World Pro Black Belt Finals Recap: Biggest Takeaway Points
World Pro Black Belt Finals Recap: Biggest Takeaway Points
Everything you need to know about what went down on the final day of the 2018 Abu Dhabi World Pro Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
By Michael Sears
After twelve days at the Mubadala Arena in Zayed Sports City, the 2018 Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship came to a close on Friday afternoon.
The seven male black belt finals as well as the five female brown/black belt finals went down in front of a crowd of the passionate UAE fans.
$15,000 was on the line and some of the top athletes in our sport were in action. A few things to take away from today.
Europeans gaining ground
The black belt level was still dominated by Brazilians, with a "Brasileiro" taking home the gold in ten out of twelve weight classes. Typically, the Americans have been the next level of competition, but the performances by a pair of Europeans in the finals show the worldwide scope that jiu jitsu has taken on.
The 77 kg male final was the only final to not contain a Brazilian, with Canadian Jake Mackenzie and Norwegian Espen Mathiesen fighting through a huge bracket to make the final. First-year black belt Mathiesen took the win with a reverse armlock from a triangle.
Belgium’s Amal Amjahid came out on fire in the women’s 55 kg final, getting a choke from the back on Amanda Monteiro. The women have typically had close matches, and the brown belt Amjahid getting a submission over the current black belt European champion was a huge statement.
Next generation of women’s black belts looks strong
Given that the women’s divisions mix the brown and black belt level, you would expect domination by the black belts when they meet. That was not necessarily the case in Abu Dhabi, as brown belts won two out of five of the womens divisions. There was in fact a brown belt who made it to the finals in every bracket.
Besides the previously mentioned Amjahid, at 49 kg brown belt Mayssa Bastos won the World Pro for the second straight year. The final looked almost identical to Mayssa’s two matches on Friday, with the GFTeam athlete attacking a berimbolo and eventually finishing a choke from the back.
At 62 kg, Ffion Davies of the United Kingdom looked great in a loss against elite black belt Bianca Basilio. Basilio needed a last second advantage to tie the match and take a 2-2 referee decision against Davies.
Erberth Santos. Photo: Michael Sears
Elite male black belts still running the show
Some big names went down in the womens division this week, but the superstar males who travelled to Abu Dhabi backed up their status among the elite, dominating their divisions.
The Miyao brothers did not have much trouble on their way to the final, and both of the twins are leaving Abu Dhabi with the title belt. Joao defeated South Korean Wanki Chae 7-2 in the 62 kg final, while Paulo defeated Pans champ Gianni Grippo on advantages.
Felipe Pena might as well be considered the king of the World Pro, winning the event for a fourth straight year. Pena had a rematch of last years final at 94 kg with Adam Wardzinski of Poland, winning 4-0.
Erberth Santos tapped five out of six opponents over the past three days, including a rear naked choke in the final. Erberth, who has been struggling a bit lately, looked to be back in top form this week in Abu Dhabi.
Your 2018 @uaejjf World Pro Champions! pic.twitter.com/O4Y1i1Zbhr
— FloGrappling (@FloGrappling) April 28, 2018