By Michael Sears

The brown belt divisions are looking pretty spicy at the 2018 IBJJF World Championship this week in Long Beach, CA: The action is always intense, there are always a ton of submissions, and we get to see future world champs in action before they become big-time. 

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As there are so many killer athletes to watch at the Walter Pyramid, we created this essential guide to every brown belt division: the favorites, the underdogs, and the potential disruptors. 

Roosterweight

• Returning 2017 brown world medalist: none
• Incoming 2017 purple world medalist: 3rd Kevin Martincowski (Gracie Barra)
• 2018 European champion: Carlos Oliveira (GFTeam)
• 2018 Pan champion: Cicero Paiva (Ares)
• 2018 Brasileiro champion: Carlos Oliveira (GFTeam)

Carlos “Bebeto” Oliveira has not lost at this weight all year, taking gold at the Euros, Brasileiro and Abu Dhabi World Pro. Bebeto has looked dominant in most of those wins and should be a heavy favorite to claim the top spot on the podium in Long Beach.

"Bebeto"

Cicero Paiva took the only major tournament Bebeto did not compete in when he won Pans. Luciano Alex and Octavio Flores have both reached the podium at two major tournaments this year. Pedro Crixel of Cicero Costha finished second to Bebeto at the World Pro, losing by an advantage.

Light-Featherweight

• Returning 2017 brown World medalist: 3rd Kennedy Maciel (Alliance)
• Incoming 2017 purple World medalist:
• 2018 European champion: Joao Gabriel Sousa (ZR Team)
• 2018 Pan champion: Kennedy Maciel (Alliance)
• 2018 Brasileiro champion: Bruno Alves (GFTeam)

Reigning world champ Alex Sodre was a brown belt for most of this year before recently getting his black belt a couple weeks ago. Before the promotion, however, Kennedy Maciel took out Sodre on the way to Abu Dhabi World Pro gold.

Kennedy took third a year ago and won the Pan this year. Many considered him the favorite heading into the 2017 Worlds, and with Sodre promoted the path got a little bit easier for Kennedy this year.

Joao Gabriel Sousa tapped his way through the light-featherweight bracket at Euros. Sousa also won the World Pro at the weight below Kennedy. A Maciel-Sousa matchup seems inevitable for this year's Worlds.

Malachi Edmond of Lloyd Irvin has taken third at Pans in this division two years in a row. Checkmat athlete Jonata Gomes has medaled at several major tournaments as a purple and brown belt. Vagner Reis, Igor Almeida, Shane Torres, and Deandre Corbe add to the depth at light-feather.

Featherweight

• Returning 2017 brown World medalist: 2nd Joao Mendes (Atos), 3rd Marlus Salgado (SAS), 3rd Felipe Linhares Arruda (Alliance)
• Incoming 2017 purple World medalist: 1st Victor Nithael (Clube Feijao), 3rd Bruno Campos (Gracie Barra)
• 2018 European champion: Richar Nogueira (Cicero Costha)
• 2018 Pan champion: Cole Franson (Tinguinha BJJ)
• 2018 Brasileiro champion: Murilo Amaral (Alliance)

Three of last year's brown belt medalists return at this weight along with the 2016 runner-up in this division in Richar Nogueira. Add in the 2017 purple champ Victor Nithael who has looked great so far at brown and you have a number of athletes with a serious shot at world gold in the brown feather division.

Murilo Amaral of Alliance Mario Reis recently won the Brasileiro, defeating Nithael in the final. A year ago Amaral’s training partner Joao Goncalves Neto won this division, and Amaral has a great chance of winning brown feather for a second straight year for the Mario Reis team.

Cole Franson won Pans in bizarre fashion: After first losing in the semifinal, he was named the champion when both finalists were disqualified. One of those finalists, Matheus Gabriel of Checkmat, will be in action at Worlds next week in this bracket. Gabriel Alves, Thiago Abud, Ethan Crelinstein, Marcus Phelan, Damion Oranday and Emilio Hernandez-Rodriguez should make this an exciting bracket to watch in Long Beach.

Lightweight

• Returning 2017 brown World medalist: none
• Incoming 2017 purple World medalist: 1st Wilson Moreira Junior (Cicero Costha), 2nd Guilherme Rocha (ZR Team)
• 2018 European champion: Levi Jones-Leary (Unity)
• 2018 Pan champion: Levi Jones-Leary 
• 2018 Brasileiro champion: Ygor Rodrigues (Equipe Marcio Rodrigues) 

Australian Levi Jones-Leary cruised through his brackets at Euros and Pans and should be the favorite to win this weight at Worlds. The only other major IBJJF tournament this year was won by Ygor Rodrigues, who was promoted to black belt shortly after.

