Abu Dhabi Grand Slam Rio: A Showcase Of Elite Jiu-Jitsu Talent

The Abu Dhabi Grand Slam (ADGS) Jiu-Jitsu World Tour began on Friday in Rio de Janeiro, drawing large crowds to the Carioca Arena. The three-day event features 2,000 male and female fighters from around the globe, with a significant number of junior competitors.

Rodrigo Valerio, Director of Operations at the Abu Dhabi Jiu-Jitsu Professional (AJP), noted that this championship, held in Brazil for its tenth season in 2024-2025, has seen record participation. He highlighted that it offers an ideal opportunity for practitioners worldwide to develop and refine their skills.

The Youth category headlined the first day, with fierce competition from the UAE's Commando Group team. They secured fourth place with a total of 35,000 points, surpassing many international clubs and academies.

Saturday's matches showcased black-belt masters in the men's division delivering remarkable performances. In the under 56kg category of Master 1, Emerson Cassio and Deeysson Cardoso were evenly matched. Emerson pulled off a last-minute sweep to close the scoreboard at 9-7, becoming the lightweight champion in his home country.

The ADGS Rio de Janeiro concludes on Sunday with Professional category matches. These feature experienced practitioners including brown and black belt holders from countries like UAE, Brazil, Colombia, and Kazakhstan.

In the featherweight final under 62kg category, Leo Alves brought technical Jiu-Jitsu against Chilean Nicolas Ponce. The Brazilian athlete emerged victorious with a 3-0 score.

The under 69kg category saw Thiago Macedo face Thiago Marques. The match ended with a narrow 1-0 score in favour of Thiago Macedo who took home the ADGS gold.

Women's Division Performances

The women's Master 1 division also delivered brilliant performances across four matches. Alexa Yanes emerged victorious in the under 55kg division with a 2-1 score, adding another gold to her collection of ADGS medals.

In the lightweight final, Andreia Cavalcante needed less than a minute to secure gold. Facing Melise Cavenaghi on the Rio de Janeiro mats, Andreia quickly locked a submission after pulling guard and attacking her opponent's foot.

Intense Battles in Higher Weight Classes

Luan Carvalh faced Lucas Barros in the under 77kg final. Luan maintained control and landed a takedown counter in the final seconds to close the scoreboard at 6-1, becoming the welterweight champion.

In the under 85kg division gold round, Lucas Laet Moutinho was matched against Manoel Junior. Both competitors received penalties for lack of combativeness but remained deadlocked at 3-3 throughout regulated time. Lucas managed to convince referees during golden score and won via decision.

Elen Tito utilised her pressure effectively to beat Barbara Brito in the under 70kg final. After taking her opponent down twice and following up with a back take, Elen put the scoreboard at 7-0.

Masterful Techniques on Display

A very well-balanced match decided the fate of Master 1 heavyweight gold as Portugal's Carla Leal faced local "Karlona" Albuquerque. With three penalties each and a tied score of 6-6 during golden score time, Carla worked from guard convincingly enough to win over referees and claim her spot atop under 95kg podium.

Leandro "Baião" Santos had a tough battle before conquering light heavyweight (under 94kg) title against Jackson Sousa. Evenly matched during regulated time, Leandro broke tie with timely sweep putting scoreboard at 2-0.

A quick win for highly decorated Felipe Bezerra came in under 120kg category of ADGS Rio de Janeiro. Juan Bitterncourt tried pulling guard but Felipe swiftly slid behind locking iron grip on Juan's collar choking super heavyweight title out of opponent.

With inputs from WAM