Sponsored by Shaikh Hazza Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Adviser to the National Security Council and President of Abu Dhabi Sports Council, the WPJJ’s goal is to raise the profile of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu worldwide while also aiming to make the UAE an epicenter for GI grappling competition – much in the same way the ADCC (Abu Dhabi Combat Club) Submission Wrestling Championship has done for the sport without the kimono.
If past history and the competitive nature of this season’s qualifiers are of any indication, expect this year’s competition to bring forth only the best in the BJJ world.
The junior competitors take the stage today with all adult competitors and weight divisions taking center stage Friday and Saturday. Included in that field is Texas’ very own Danielle Alvarez, fighting out of Alvarez BJJ / Nova Uniao in Arlington. She’ll be fighting in the female blue belt division after qualifying for the tournament in San Antonio.
As for the premier divisions, BJJ fans can expect it to be only the elite. With the qualifying rules for sponsored entry and the sheer cost associated with the competition being so far away playing a huge factor, WPJJ won’t have nearly as many competitors in each division as do other elite tournaments like the IBJJF Pans and Mundials but some of the very best will still be contesting in every category courtesy of the WPJJ brass (and their deep pocketbooks).
Reigning Champions
Open Rodolfo Vieira
+92KG Lucio Rodrigues
-92 KG Rodolfo Vieira
-83 KG Claudio Calazans
-74 KG Leandro Lo Nascimento
-65 KG Augusto Lopes Mendes “Tanquinho”
World Pro Jiu-Jitsu Championships – Black Belt Division Preview
-64kg
Top Contenders: Gabriel Willcox, Laercio Fernandes, Bruno Malfacine
Division Breakdown: Alliance’s Bruno Malfacine will come into this own riding the wave of his impressive performance just a few weeks ago at the Pans where he beat Guilherme Mendes. He won’t have to contend with either Mendes brother or the injured Tanquinho in this one so the way is open for him to win the category this time around.
Our Prediction: Bruno Malfacine
-70kg
Top Contenders: Isaque Paiva, Raphael Dos Santos, Wellington “Megaton” Dias
Division Breakdown: Isaque Paiva heads into this one after submitting Bruno Frazatto at the Brazil Gramado trials. 2011 European Champion Raphael Dos Santos and Wellington “Megaton” Dias are also contending this time. Given his win over a player like Frazatto, we’ll go ahead and pick Paiva for the win.
Our Prediction: Isaque Paiva
-76kg
Top Contenders: JT Torres, Lucas Lepri, Davi Ramos, Roberto Satoshi Souza, Leandro Lo
Division Breakdown: This should be one of the more hotly contested divisions with IBJJF Houston double gold winner JT Torres contending with Lucas Lepri and Leandro Lo amongst others like Ramos and Satoshi. Literally any of these guys could win it on any given day. Lo is probably the favorite headed into this one but we’ll go with JT Torres for the win.
Our Prediction: JT Torres
-82kg
Top Contenders: Claudio Calasans, Guto Campos, Tarsis Humphreys, Rodrigo Fajardo
Division Breakdown: Claudio Calasans is back to defend the gold he got last time around. He’ll have to contend with Guto Campos and Tarsis Humphreys in this one along with current European champ Rodrigo Fajardo. Alliance’s Humphreys has looked good in the past but the Atos representative Calasans has been consistently performing and recently won his division at Pans. He’s our favorite in this one.
Our Prediction: Claudio Calasans
-88kg
Top Contenders: Andre Galvao, Rafael Lovato Jr,
Division Breakdown: Andre Galvao won at the IBJJF tourney in Houston but pulled out of the Pans in favor of making sure he was healthy for this tournament. He’ll most likely have to contend with top American Rafael Lovato Jr. in the final in this one. We love Rafael but Andre is the favorite headed into Saturday.
Our Prediction: Andre Galvao
-94kg
Top Contenders: Roberto “Tussa” Alencar, Rodolfo Vieira, Antonio Carlos Jr
Division Breakdown: “Cara de Sapato” Antonio Carlos Junior recently won absolute gold at the Pans after closing out the competition with his Checkmat teammate Marcus “Bucheca” Almeida. Missing from that competition though was GFTeam’s Rodolfo Vieira, who’s made a killing at collecting double gold medals at tournaments he enters. All roads go through Rodolfo in this one and it seems impassable until further notice.
Our Prediction: Rodolfo Vieira
-100kg
Top Contenders: Alexandre Souza, Alexandre “Xande” Ribiero, Bernardo Faria
Division Breakdown: It should come down to Xande Ribiero and Bernardo Faria in the final in this category, a rematch of the 2010 pesado final that was won by Faria. This should be another close one with Faria looking good at the Pans a few weeks back but we have a hunch Xande gets back to form and exacts revenge this time around.
Our Prediction: Alexandre “Xande” Ribiero
+100kg
Top Contenders: Roberto “Cyborg” Abreu, Marcus “Buchecha” Almeida, Ricardo Evangelista
Division Breakdown: Defending champion Lucio Rodrigues is out this year but the top of the field seems set with Marcus “Buchecha” Almeida and Roberto “Cyborg” Abreu being our picks for the two most likely to contend for the title. Checkmat has been looking good recently so we’ll pick Buchecha to take it all in the UAE for this category.
Our Prediction: Marcus “Buchecha” Almeida
Absolute Division
Top Contenders: Rodolfo Vieira, Andre Galvao, Claudio Calasans, Marcus Almeida, Bernardo Faria
Division Breakdown: From the sounds of things, it looks like all the top guys in a plethora of divisions will be gunning for the openweight title this year – including the last 3 winners in the open at WPBJJ – Rodolfo Viera, Claudio Calasans, and Tarsis Humphreys. It’s going to be stacked no doubt and should provide some very awesome matches. In the end though, Rodolfo Vieira has to be the favorite headed into this one.
Our Prediction: Rodolfo Vieira
Now that you’ve taken a look at our picks, here are the final brackets for each division courtesy of LapelChoke. Check them out and chime in with your own picks in the comments section or on the TXMMA Facebook Page and let us hear it!