Read more: Up-and-comer Levi Jones Leary

Wilson Moreira won last years Worlds at purple heavy, then 2018 Euros and Pans at purple super-heavy. Moreira, a natural lightweight, will finally compete at his real weight category for the 2018 Worlds. A second-round matchup with his Unity training partner in Levi was less than ideal bracketing for the pair though.

Both Pans bronze medalists up at middle have moved down to light in Angelo Claiborne of Lloyd Irvin and Leonardo Silva of GFTeam. Like his teammate Malachi Edmond, Claiborne has medaled at Pans brown belt the last two years and looks poised to go deep into this bracket at Worlds.

Middleweight

• Returning 2017 brown World medalist: 3rd Leonardo Lara (Atos) 
• Incoming 2017 purple World medalist: 1st Jonnatas Gracie (Atos), 3rd Tarik Hopstock (Frontline)
• 2018 European champion: Jonnatas Gracie (Atos)
• 2018 Pan champion: Leonardo Lara (Atos)
• 2018 Brasileiro champion: Alexandre Joaquim (Atos)

Three different Atos athletes have won the major IBJJF tournaments this year at middleweight, and all three of them are registered in this weight class for Worlds.

Jonnatas Gracie won double-gold last year at Worlds as a purple belt and tapped his way through the brown belt bracket at Euros. 

Almeida athlete Leo Lara took third a year ago at brown lightweight and was this year's Pans champ at middle as well as winning the Abu Dhabi World Pro. Claudio Calasans student Alexandre Joaquim is the third Atos representative and won Brasileiro, where he defeated his Atos teammate Lara in the final.

Norwegian Tarik Hopstock took double bronze as a purple belt at the 2017 Worlds. Hopstock lost to Gracie in the Euro final after defeating Lara in the semi. Matheus Lutes of Alliance Marcelo Garcia was a 2016 purple World champion and took silver at this year's Pans to Lara.

Medium-Heavyweight

• Returning 2017 brown World medalist: 2nd Gabriel Almeida (Checkmat)
• Incoming 2017 purple World medalist: 1st Mauricio Oliveira (GFTeam), 3rd Jake Watson (Maracaba), 3rd Sean Coates (Gracie Barra)
• 2018 European champion: Dominique Bell (Atos)
• 2018 Pan champion: Mauricio Oliveira (GFTeam)
• 2018 Brasileiro champion: Rafael Paganini (Alliance)

Twenty-year-old GFTeam prospect Mauricio Oliveira is one of the most promising colored belts in the sport, after having won Worlds at blue and purple belt over the last two years. Oliveira should not only be a favorite in the medium-heavyweight division but a contender in the open class as well.

Mauricio Oliveira. Photo: Michael Sears

Dominique Bell is currently the top-ranked brown belt in the IBJJF, after gold at the Europeans and double gold at several Opens. Bell is however 0-3 against Oliveira this year, including a loss in the Pan final.

Gabriel Almeida took second in the World last year at brown heavy and is down at medium-heavy for this year. Almeida won the Abu Dhabi World Pro this year and took second to Bell at the European.

Brasileiro champ Rafael Paganini, Jake Watson, Henrique Nobrega, Philipe Pomaski, River Dillon, Benjamin Silva, Sean Coates and Felipe Rocha add to the depth of what should be an exciting medium-heavyweight division.

Heavyweight

• Returning 2017 brown World medalist: 1st Vinicius Ferreira (Alliance), 3rd Vitor Chelloni (Gracie Barra)
• Incoming 2017 purple World medalist: 1st Kaynan Duarte (Atos), 3rd Charles Tsakh (Alliance), 3rd Bruno Lima (Gracie Barra)
• 2018 European champion: Fabio Alano (Alliance)
• 2018 Pan champion: Kaynan Duarte (Atos)
• 2018 Brasileiro champion: Fabio Alano (Alliance)

Vinicius Ferreira of Alliance Sao Paulo won this weight a year ago but should have his hands full at this weight with Andre Galvao’s prodigy student Kaynan Duarte. The two met earlier this year at the Spyder Invitational in Korea, with Duarte getting the win by two points.

Since winning Worlds last year at purple, Duarte has been phenomenal at the brown belt level, winning the open class at both Euros and Pans. A loss in his weight at Euros to Fabio Alano is so far the only blemish on his record.

