Is AOJ Becoming The Next No-Gi Powerhouse Gym?
Is AOJ Becoming The Next No-Gi Powerhouse Gym?
With stars like Cole Abate, Tainan Dalpra, Mayssa Bastos, & more making a big splash, Art of Jiu-Jitsu has started to emerge as a no-gi force.
One of the best gi academies in the world is making a big transition into the no-gi grappling world - and it has the chance to be one of the top teams in BOTH styles. Art of Jiu-Jitsu is taking its focused, deliberate approach that brought them to the top of the gi world and turning its attention to the top of the no-gi scene as well. Since their founding in 2012 by the Mendes brothers, Art of Jiu-Jitsu has been one of the most advanced academies in the world for gi competitors. In 2023, it had its best success yet with multiple black belt world champions and medalists.
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AOJ has gathered a team of stars that include Tainan Dalpra, Cole Abate, Johnatha Alves, Mayssa Bastos, Diego 'Pato' Oliveira, Thalison Soares, Jessa Khan, Margot Ciccarelli, and more. The Mendes brothers have built the best current squad of lower weights in the world and are adding elite competitors like Gutemberg Pereira in the upper weights.
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With just one academy flying the AOJ banner, the team is competitive at the World Championships against associations that field athletes from dozens of schools. AOJ athletes are among the most advanced technicians in the gi, constantly on the cutting edge of how to use the gripping to their advantage. They are nearly synonymous with positions like the berimbolo, outside passing, leg drags, and some of the most advanced back attacking of any gym.
There's something else coming from Art of Jiu-Jitsu though. The team has been making a much more concentrated push into the world of no-gi grappling, after being associated almost exclusively with the gi for over a decade. After IBJJF World No-Gi Championships and as we draw closer to ADCC 2024, they are becoming a force that has the talent to be thought of among the best no-gi gyms in the world.
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That's no small feat. We are in a time when more grapplers are specializing in either gi or no-gi than ever before; so for a gym of that level to try to do both is remarkable. There are other schools that also operate on a high level in both, and now AOJ is making that big push step out of the box of gi specialization academy.
Among the current crop of athletes at AOJ, the top no-gi star to-date has been Cole Abate, the rookie black belt who won ADCC Trials while only 16 years old. He heads AOJ's no-gi program as the lead instructor and has been instrumental in advancing the gym toward this new goal. He has a style that blends some of the same back attacking, outside passing, and X-guard principles that the gym has been so successful with - but in no-gi.
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Something else that has been fundamental to AOJ accelerating its no-gi progression is the acquisition of new talent - especially Diego 'Pato' Oliveira. After initially making his name as a Cicero Costha and DreamArt athlete, he made the move to AOJ early in 2023 and brought in a style of aggressive leg locking that bridged a gap in the gym. There's no doubt the move has benefitted Pato; but the ability for the rest of the team to train against his leg locking would seem invaluable for their defensive skills in competition.
With Cole as a proof of concept and more talent coming in, more athletes from AOJ gi-specilist athletes have been making their no-gi black belt debuts over the last few years, including Johnatha Alves and Tainan Dalpra.
Tainan was recently successful in his debut, submitting Troy Russell with an armbar at WNO, while Alves avenged his no-gi debut loss against Oliver Taza by defeating him at the World No-Gi Championships. Alves is a great example of AOJ athlete who has improved dramatically in no-gi, and his series with Taza is proof.
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At the 2023 IBJJF World No-Gi Championships, AOJ brought a big squad and excelled. The team placed top-three in adult male, adult female, and juveniles, winning the juvenile team title by a big margin, with champions Alex Osorio-Mendes, Felipe Goulart, Dominic Manno, Ashlee & Mia Funegra, and more.
At the adult level, as only one school, AOJ nearly won it all in its first year of serious no-gi commitment - a result that brings heaps of confidence they'll be able to build on that. What makes it even more impressive is how the squad did it - using advanced leg locking and wrestling skill to win against elite competition.
AOJ walked away with the following medalists from No-Gi Worlds at the adult black belt level:
- Diego Oliveira, gold, men's featherweight
- Mayssa Bastos, gold, women's rooster
- Jessa Khan, silver, women's light-feather
- Zach Kaina, silver, men's light-featherweight
- Dorothy Dao, bronze, women's light-feather
The real test of this new no-gi commitment will be at the 2024 ADCC World Championships. Last time out, AOJ had Cole competing in the -66kg division and Mayssa in the -60kg division but both failed to advance. This time, the goal will be much higher.
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Mayssa will benefit from a smaller weight class (-55kg) that will be much closer to her natural size. Cole benefits from more time to physically mature, having last time been the youngest competitor in the tournament at only 17. Tainan has been open about his intention to pursue ADCC, where it remains to be seen if he chooses -77kg or -88kg. After beating Oliver Taza at Worlds, Johnatha seems like a likely candidate to enter South American Trials - where he could very well win. With Gutemberg as a -99kg or +99kg athlete, they could end up with a squad that represents AOJ at nearly ever weight in the tournament. Gutemberg also represents an interesting factor for them in many tournaments - an earnest contender for double gold.
As no-gi continues to expand, more elite athletes and teams will devote more resources to winning in that style. The emergence of Art of Jiu-Jitsu as a no-gi grappling powerhouse could be right around the corner in 2024, and they will be eager for the opportunity.
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