Wednesday marks the beginning of competition in the men’s adult purple belt divisions at the 2018 IBJJF European Championships in Lisbon, Portugal. 

The rank contains some of the most hotly contested brackets in the entire event; gold at Euros is almost a guarantee of big things to come in the future. Here are the athletes you need to keep an eye on this week.

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PURPLE / Adult / Male / Rooster

Thalison Soares, Cicero Costha  

Soares, nominated as one of our 2017 prospects of the year, is about as close to a household name as one can be before becoming a black belt. An IBJJF world, Pan, European, and Brazilian champion during his first year as a purple belt, Soares is looking to continue his momentum from 2017 in Lisbon this week.

Don’t blink: this kid will likely already have taken his opponent's back.

First match: watch Thalison Soares vs. Emerson Cassio — (Mat 9) Wednesday, 5:07 PM (All times local, UTC 0/GMT)

All Thalison Soares sees is gold. Photo: Michsel Sears 

PURPLE / Adult / Male / Light-Feather

Two Cicero Costha killers are in at the light-featherweight division this year at Europeans: Diego "Pato" Batista and Francisco Jonas Andrade. The PSLPB Cicero Costha/Unity Jiu-Jitsu players have been sharpening their skills in tournaments around the globe nearly every weekend. 

They both took home gold medals from the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam just four days ago and are both top contenders for the podium Wednesday in Lisbon.  

First match: watch Jonas Andrade vs. Itamar Attali — (Mat 10) Wednesday, 3:55 PM

First match: watch Diego Batista vs. Joao Guilherme — (Mat 9) Wednesday, 3:38 PM

Jonas Andrade: Focus. Photo: Michael Sears 

PURPLE / Adult / Male / Light-Feather

Andy Murasaki, Brasa CTA

The highly touted Caio Terra prospect Andy Murasaki makes his IBJJF adult purple belt debut Wednesday, and we couldn’t be any more excited. Murasaki is a unique blend of unpredictable combined with being competition-savvy, and he has a solid foundation of jiu-jitsu basics. There are few positions the three-time juvenile world champion isn’t comfortable in, and we suspect this could be the start of a beautiful year.  

First match: watch Andy Murasaki vs. Simo Pentilla — (Mat 2) Wednesday, 5:11 PM 

PURPLE / Adult / Male / Light

Guthierry Barbosa, Carlson Gracie  

Guthierry Barbosa was the 2016 Pan and world champion at blue belt — he was promoted on the podium to purple after the World Championships. Though quite successful at regional events, Barbosa was unable to replicate his winning at the international level during this first year at faixa roxa. Perhaps Euros will see him find his rhythm. 

First match: watch Guthierry Barbosa vs. Remy Marcon — (Mat 1) Wednesday, 3:30 PM

Italo Moura, Cicero Costha  

Soft-spoken but absolutely lethal on the mats, Italo Moura has captured titles in just about every event there is to win. Owner of a devastating omoplata, Italo is composed beyond his years and is able to finish a fight with whatever mistakes his opponents eventually offer him.

First match: watch Italo Moura vs. Tommi Petteri — (Mat 3) Wednesday, 3:32 PM

PURPLE / Adult / Male / Middle

Roberto Francisco Jimenez, Alliance

One of the most exciting stories of this year’s European Championships is the purple belt debut of Roberto Jimenez. The Alliance representative has been at the top of the juvenile heap for years, earning the nickname "Bluechecha" for his savage technique and numerous victories. 

First match: watch Roberto Jimenez vs. Carl Hoyum — (Mat 7) Wednesday, 5:01 PM

Daniel Reimond Eklund, Atos  

We’ve already profiled Daniel Eklund in our breakdown of the top European athletes to watch this week, so we’ll let this monster clip do the rest of the talking. Trust us, watch him fight.

First match: watch Daniel Eklund vs. Sten Maaslieb — (Mat 7) Wednesday, 5:19 PM

Side note: Should Eklund and Jimenez win their first two matches, they will be scheduled to meet in the quarterfinals. That's pure FIRE. 

PURPLE / Adult / Male / Medium-Heavy

Reda Hamzaoui, GF Team  

A French-Morrocan athlete representing GF Team and the 2017 European champ as a blue belt, Reda Hamzaoui made the jump to purple belt and is ready to make his mark on the international scene. Lanky for his weight class, Hamzaoui is efficient at using his length to stagnate his opponent's movements and employ some dangerous sweeps and submissions of his own.  

