A rundown of the biggest headlines and news from the world of competitive grappling.
Given how impressive the lineup is for every Who’s Number One event, their first ever tournament was always going to be an amazing one, but not many people expected what we’re about to see. The first ever WNO Championships event will take place at 155lbs and will feature some of the best talent in the Jiu-Jitsu world and some of the most exciting prospects in that weightclass.
The eight-man lineup was released slowly over time but is now completely full, with the two favorites being Mikey Musumeci and Kennedy Maciel. Their victory is by no means assured however as Geo Martinez, Diego Oliveira, Joshua Cisneros, and Ethan Crelinsten are all more than capable of defeating them. The event also features two young prodigies eager to provide the upset in Kade Ruotolo and 15 year-old Art of Jiu-Jitsu blue belt Cole Abate.
Pedro Marinho comes out on top at Submission Underground 25
SUG 25 represented a change of pace for the promotion as it was the first event with neither of the promotion’s male or female absolute titles on the line since they were invented. The main event instead featured one of Gracie Barra’s most recent black belts, Pedro Marinho, submitting SUG veteran Andy Varela with a guillotine pressed up against the cage within the first two minutes of their match.
The co-main event featured another pair high-level match as Romulo Barral black belt Edwin Najmi took on UFC veteran and current Bellator fighter Jeremy Kennedy. While Najmi came close with a toehold attempt that troubled Kennedy early on in the match, neither man could get the finish in regulation time and the match went into EBI overtime. From there, Najmi won the match with an incredibly quick choke from the back.
Full results for the event can be found here.
Combat Jiu Jitsu Middleweight world championships is almost here
The next edition of the Combat Jiu Jitsu world championships are right around the corner as Eddie Bravo’s brainchild is ready to crown a Middleweight champion for 2021. The first few entrants have just been announced but with a little over two months left until the event, there’s still several spots to fill out of the sixteen-man bracket. One of the favorites to come out on top will be last year’s runner-up, 10th Planet’s Kyle Chambers.
The other favorite is Roberto Jimenez, the reigning CJJ Welterweight world champion who is looking to move up in weight and become the first man to hold two CJJ world titles at the same time. Brazilian Fight Factory’s William Tackett and MMA veteran Felipe Fogolin will both also have a great chance of victory, while Justin Renick, Javier Torres, and Matt Secor all have plenty of CJJ experience and the ability to come out on top too.
Five last-minute changes made to the Polaris Squads 3 lineup
After Polaris Squads 3 was delayed by a few weeks as a result of the ongoing pandemic, the promotion has now had to make several changes to both team lineups at the last minute. Only one of those changes apply to Team UK & Ireland as Polaris triple champion Ashley Williams has been forced to withdraw due to an injury and will be replaced with Jed Hue in the under 75kg half of the team.
Team USA has had to switch out two of the under 75kg competitors as Geo Martinez and Adam Benayoun replace Kade Ruotolo and Edwin Najmi respectively. Then in the under 95kg section, Roberto Jimenez and Mike Perez have stepped up in place of William Tackett and the original team captain, JT Torres. With the loss of Torres, Martinez and his older brother Richie will now be the co-captains of Team USA.
Quick Hits
- Relson Gracie had some advice for his nephew, Kron Gracie, telling him to forget about boxing and get back to BJJ in order to succeed in his UFC career.
- The location and dates for the 2021 IBJJF world championships have finally been revealed as the event comes to California from December 9th to 12th.
- Gilbert Burns is eager to earn another Welterweight UFC title shot and has no issue with his fighting his way through Leon Edwards and Jorge Masvidal to get it.
- Nicky Ryan will be out for quite some time after suffering a knee injury at the Road to ADCC, and having to choose between a repair or full removal of his meniscus.
Technique Corner
Reverse De La Riva to Backside 50/50, to Heelhook
Jumping Armbar from standing passing
Three options from Worm Guard