(Props: Born to Roll)
Michelle Nicolini is a 32-year-old Brazilian jiu-jitsu phenom who picked up her seventh World Jiu-Jitsu Championship title on Saturday in Long Beach, California. Nicolini faced Tammi Musumeci in the women’s featherweight black belt finals, and was behind on points with one minute remaining in the match. Then, she snagged Musumeci’s left arm and pulled it across her back in a gnarly omoplata-hammerlock-thingy that reportedly dislocated Musumeci’s shoulder and elbow, and should have ended the fight.
It didn’t. Musumeci held on to the bell, and though she lost the match 13-6 she was given a standing ovation for her heart. Full results from the 2014 World Jiu-Jitsu Championships are right here. Fun fact: Nicolini is 2-0 as a strawweight MMA fighter — with both wins by first-round armbar — and recently signed with Legacy FC. Keep an eye out for her.