IBJJF Worlds Blue Belt Recap: Hard-Fought Battles See New Champions Crowned
IBJJF Worlds Blue Belt Recap: Hard-Fought Battles See New Champions Crowned
The results from the male blue belt divisions are in, with nine new IBJJF World champions having been crowned. Here is a quick recap of who won and how.
By Michael Sears
The results from the male blue belt divisions are in, with nine new IBJJF World champions having been crowned. Here is a quick recap of who won and how.
Read more: Full results from 2018 IBJJF Worlds
Roosterweight
1- Isaias Pereira – Nova Uniao
2- Matheus Araujo – Ares
3- Isaih Calderon – Atos
3- Keven Carrasco – Ares
Isaias Pereira won four matches to take home the World title, and took out two Ares teammates in the last two matches. In the final against Araujo, Pereira got to the back during a scramble and finished the match with a bow and arrow choke.
Light-Featherweight
1- Fabricio Andrey Junior – Alliance
2- Breno Santana – GFTeam
3- Gavin Corbe – Luiz Palhares
3- Robin Bohlin – Atos
Watch Light-Featherweight Final
Fabricio Andrey Junior of Alliance Sao Paulo tapped five out of six opponents to claim the gold medal. After four armlocks on the way to the final, a bow and arrow choke against a standing Santana sealed the deal in the final.
Featherweight
1- Marcelo Abreu – Checkmat
2- Adalberto Carvalho Junior – Alliance
3- Luiz Rodriguez – Icon
3- Matheus Queiroz – Carlson Gracie Team
See video of Abreu at the top of this article
Marcelo Abreu took out six opponents to win the featherweight division, including top prospect Eduardo Roque in the quarterfinals. A third straight blue belt final was finished by submission when Abreu hit a footlock in the final.
Lightweight
1- Lucas Protasio – ZR Team
2- Samuel Duarte – Marra Senki
3- Heito Ferreira – Soul Fighters
3- Victor Carmona – Alliance
Lucas Protasio capped off an epic year in which he also won Europeans, Brasileiro and the Abu Dhabi World Pro. Protasio was all over his opponents in typical fashion, utilizing takedowns, guard passes and back takes in scrambles to win six matches on the day.
Middleweight
1- Tainan Dalpra – Atos
2- Travis Lindahl – Coalition 95
3- Chee Chan Chew - Immersion
3- Felipe Teixeira – Checkmat
After five fights to make the final, AOJ athlete and 2018 Pan champion Tainan Dalpra won in the final with a triangle armbar. Dalpra was dominant on the day, submitting several opponents in his bracket.
Medium-Heavyweight
1- Mateus Rodrigues – Atos
2- Caio Almeida – Ribeiro
3- Rafael Silva – NS Brotherhood
3- Ryan North – Gracie Humaita
Watch Medium-Heavyweight Final
Following up on the success of his AOJ teammate Dalpra at middle, Rodrigues made it two gold medals at blue for the Mendes brothers academy. It wasn’t easy going in the weight class for Rodrigues, as he needed close referee decision victory’s to get by both North in the semi and Almeida in the final.
Heavyweight
1- Louis Ryan - Barbosa
2- Davi Cabral - GFTeam
3- Jean Silva - Atos
3- Manuel Nunes- Atos
Cabral and Ryan battled through a deep heavyweight bracket to meet in the final. Unable to get his half guard lapel sweep that he used all day going in the final, Australian grappler Ryan held on and won by a last second advantage for a near pass.
Super-Heavyweight
1- Caio Melo – Zenith
2- Ville Backman – Alliance International
3- Valdir Rodrigues Junior – Alliance
3- Vinicius Aquino – Alliance
Caio Melo came out on top 2-0 in the final and is the 2018 ultra-heavyweight World champion. Melo won six matches on his way to Worlds gold.
Ultra-Heavyweight
1- Jason Shirley – Checkmat
2- Lie Wilhelm Manaatua – Atos
3- Gabriel Vieira – Gracie Barra
3- Jonathen Zamora – Tinguinha
Former NFL defensive tackle Jason Shirley dominated the ultra-heavyweight division at Worlds. The 6’5 beast used a combination of vicious snap downs and foot sweeps on the feet, followed by punishing pressure passing once the match hit the ground.
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