors
1986 Silver, Paulista Championships Juniors
1985 Silver, Paulista Championships Juniors
In 1995 Fancisco Filho completed 100 man kumite in Brazil and in Japan.