Rodolfo Vieira has secured his spot in yet another Abu Dhabi WPJJC event. (Photo courtesy of Flashsport)
And a new champion has been crowned. Nádia Melo of GFTeam’s star rose over Caio Martins Gymnasium, where she took to under-63 kg competition to win an all-expenses-paid trip to Abu Dhabi. Nádia, who on Saturday dispatched Bia Mesquita with a kneebar, on Sunday caught Bruna Marques of Barbosa Team by the neck and went through to face Hellen Bastos of Game Fight in the final, which she won via armbar.
In the over-63 kg division there were no surprises. Gabrielle Garcia of Alliance had two matches on Sunday and got the tapout in both of them. The absolute world champion took her opponents down, passed their guards and tapped them out, as has become her custom. In the first match she used an americana keylock, and in the final she won with a choke from mount.
At 2 p.m., GFTeam’s top gun Rodolfo Vieira entered the under-92 kg scene against Pedro Henrique of CheckMat. Vieira was caught off guard by a takedown, but fired back with a sweep and then finished with a forearm choke from the back. In the other semifinal of the same division, his friend and teammate Manoel Fernandes defeated Fabricio Maia of Sankaco. Rodolfo then conceded the win to Manoel but kept the ticket to Abu Dhabi for himself.
Paulo Miyao and his berimbolo were a hit. (Photo courtesy of Flashsport)
There were berimbolos galore in the under-65 kg division. Paulo Miyao of Cicero Costha Team joined the fray even despite already having qualified for the main WPJJC event. In the semifinal against Soul Fighter’s Gabriel Willcox, Paulo pulled off a berimbolo sweep and took the back to finish via choke. At the other end of the bracket, Richard Avila of Gordo Jiu-Jitsu cruised past Victor Otoniel of Alliance. Paulo, having already qualified at an earlier date, conceded to Richard without facing off.
The lightweight Theodoro Canal was on fire. (Photo courtesy of Flashsport)
Competing in the under-74 kg division, GFTeam star Theodoro Canal was on fire again. Theo made it past Tiago Aragão of CheckMat to make it to the final against Fabricio Silva of Marcio Rodrigues Team, who outfought GFTeam’s Antônio Carlos. Theo pulled guard and kept trying to pull off sweeps, which Fabiano duly defended. Fabiano tried to open his guard but failed to do so. The match ended in a draw, and Theo took the gold via judges’ decision.
GFTeam shone in the under-83 kg division, with Luiz Gustavo and Victor Bomfim winning all their respective matches and closing out the divisional final. Luiz Gustavo took the plane ticket for himself.
Braga Neto and Igor Silva in 50/50 (Photo courtesy of Flashsport)
In the over-92 kg division, Braga Neto of Gordo JJ and Ricardo Evangelista of GFTeam collided in the divisional final. Neto started out by pulling guard, setting up and sweeping. Ricardo ended up playing guard but couldn’t withstand the pressure Braga Neto brought with him and couldn’t contain the two guard passes that led to his defeat. At the other end of the bracket, Igor Silva of GFTeam defeated Cassio Lisboa of Gracie Humaita with a sweep after a hard-fought encounter. The gymnasium shook as the divisional final between Braga Neto and Igor Silva got underway. Neto began by pulling guard, jockeying for positioning before sweeping and landing in 50/50. From there, Igor attempted sweep after sweep that Neto defended by posturing up. Igor would not give up, and with 30 seconds left he managed to gain the advantage over Neto with a sweep, as the two tumbled out of the match are. Neto won the match and the trip to Abu Dhabi, leaving his injury at Copa Pódio behind him.
Check out who all classified for Abu Dhabi:
BLUE
Over-83kg absolute: Rudson Mateus (Black Belt)
Under-83kg absolute: Robert Rodrigues (Guigo)
PURPLE
Under-83kg absolute: Ramon Duz (Núcleo)
Over-83kg absolute: Patrick Gaudio (GFTeam)
BROWN/BLACK
Under-65kg: Richard Avila (Gordo JJ)
Over-74kg: Theodoro Canal (GFTeam)
Under-83kg: Luiz Gustavo (GFTeam)
Over-92kg: Rodolfo Vieira (GFTeam)
Over-92kg: Braga Neto (Gordo JJ)
FEMALE:
Under-63kg: Nadia Melo (GFTeam)
+63KG: Gabi Garcia (Alliance)