Dominyka Obelenyte, João Gabriel, João Miyao, Otavio Sousa shine at New York BJJ Pro; see more results

Otavio Sousa. Photo by Doug Kline/ D-Kline Design.com

The New York BJJ Pro, an event held by the IBJJF featuring cash prizes, took place on the night of November 19 at the Nat Holman Gym (CCNY), in New York. Dominyka Obelenyte stole the show by winning double gold. João Gabriel Rocha defeated Mahamed Aly in the ultra-heavyweight final. Otavio Sousa beat Marcos Tinoco at middleweight. And João Miyao beat Gianni Grippo to nab featherweight gold.

Obelenyte got 1,500 dollars for the absolute. Otavio Sousa, João Gabriel and João Miyao got 4k each. Male runner-ups went home with 1,000 dollars each. Read below the results of the men’s adult black belt divisions, and click here for the New York BJJ Pro’s complete results.

BLACK / Adult / Male / Feather
1 – João Ricardo Bordignon Miyao – PSLPB Cicero Costha
2 – Gianni Paul Grippo – Alliance
3 – Bruno Frazatto Xavier C. Barbosa – Atos Jiu-Jitsu
3 – Gilson Nunes De Oliveira Neto – CheckMat

BLACK / Adult / Male / Middle
1 – Otavio Ferreira de Sousa – Gracie Barra
2 – Marcos Vinícius da Silva Tinoco – Alliance
3 – Felipe Cesar Silva – Barbosa JJ
3 – Lucas Benévolo Valle – Infight Jiu-Jitsu

BLACK / Adult / Male / Ultra Heavy
1 – João Gabriel de Oliveira e S. Rocha – Soul Fighters BJJ Connecticut
2 – Mahamed Aly Santos da Silva – Team Lloyd Irvin
3 – Abraham J. Marte Messina – GF Team International
3 – Carlos Eduardo de Araujo Farias – Roberto Traven BJJ

BLACK / Adult / Female / Light
1 – Aarae Alexander – Team Lloyd Irvin
2 – Laurah Elizabeth Hallock – GF Team

BLACK / Adult / Female / Medium Heavy
1 – Ida Fløisvik – Roger Gracie Academy Norway
2 – Katharine Elizabeth Lantz – Ribeiro Jiu-Jitsu
3 – Amanda Carvalho de Albuquerque M. Costa – Soul Fighters BJJ Connecticut

BLACK / Adult / Female / Super Heavy
1 – Dominyka Obelenyte – Jiu-Jitsu for the People

BLACK / Adult / Female / Open Class
1 – Dominyka Obelenyte – Jiu-Jitsu for the People
2 – Laurah Elizabeth Hallock – GF Team
3 – Aarae Alexander – Team Lloyd Irvin
3 – Amanda Carvalho de Albuquerque M. Costa – Soul Fighters BJJ Connecticut

Today has been an interesting day in my Bjj journey: I competed in a tournament I stand against for the lack of equal pay primarily in the black belt division, and won first place in weight and absolute. I needed the competition experience and since I can’t travel much because of school, I decided to do it. Although the end result was a happy one there is still work to be done, the least the ibjjf can do is equalize terms for the absolute by giving women a greater purse. I call upon all my ladies to not get discouraged, with each generation of women, whether they be white or black belts, we see an improvement in not only skill but in division size. It is a rare sight to see women in divisions with one or zero fights in large tournaments these days, and with growing numbers, the push for equal pay cannot be deterred. I encourage you guys to support your women Bjj fighters, watch their matches, understand that their journey is the same as everyone’s: entrenched in hard work and sacrifice. Thank you to all those who support me, my awesome teammates and friends @vedhatoscano @artallmighty @teamfabioclemente @wayofbabs @zatatoscano @erinherle @jew.jitsu and everyone else who I forgot to mention. I also wanted to throw a huge thanks to my sponsors @shoyoroll @bearsyr @digitsuonline #lamonicasnypizza for getting me here. I would be nowhere without the support of any of you #Bjj #jiujitsu #bjjgirls #bjjwomen #supportwomensbjj #girlsingis #equalpayforbjj #jiujitsuwomen #jiujitsugirls

A photo posted by Dominyka Obelenyte (@domdabomburmom) on Nov 19, 2016 at 5:40pm PST