The brackets have been leaked, and a quick scan of the first-round matches shows there are plenty of reasons to get excited! Many people are already predicting possible finalists, but for now, we’re pumped to see these explosive first rounds at this year’s IBJJF World Championships!

Light Featherweight

Milton Bastos vs Ary Farias

Wow—no easy task for Farias in his first return to Worlds since 2013. Bastis is a tough, experienced veteran who is one of the most active competitors in the division. Farias will face a tough test here in his first match back at the most prestigious jiu-jitsu tournament in the world. 

Lightweight

Mansher Khera vs AJ Agazarm

Know the game "Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon"? You could play a jiu-jitsu version of the game with Agazarm. During his 100-plus-match black belt career (with half in the absolute division), Agazarm fought almost everybody—except Khera. This is Munch’s first Worlds as a black belt, and they will meet in the opening round of the lightweight division. Great match. 

Middleweight

Dillon Danis vs Victor SIlverio

Put two of the scrappiest and driven competitors together in the first round, and you’re guaranteed fireworks. In this case, you’ve got modern samurai Danis, who fights to kill or be killed, against GF Team’s hyper-aggressive Silverio, who doesn’t know the meaning of the word "retreat." Seriously, this match is bananas, and has "modern classic" written all over it. 

Victor Estima vs Marcos Tinoco

Gracie Barra and Alliance will clash in this interesting middleweight match. After an extended break from competition, Estima is finally returning to top-level jiu-jitsu. But he’s up against Tinoco, who (along with Matheus Diniz) is one of the most aggressive members of Marcelo Garcia’s team.

Celso Vinicius vs AJ Sousa

Crafty veteran versus young technician—this is a real clash of styles. Vinicius has a very traditional heavy passing style and a solid half guard game. Sousa is a de la Riva-, berimbolo-, leg drag-machine and a picture-perfect version of the modern jiu-jitsu competitor. This match will depend on who imposes their will first, but even that small battle will be a scrap to win. 

Ricardo Resende vs Jaime Canuto

Resende is one of the top black belts under Roberto ‘Cyborg’ Abreu. Not well-known in major competitions, he's a bit of a dark horse, but can't ever be counted out. He’s got the skills to make anybody’s day difficult. That said, so does GF Team’s Canuto, who has a killer closed guard and a frustrating game that catches many talented grapplers unaware. This is something of a sleeper match—our advice is not to miss it. 

Medium Heavyweight

Matheus Diniz vs Thiago Sa

As we mentioned earlier, Diniz is one of the most aggressive members of Marcelo Garcia’s competition team. He’s also one of the most intense. Sa of Checkmat certainly never shies away from a challenge, so when these two go head to head, an entertaining match is guaranteed.

Tanner Rice vs Gregor Gracie

It’s hard to define Gracie’s jiu-jitsu game—he’s a solid all-arounder who surprises his opponents by always changing his gameplan. Rice is great at disrupting his opponents with his long frame and awkward guard game. He already has a win over Gracie from late last year, so expect Gracie to go hard for revenge.

Ultra Heavyweight

James Puopolo vs Mahamed Aly

Screw the game plans, stylistic differences and traits of each grappler—this is almost certainly going to be an entertaining brawl! Aly's dynamic game matches well against Puopolo’s physicality, and vice-versa; definitely one not to miss. 

Roberto ‘Cyborg’ Abreu vs Otavio Nalati

Oh man, Cyborg drew the short straw of the ultra heavyweight division and got the mammoth Nalati in his first match. Cyborg’s got the experience and the strategic knowhow to beat the big man, but Nalati’s sheer size makes him a challenge. This is worth catching simply to see how Cyborg plans to take out Nalati, and whether Nalati can neutralize the champion’s famed technique. 

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