JANUARY 25, 2020, Pavilhão Multiusos de Odivelas, Lisbon – Portugal. On Day 7 of this year’s International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation (IBJJF) European Open Championship, we saw the closing of the adult black belt division, and of the tournament. A tremendous success from a sporting standpoint, the event gathered nearly 5000 athletes from dozens of different countries.
The adult black belt division was a pleasure to follow from the get-go [check the black belt division’s Day 1 Review Here], and today was no different. Plenty of action with very positive performances from a few European competitors such as Caio Terra’s black belt Leon Larman, who looked outstanding in his Day 1 outing, as well as Tommy Langaker, Pedro Ramalho (Portugal), Bruno Lima (Portugal), Santeri Lilius (Finland), Jakub Zajkowski (Poland), Gerard Labinski (Poland) who all reached the quarter-finals (and 3 of them got all the way to the final. Also female Euros champs Ffion Davies (Wales), Laura Barker (UK) and Amal Amjahid (Belgium) and other podium placers. Altogether the European Squad earned 18 medals in the adult black belt division, 5 of which being gold.
MALE DIVISION
One of the big names of the tournament was Morrocan powerhouse Seif-Eddine Houmine, an athlete to whom we have alluded to in the past. Seif came out very strong in this tournament defeating two former world champions on his way to the final, namely Gabriel Lucas (Fedor) and Mahamed Aly. Houmine has shown great potential over the years, but today proved he will indeed be a force in the ultra-heavyweight division for 2020. In the final Seif lost to an athlete who also showed his talent: Igor Schneider, AKA Tigrão. A student of Leandro Lo, Schneider cruised past this division with an abundance of flair, showing this could very well be a break-through year for the ultra-heavyweight half-guard expert.
Another athlete who was great fun to watch was Manuel Ribamar. A former student of Cicero Costha and Leandro Lo, now with Rodrigo Pinheiro, Ribamar came to the European Open with an improved strategy. After spending much of 2019 competing as a lapel guard player, “Riba” returned to his guard-passing roots for this tournament, putting on a clinic of movement in Lisbon. After pressing the super dangerous Espen Mathiesen for a 22 point lead, Manuel then beat decisively one of the sport’s brightest prospects (Rafael Paganini) by 12×0, later the equally tough Jakub Zajkowski and hometown hero Bruno Lima in the final, with whom Ribamar had a 2 point lead before the Portuguese athlete suffered from an injured rib which forced him to forfeit.
In the roosterweight division, we had a true rollercoaster of emotions. After black belt newcomer, Thalison Soares pulled off a stunning victory over the most accomplished athlete to ever grace a roosterweight bracket – Bruno Malfacine, a fantastic match between the “Old Guard” and the New Guard, it was Japanese guard player extraordinaire, Tomoyuki Hashimoto, who pulled off the upset versus Soares in the final. Taking the victory by DQ after Thalison exited the mat with a fully locked submission (triangle) by Hashimoto.
The man of the hour, however, was Fellipe Andrew of the Zenith Jiu-Jitsu stable. Andrew had amassed 2 out of 3 submission wins yesterday, and today the phenom added one more to his record, this time against none other than Keenan Cornelius in the final of the open weight class. The American grappler had never been submitted with the gi as a black belt in the past, having only 2 submission losses in his resume, both to Gordon Ryan, making this victory a historic moment for the young super-heavyweight’s career.
FEMALE DIVISION
If Andrew is the man of the hour, you may double down on that statement for Ffion Davies. The Welsh grappler looked absolutely phenomenal this weekend, cutting through her opponent’s defenses like a hot knife through butter. Absolutely incredible the work-rate put forth by Davies. Submission win after submission win, the black belt earned herself a double gold in the performance of a life-time.
