Jonathan Torres will be back competing in Brazil. Photo John Lamonica.
Anyone who loves those lively matches between Jiu-Jitsu lightweights should start checking ticket prices to get to Porto Alegre, in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. There, the December 17 Copa Pódio tournament has some classics in the works between a handful of the top competitors on the scene today.
The promoters confirmed the lineup for the featured lightweight GP: Augusto “Tanquinho” Mendes, Leandro Lo, Claudio Caloquinha, Augusto “Tio Chico” Vieira, Denilson Pimenta, Moacir Mendes and Jonathan Torres. And while there are still two spots left the fill, the names on the roster so far are more than a guarantee the competition will be first rate.
As the promoters would like to underscore the importance of the athlete-coach dynamic, each competitor will have their coach prominent in their corner.
“Yesterday we got Jonathan Torres on board. He’ll be the international attraction at the event and will represent Lloyd Irvin but will have Jimmy Harbison in his corner. Now Augusto “Tio Chico” Vieira, who won the middleweight division at the Rio Open, took on the challenge of dropping five kilos by the event and will represent Renzo Gracie, with his brother Felipe Pena as his coach,” said Jeferson Maycá, who organized Copa Pódio. “We’re looking into bringing in representatives from CheckMat and Nova União and should have the full lineup finished by tomorrow.”
Also in the works is a supermatch to open the tournament. Official launch of the event and the brackets lottery will be held November 10 at a banquet at Rio de Janeiro’s Tijuca tennis club.
Check out the teams and lightweights so far confirmed for the GP:
Soul Fighters (RJ) – Atleta: Augusto Mendes “Tanquinho”. Técnico: Leandro Escobar “Tatu”
Cícero Costha (SP) – Athlete: Leandro Lo. Coach: Cícero Costha
GFTeam (RJ): Athlete: Denilson Pimenta. Coach: Julio Cesar Pereira
Alliance (RS): Athlete: Moacir Mendes Jr. Coach: Mário Reis
Gracie Barra (MG): Athlete: Cláudio Mattos “Caloquinha”. Coach: Romulo Barra
Renzo Gracie (NY): Athlete: Augusto Vieira “Tio Chico”. Coach: Felipe Pena
Lloyd Irvin (USA): Athlete: Jonathan Torres. Coach: Jimmy Harbison