Not to be overlooked is Leandro Lo’s student Pedro Elias, who took double bronze at Euros and had two incredibly close matches with Duarte. In their open class semifinal in Lisbon, the last two minutes of their match saw Elias trying in vain to finish a triangle on Kaynan. Elias also recently finished third at the Brasileiro.

2017 bronze medalist Vitor Chelloni, Brasileiro runner-up Luan Azevedo, Caio Paganini, Kristof Szucs and Charles Tsakh are also names to keep an eye on in this bracket.

Super-Heavyweight

• Returning 2017 brown World medalist: 3rd Quentin Leahy (Renzo Gracie)
• Incoming 2017 purple World medalist: 1st Devhonte Johnson (Unity), 2nd Fabio Alano (Alliance), 3rd Marcus Vinicius (Alliance) 
• 2018 European champion: Devhonte Johnson (Unity)
• 2018 Pan champion: Fabio Alano (Alliance)
• 2018 Brasileiro champion: Vinicius Ferreira (Alliance)

Alliance Mario Reis athlete Fabio Alano is the only brown belt with a chance to Grand Slam this year, after winning Euros and Brasileiro at heavy and Pans at super-heavy. Alano is also a former World champion at blue belt and purple belt.

Fabio Alano. 

Devhonte Johnson won this weight at purple belt a year ago, defeating Alano in the final. This year Johnson won Euros, took third at Brasileiro and lost to Alano in the Pan final. So far in their career, Johnson and Alano have met three times, with Fabio holding a 2-1 advantage in the series.

Bronze medalist Quentin Leahy is the only returning medalist from 2017. Marcus Vinicius is an incoming purple World medalist who also took bronze at Euros this year. Josh Guerra and Renato Tagliari should also be expected to challenge for the World championship in Long Beach.

Ultra-Heavyweight

• Returning 2017 brown World medalist: 1st Matheus Felipe Xavier (Checkmat), 2nd Renan Vieira (Morumbi)
• Incoming 2017 purple World medalist: 1st Victor Hugo (Ribeiro), 3rd Eduardo Lopes (Lloyd Irvin)
• 2018 European champion: Victor Hugo (Ribeiro)
• 2018 Pan champion: Victor Hugo (Ribeiro)
• 2018 Brasileiro champion: Eduardo Lopes (Lloyd Irvin)

Both finalists in this division return from a year ago, but so far in 2018 ultra-heavyweight has been ruled by two monsters who were purple belts in 2017.

Matheus Felipe Xavier won 2017 Worlds and recently the Abu Dhabi World Pro, but just last week lost to 2017 purple ultra-heavyweight World champ Victor Hugo. Hugo is currently 3-0 against Matheus.

Victor Hugo on top. Photo: Michael Sears

Hugo was a two-time World champion at purple and has looked dominant at brown belt in his showings at the Euros and Pans.

An absolute monster in this division is Brasileiro double-gold winner Eduardo “Duzao” Lopes of Guigo/Lloyd Irvin. Duzao literally crushed the competition at the Brasileiro, finishing the open class final with a submission from side control pressure. Victor Hugo and Duzao have met up three times in competition, with Duzao winning the first meeting and Hugo the last two.

How these returning Worlds finalists will deal with the pair of incoming beasts in Hugo and Lopes is the big question at ultra-heavyweight heading into Worlds.

Watch the 2018 World Jiu-Jitsu IBJJF Championship live

May 31 to June 3 | Long Beach, CA

Schedule:

All Times PDT

FRIDAY, JUNE 1

Adult / Male / BROWN / Rooster — 6:09 PM

Adult / Male / BROWN / Light Feather — 5:24 PM

Adult / Male / BROWN / Feather — 5:01 PM

Adult / Female / BROWN / Rooster — 3:45 PM

Adult / Female / BROWN / Light Feather — 3:54 PM

Adult / Female / BROWN / Feather — 4:03 PM

Adult / Female / BROWN / Light — 4:03 PM

Adult / Female / BROWN / Middle — 4:21 PM

Adult / Female / BROWN / Medium Heavy — 4:03 PM

Adult / Female / BROWN / Heavy — 5:15 PM

Adult / Female / BROWN / Super Heavy — 5:20 PM

SATURDAY, JUNE 2

Adult / Male / BROWN / Light — 9 AM

Adult / Male / BROWN / Middle — 9 AM

Adult / Male / BROWN / Medium Heavy — 10:20 AM

Adult / Male / BROWN / Heavy — 10:20 AM

Adult / Male / BROWN / Super Heavy — 11:10 AM

Adult / Male / BROWN / Ultra Heavy — 11:10 AM