Today marks the year anniversary for one of the most significant ADCC World Championships to date. 

We saw breakout stars, colossal upsets, and well-executed game plans from the favorites –  there was so much action, in fact, that a single article hardly encompasses all that happened in Finland last year.

But there were some major stories that stand out from all the memorable moments, including the rise of the American talent, refreshingly good wrestling, the 'Super Grand Slam' achievement by Charles 'Cobrinha' Maciel, and Felipe Pena's incredible absolute performance all merit special mention. Read on for more.

Watch Every Match From ADCC 2017

American Excellence: A New Chapter

Two Americans walked away with highly coveted ADCC Gold Medals last year: Gordon Ryan from Renzo Gracie Academy (he also earned a silver medal in the absolute division) and JT Torres of Atos. Both men faced and defeated legends on their way to gold, including Romulo Barral, Lucas Lepri, and more.

And though It may seem like ancient history now, Gordon Ryan entered this event with many people betting on his hype-train derailing: the doubters argued that Ryan had made his name with wins over sub-par competition and believed he would crack under the pressure of elite athletes.

Instead, the young man went on to have one of the most impressive ADCC runs in the history of the event, matching his name in the history books and unarguably establishing himself one of the best grapplers on the planet. 

We would also be remiss not to include the fact that Keenan Cornelius, Orlando Sanchez, and AJ Agazarm all earned silver medals at ADCC 2017– each securing big wins over names like Craig Jones, Tom DeBlass, Nicky Ryan, and Ethan Crelinsten.

Jiu-Jitsu Athletes Embraced Wrestling

Or at the very least, jiu-jitsu athletes made incredible strides in improving their standup. Past ADCC’s have occasionally been plagued by non-committal wrestling and matches that simply couldn’t get to the ground. Not so at 2017 – instead, we saw some of the most-well rounded grapplers at the prestigious promotion since its inception.  

Standout matches on the feet include Xande Ribeiro vs Buchecha, Dillon Danis vs Gordon Ryan, and Bianca Basilio vs Bia Mesquita (among many others).

Cobrinha Hits The 'Super Grand Slam' At 37

A feat that we are unlikely to see again for some time, Cobrinha took first place at every major IBJJF event (Europeans, Pans, Brazilian Nationals, and Worlds), and followed it up in September with a gold medal at ADCC, earning him the never-before-seen 'Super Grand Slam'. The Alliance black belt ’s ADCC 2017 run saw him take out European Trials winner Uranov Zhakshylyk of Kyrgyzstan in his opening match, Kuba Witkowski of Poland in the quarterfinal, Paulo Miyao in the semifinal and AJ Agazarm in the final. 

• Cobrinha vs Uranov Zhakshylyk
• Cobrinha vs Kuba Witkowski
• Cobrinha vs Paulo Miyao 
• Cobrinha vs AJ Agazarm

Felipe Pena Finally Earns ADCC title, Still Has Gordon’s Number

After years of work, Felipe Pena finally walked away with an ADCC gold medal. The Gracie Barra athlete made the ADCC 99kg final in 2015, only to lose a heart-breaking judges decision to Rodolfo Vieira. He faced a similar scenario last year in Finland after falling short to Yuri Simoes in the 99kg final as well, but Pena came through strong in the absolute division, besting Buchecha in the semi-final and defeating Gordon Ryan a highly-anticipated showdown in the final. 

Pena showed the grit of a true champion that day and earned the right to face Andre Galvao at ADCC 2019 for the super fight championship title. 

WATCH: Felipe Pena vs Gordan Ryan

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