First match: watch Reda Hamzaoui vs. Tacio Alves — (Mat 6) Wednesday, 3 PM 

PURPLE / Adult / Male / Heavy

Darin Conner DeAngelis, Atos  

Andre Galvao once referred to Conner DeAngelis as the best blue belt in the world. He took gold at every major IBJJF event in 2017 and was able to replicate his success as a purple belt at No-Gi Worlds a few weeks back. DeAngelis posses a slick single-leg X-guard and isn’t afraid to attack the feet. 

First match: watch Conner DeAngelis vs. John Sheridan – (Mat 1) Thursday, 10:15 AM

 Conner DeAngelis at home. Photo: Chase Smith 

Purple / Adult / Male / Super-Heavy

Wilson Moreira, Cicero Costha

Cierco Costha's domination of the colored ranks should be quite obvious at this point. Wilson Moreira is the 2017 World champion and his game is indicative of the time spent at Unity jiu-jitsu in New York: nasty pressure passing, heavy back attacks, and very submission-oriented. 

First match: watch Wilson Moreira vs. Djorde Tadic — (Mat 3) Thursday, 9:30 AM 

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Eric Bergmann, Gracie Barra Hamburg

The German athlete is a European Championships veteran and a player with an appetite for the upset. He took first last year in Lisbon after besting Unity monster Devhonte Johnson in a fantastic purple belt final; Bergmann later placed third at the World Championships in June in an exceptionally competitive division. Bergmann is on the same side of the bracket as Wilson Moreira, so a podium finish and/or a gold medal would be one hell of an achievement.  

First match: watch Eric Bergmann vs. Carlos Arce — (Mat 3) Thursday, 9:57 AM 

PURPLE / Adult / Male / Ultra-Heavy

Mason Fowler, Dethrone Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu 

Perhaps the largest disruptive force at the recent No-Gi Worlds, Fowler rained on Atos’ parade when he shot down the team's hopes of achieving double gold in every division by taking out Conner DeAngelis and Adam Bradley in the absolute division. Seeing as DeAngelis is the previous entrant on this list should be a testament to Fowler’s skill. 

Fowler has a surprisingly mobile guard for an ultra-heavyweight and isn’t afraid to come up for a single leg and force a sweep or scramble. 

First match: watch Mason Fowler vs. Mansur Makhmakhanov — (Mat 10) Thursday, 9:57 AM

PURPLE / Adult / Female / Light

Nicole Evangelista, Brasa CTA  

The second Caio Terra Association athlete on our list, Nicole Evangelista is the 2017 European champion and 2017 Pans champ, closing out with her teammate after submitting 10 opponents across her wight division and the absolute. We love her DLR guard and relentless back attacks; she’s also got a nasty triangle that finished more than a few opponents last season. 

First match: watch Nicole Evangelista vs. Weronika Rot — (Mat 5) Thursday, 9:57 AM  

Nicole Evangelista. Photo: Mike Calimbas 

PURPLE / Adult / Female / Medium-Heavy

Chloé McNally, Unity JJ 

McNally finished off her blue belt career strong with double medals at at 2017 Worlds and a gold medal at No-Gi Worlds just a few months later  The Unity Jiu-Jitsu standout was awarded her purple belt by Murilo Santana just over two weeks ago and is looking to put the women's purple belt athletes on notice.   

First match: watch Chloe McNally vs. TBD — (Mat 9) Thursday, Noon

PURPLE / Adult / Female / Heavy

Amanda Silva, Unity Jiu-Jitsu

A two-time blue belt world champion, Amanda Silva had an incredible 2017 after taking double gold at more than five events including the NY BJJ Pro, Miami Spring Open, and Abu Dhabi Trials event in Ecuador.  

First match: watch Amanda Silva vs. Ingrid Franco — (Mat 4) Thursday, 10:24 AM

PURPLE / Adult / Female / Super-Heavy

Kendall Marie Reusing, Gracie Barra
A former wrestler who showed promise on a national level, Reusing is an ADCC Trials heavyweight silver medalist, but her credentials in the gi are equally impressive: She was a purple belt world champion in 2017 and took silver in the absolute division. 

First match: watch Kendall Reusing vs. Gabrielie Pessanha — (Mat 3) Thursday, 10:24 AM