IBJJ Pro League announces qualifying ranking and free webcast

IBJJ Pro League defines athletes ranking and announces free internet broadcast

The organizers of the IBJJ Pro League has defined the criteria for athlete selection for the debut event, set for December 8 at the California State Walter Pyramid, in Long Beach, California.

There will be four divisions and each of the four divisions will include eight competitors. This first installment of the event is exclusively for male black belts, Gi only, and will be broadcast over the internet for free at IBJJF TV (ibjjftv.com). The winner of each division will get a US $5,000 prize.

Weight Divisions (with Gi)
Up to 64 kg (141lb) – includes foosterweight and light featherweight athletes
Up to 76 kg (167.5lb) – includes featherweight and lightweight athletes
Up to 88.3 kg (194.6lb) – includes middleweight and medium heavyweight athletes
Over 88.3 kg (over 194.6lb) – includes heavyweight, super heavyweight and ultra heavyweight athletes

Qualifying Criteria
Six athletes from the under-64 kg, 76 kg and 88.3 kg divisions will qualify through the the IBJJF competitors ranking and two other athletes will qualify by winning their divisions at the 2012 Long Beach Fall International Open, which will take place on the same day and at the same venue as the Pro League.
Five athletes from the over-88.3 kg division will qualify via the ranking, and three athletes will qualify by winning their divisions at the Long Beach Fall International Open.

Rules and Regulations
IBJJ Pro League fights will be governed by the official IBJJF Jiu-Jitsu rules. The brackets will work in a single-elimination system. To avoid bracket close-outs between athletes from the same academy, the Pro League decided that competitors from the same team will have to face each other before the final match of each category.

Ranking
The competitors ranking is determined by the sum of the points each athlete scores throughout all the competitions he/she took part in and reached at least third place between the 2010 European Open Championship and the 2012 London International Open. The points scored in each tournament will go through the following mathematical formula:

STANDINGS VALUE X WEIGHT OF THE CHAMPIONSHIP X WEIGHT OF THE YEAR = POINTS

Examples of How to Count Points
1st Place Medium Heavyweight Worlds 2010 = 9 pts x 7 x 1 = 63 pts
2nd Place Absolute Pan 2011 = 4.5 pts x 4 x 2 = 36 pts
3rd Place Lightweight Houston Open 2012 = 1 x 1 x 3 = 3 pts

Current top 10 List of highest ranked athletes by division*

Under 64 kg (141lb)

1 – Bruno Mafacine

2 – Caio Terra

3 – Guilherme Mendes

4 – Ary Farias

5 – Laércio Fernandes

6 – Pablo da Silva Santos

7 – Rafael Freitas

8 – Carlos Vieira Holanda

9 – Daniel Beleza de Andrade

10 – José Thiago da Silva Barros

Under 76 kg (167.5lb)

1 – Rafael Mendes

2 – Leandro Pereira do Nascimento

3 – Michael Langhi

4 – Bruno Frazatto

5 – Samir Chantre

6 – Lucas Lepri

7 – Johathan Torres

8 – Augusto Lopes Mendes

9 – Rubens Charles Maciel

10 – Gilbert Burns

Under 88.3kg (194.6lb)

1 – Otávio Sousa

2 – Rômulo Barral

3 – Claudio Calasans

4 – Sergio Moraes

5 – Rafael Barbosa

6 – Bruno Antunes

7 – Lucas Leite

8 – Marcelo Garcia

9 – Rodrigo Fajardo

10 – Victor Estima

Over 88.3 kg (over 194.6lb)

1 – Rodolfo Vieira

2 – Bernardo Faria

3 – Marcus Almeida

4 – Leonardo Nogueira

5 – Nivaldo Oliveira

6 – Antônio Carlos Barbosa Jr.

7 – Antônio Braga Neto

8 – Alexander Trans

9 – Rodrigo Cavaca

10 – Alexandro Ceconi

* The final list of qualified athletes for the 2012 IBJJ Pro League will be released once the Asian Open IBJJF Jiu-Jitsu Championship and London International Open IBJJF Jiu-Jitsu Championship results have been processed.