13 First Time Champs Crowned At No-Gi Pans | 2024 IBJJF No-Gi Pans Recap
13 First Time Champs Crowned At No-Gi Pans | 2024 IBJJF No-Gi Pans Recap
Abate, Hanson & Lovato Jr were some of the 13 first time No-Gi Pans winners this weekend. Elisabeth Clay won her 5th & 6th titles 76 days after giving birth
Devhonte Johnson became a two-time IBJJF No-Gi Pan champion, winning the absolute title at the 2024 No-Gi Pans in Fort Worth, Tx with a submission over Alehander Mariano in the open class final.
"Bones" had a four-match run to absolute gold, taking out Martin Gonzalez, Igor Schneider and Marcos Carrozzino on Saturday to earn his spot in the Sunday open class final, where he defeated red hot Alehander Marinho via rear naked choke.
Johnson won his first No-Gi Pans title in 2021, and followed that title with No-Gi Wolds gold that year. His second No-Gi Pans title comes just a few months after the birth of his daughter.
Johnson wasn't the only new parent to capture open class at No-Gi Pans. Elisabeth Clay returned to competition at No-Gi Pans just 76 days after the birth of her son, winning double gold with four submissions in five matches. This marks her third No-Gi Pans double gold since 2021. She has followed each of those performances with No-Gi Worlds titles in seasons past.
Clay had back to back finals with rising contender Maria Ruffatto. Ruffatto held Clay to a Points win in the heavyweight final before falling via heel hook in the absolute final.
Johnson's Unity teammate Junny Ocasio is proving to be at the peak of his career with a second consecutive No-Gi Pans title in the light featherweight category. Fresh off of his second No-Gi Europeans title, Ocasio went three for three in his run to gold. He's expected to contend for another No-Gi Worlds title in December, following his first World title earned at the end of 2023.
UFC veteran Talita Alencar also earned her second No-Gi Pans title, defeating Amanda Canuto in the final via points after a close victory over rookie black belt Thanyara Victoria on Saturday.
Alencar, Ocasio, Clay, and Johnson were in the minority among black belt champions at No-Gi Pans, as they were the only repeat champions. None of the remaining 13 medalists had previously won a No-Gi Pans black belt title; and ten of those 13 had not previously won an IBJJF major title at black belt.
Art of Jiu-Jitsu's Cole Abate won his first black belt major title with a gold medal in the featherweight division, defeating Julian Espinosa in the division final via armbar. In the semifinal, he caught a devastating heel hook over Ismael Santos. But his most impressive performance of the weekend may have been his quarterfinal points victory over multiple-time No-Gi Pans and No-Gi Worlds champion Gianni Grippo.
Pedigo Submission Fighting's Max Hanson won his first major IBJJF title at black belt, taking gold in the lightweight division with a strategic victory over 2023 champion Carlos Henrique in the final. En route to the final, Hanson had two submissions wins, a heel hook over Yigit Hanay and a rear naked choke over Bernardo Delibero. Hanson's victory added valuable points to the tally for Pedigo Submission Fighting. The team won their third consecutive No-Gi Pans team trophy, cashing in on points from Hanson as well as a powerhouse colored belt squad which amassed four gold medals.
After 20 years of active competition at black belt, Rafael Lovato Jr. won his first No-Gi Pans title this weekend in the super heavyweight division. The 41-year old submitted all three of his opponents leading to the final, where he closed out with Six Blades teammate Yan Paiva. One of those submissions was the first-ever heel hook victory of his career. This marks his ninth major IBJJF black title.
Atos' Alehander Marinho may have been the breakout star of the weekend, winning the medium heavyweight title and taking second in the absolute division just 15 months into his black belt career. The gold medal marked his first IBJJF major title as a black belt.
Marinho secured victories over Felipe Cesar Silva, Jacob Couch, Jeremy Skinner and David Garmo, among others.
Following his third place finish at No-Gi Euros last month, Checkmat's Jose Jurema secured his first IBJJF major gold as a black belt in the heavyweight division at No-Gi Pans. Jurema defeated Checkmat teammate Francisco Lo via leg lock in the final, and battle through a tough division on his way there, securing wins over powerhouse black belts Luccas Lira and Gabriel Brod.
After five years on the hunt, Natan Chueng has secured his first IBJJF major black belt title, taking gold in the middleweight division with a victory over Eduardo Avelar in the final. Chueng's road to gold featured matches against Kade Tsitos, Mateus de Moraes and Matheus Galvão. Chueng recently moved to the New York area and joined the Unity team, which appears to have paid dividends. He was one of three black belt champions this weekend representing Unity (alongside Johnson & Ocasio).
Rookie black belt Nadia Frankland is now a No-Gi Pans champion, securing a rear naked choke in the final to secure middleweight gold. Frankland, the 2023 No-Gi Worlds brown belt double gold champion, won three matches in her weight class and picked up two submission victories in the absolute division to take an additional bronze medal.
Amanda Bruse earned her first black belt major title at No-Gi Pans, winning lightweight gold after taking silver at No-Gi Worlds in 2023. The sophmore Atos blackbelt won by an eight point margin in her semifinal before submitting ADCC veteran Julia Maele in the final via rear naked choke.
Standout black belt Amanda Leve won her first IBJJF major title as a black belt, winning medium heavyweight gold with one submission on three victories. It was technically her IBJJF black belt debut, as the black belt of more than three years has not competed in the IBJJF circuit since winning No-Gi Worlds at brown belt in 2017. Leve told FloGrappling that she was competing on a torn ACL, damaged in an injury she sustained in March in the ADCC Trials finals.
Following his 2023 No-Gi Worlds title, Everton Texiera secured the roosterweight title at No-Gi Pans. In the final, he defeated Christopher Tran, who was picking up momentum this year with gold medals at No-Gi Euros and No-Gi Brasileiro.
Lucas Montalvão claimed the ultra heavyweight title with four victories on the weekend. He earned a razor thin victory in the final moments of the final against Leonardo de Andrade.
Mayara Ribeiro won the super heavyweight title with two submissions in as many matches. She secured an unorthodox Mir lock from inside the closed guard for a quick submission in the semifinal, then earned an armbar victory over Paige Borras in the final.
Thaís Loureiro picked up her first No-Gi Pans title after winning No-Gi Brasileiro earlier this year. The Atos roosterweight picked up two victories in her gold medal performance.
Ana Lima won the light featherweight title, closing out in the final with her AOJ teammate, Shelby Murphey. In the semifinal, Andrade defeated Sophia Cassella by an eight point margin, while Murphey collected a kneebar win over Jessie Crane.
The IBJJF No-Gi season is coming to a head. With three of the four No-Gi majors in the books, athletes are setting their sights on No-Gi Worlds, scheduled for December 11 through December 14 in Las Vegas.
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