We have been eagerly anticipating ADCC since the last edition in September of 2017. But some of the athletes invited to compete couldn’t wait to get started. 

In the ramp-up to “the Olympics of grappling,” seemingly every Grand Slam, Grand Prix and pro invitational has featured at least one of the tournament’s 96 invitees. Some have been more active than others; some have been working on new gameplans while others have been sharpening their teeth. And in some instances, we’ve seen some previews to potential ADCC matchups.

66kg

Gianni Grippo and his Alliance teammate Kennedy Maciel have been the most active entrants in the lightest male weight class this summer. Maciel took home gold in four separate tournaments including American Nationals No-Gi. But he lost his superfight at F2W against Marcio Andre.

Grippo, meanwhile, has struggled since Worlds. He saw the top of the podium in the Vegas No-Gi Open but also lost his Third Coast superfight against -77 kg entrant Edwin Najmi. We hoped to see an ADCC preview at No-Gi Pans between Grippo and -66 kg favorite Paulo Miyao, but Grippo faltered against Emilio Hernandez in the semifinals. He gave up two points early and was unable to earn the score back. Miyao earned a decisive victory over Hernandez, riding his back for nearly half the match in the finals.

77kg

The invitees of this division have been butting heads in the ramp-up to ADCC. But Edwin Najmi and Vagner Rocha have given us the most hopeful previews. Najmi beat DJ Jackson this summer at F2W, as well as the lighter Grippo at Third Coast. And in August, he took another victory over Unity’s Mansher Khera in a Polaris title fight. 

Rocha’s only loss this summer was to reigning -77 kg champ JT Torres in the 2017 ADCC gold medalist’s only no-gi outing since winning the title two years ago. Prior to that, Rocha defeated ADCC invitees Celso Vinicius and Ethan Crelinsten. Crelinsten has since pulled out of the tournament due to injury.

77kg competitors have been the busiest of all divisions: Renato Canuto, Lachlan Giles, Dante Leon, and DJ Jackson have each had run-ins with potential ADCC opponents. 

88kg

Some of the favorites in this division have been particularly busy in the lead-up to ADCC. Craig Jones has been on a tear, beating Tex Johnson and former UFC star Anthony Johnson in superfights. 

Josh Hinger has also been competitive leading up to his ADCC debut, taking a F2W and a KASAI superfight and fighting into the finals of the IBJJF World Masters in August. But Matheus Diniz has victories over both Hinger and Jones this summer. He defeated Hinger at KASAI Pro 6 by choke, and outscored Jones at Third Coast Grappling. 

-99kg

Feflipe Andrew is something of a dark horse in this division, but he’ll be coming in on a hot streak. Since Worlds, Andrew has won a string of gold medals at smaller IBJJF Open tournaments. Tim Spriggs has also been busy this summer, winning the New York BJJ Pro and defeating fellow -99 kg competitor Aaron “Tex” Johnson at F2W 119. However, his most recent outing at the IBJJF Grand Prix resulted in a loss to division rival Lucas "Hulk" Barbosa. 

Tex Johnson, meanwhile, had a summer he may want to forget. He’s lost to Spriggs and Craig Jones, and this month he also suffered a defeat to Max Gimenis at No-Gi Pans. Following Pans, Gimenis was invited to fill in in the +99 kg division for Antonio Carlos Jr. 

+99kg

The heavyweights have had some major opportunities to build momentum leading into ADCC. Kaynan Duarte has been on a hot stream all year, winning IBJJF Worlds, the KASAI Pro 205lb tournament, Marianas Open, superfights, and invitationals. 

ADCC first-timer Victor Hugo has been one of the most active of the class, working to break in his new black belt at every turn. He’s entered at least six events since earning his black belt after Worlds, most notably the IBJJF Grand Prix, where he lost to Roberto "Cyborg" Abreu in the opening round.

The Grand Prix has built the most hype for the upper weight divisions. Cyborg proved he's still a force to be reckoned with. But the tournament also had noteworthy dropouts: Gordon Ryan and Marcus "Buchecha" Almeida. That leaves some questions to be answered this weekend. 

-60kg / +60kg

The female ADCC invitees have been relatively inactive in the run-up to the big show. There are three notable exceptions across both the -60 kg and +60 kg divisions. Elvira Karppinen submitted Pati Fontes at Subversiv 2 in July. And Nathiely De Jesus beat reigning +60 kg champ Gabi Garcia at F2W via referee’s decision.