Rooster
1/4 Finals
– Thalison Soares def. Bruno Malfacine 2×1 adv, 4×4 pts
– Koji Shibamoto def. Juan Silva [No Show]
– Cleber Sousa def. Lucas Gonçalves [No Show]
– Tomoyuki Hashimoto def. Nobuhiro Sawada by 3×0 adv, 0x0 pts
Semi-Finals
– Thalison Soares def. Koji Shibamoto by 8×6 pts
– Tomoyuki Hashimoto def. Cleber Sousa by 8×6 pts
Final
– Tomoyuki Hashimoto def. Thalison Soares by DQ [exiting mat with locked submission]
Light-Feather
1/4 Finals
– Hiago George allowed teammate Jonas Andrade to advance [gentlemen’s agreement]
– Bebeto Oliveira def. Rene Lopez by 16×2 pts
– Diego “Pato” def. Pedro Dias by triangle
– Mikey Musumeci def. Suraj Budhram by arm-in Ezekiel choke
Semi-Finals
– Jonas Andrade def. Bebeto Oliveira by points
– Mikey Musumeci def. Diego “Pato” by straight ankle-lock
Final
– Mikey Musumeci def. Jonas Andrade by split decision
Feather
1/4 Finals
– Isaac Doederlein def. Guilherme Rocha by straight ankle-lock
– Alex Sodré def. Israel Sousa by decision, 8×8 pts
– Leo Saggioro def. Gabriel Marangoni by 2×0 pts
– Gabriel Sousa def. Deandre Corbe by 1×0 adv, 4×4 pts
Semi-Finals
– Isaac Doederlein def. Alex Sodré by decision
– Leo Saggioro def. Gabriel Sousa by decision, 2×2 pts
Final
– Isaac Doederlein def. Leo Saggioro by 2×0 adv, 2×2 pts
Lightweight
1/4 Finals
– Vitor Oliveira def. Guthierry Barbosa by choke
– Pedro Veras def. Jeremy Jackson by decision
– Jonnatas Gracie def. Leon Larman by bread-cutter choke
– Luan Carvalho def. Italo Moura by decision, 0x0 pts
Semi-Finals
– Vitor Oliveira def. Pedro Veras by 3×0 adv, 2×2 pts
– Jonnatas Gracie def. Luan Carvalho by RNC
Final
– Jonnatas Gracie def. Vitor Oliveira by decision, 2×2 pts
Middleweight
1/4 Finals
– Tommy Langaker def. Mathias Luna by 1 penalty, 6×6 pts
– Ronaldo Junior def. Lucas Valle by 4×2 pts
– Pedro Ramalho [Paquito] def. Igor Veríssimo by choke from back
– Alexandre Jesus [Robinho] def. Max Lindblad by decision, 0x0 pts
Semi-Finals
– Tommy Langaker def. Ronaldo Junior by triangle choke
– Pedro Ramalho [Paquito] def. Alexandre Jesus by 2×1 adv, 2×2 pts
Final
– Tommy Langaker def. Pedro Ramalho by choke from back
Medium-Heavy
1/4 Finals
– Bruno Lima def. Gabriel Almeida by 10×4 pts
– Santeri Lilius def. Angel Cicero by choke from mount
– Jakub Zajkowski def. Felipe Pimentel by choke from back
– Manuel Ribamar def. Rafael Paganini by 12×0
Semi-Finals
– Manuel Ribamar def. Jakub Zajkowski by 2×0
– Bruno Lima def. Santeri Lilius by 1×0 adv, 0x0 pts
Final
– Manuel Ribamar def. Bruno Lima by injury
Heavy
1/4 Finals
– Jackson Sousa def. Fabio Alano by RNC
– Keenan Cornelius def. Felipe Mauricio by 8×2 pts
– Adam Wardzinski def. Gabriel Volante by choke from back
– Dimitrius Souza def. Hygor Brito by 1×0 adv, 2×2 pts
Semi-Finals
– Adam Wardzinski def. Dimitrius Souza by choke from back
– Keenan Cornelius def. Jackson Sousa by 4×2 pts
Final
– Keenan Cornelius def. Adam Wardzinski by 2×0 adv, 4×4 pts
Super-Heavy
1/4 Finals
– Helton Jose vs Lukasz Michalec [Both Athletes No Show]
– Patrick Gaudio def. Fellipe Trovo by points
– Gerard Labinski def. Stan Varshavskiy [Varshavskiy overweight]
– Fellipe Andrew Bye
Semi-Finals
– Fellipe Andrew def. Gerard Labinski by 13×0 pts
– Patrick Gaudio Advanced as both opposite bracket’s 1/4 finalists labeled “No Show”
Final
– Patrick Gaudio def. Fellipe Andrew by kneebar
Ultra-Heavy
1/4 Finals
– Tanner Rice def. Matheus “Tá Danado” by 1×0 adv, 0x0 pts
– Igor Schneider def. Rodrigo Ribeiro by 3×0 pts
– Mahamed Aly def. Igor Marques by 10×0 pts
– Seif Houmine def. Gabriel Lucas by cachecol choke
Semi-Finals
– Seif Houmine def. Mahamed Aly by 3×0 pts
– Igor Schneider def. Tanner Rice by 4×0 pts
Final
– Igor Schneider def. Seif Houmine by 5×0
Open Weight
1/4 Finals:
– Mahamed Aly def. Mikey Musumeci by 2×2 pts, 2×1 adv
– Keenan Cornelius def. Mathias Luna by RNC
– Fellipe Trovo def. Igor Schneider by crucifix choke
– Fellipe Andrew def. Patrick Gaudio by DQ
Semi-Finals:
– Keenan Cornelius def. Mahamed Aly by 10×2 pts
– Fellipe Andrew def. Fellipe Trovo by straight ankle lock
Final
– Fellipe Andrew def. Keenan Cornelius by triangle-armbar
Rooster
– Mayssa Bastos def. Serena Gabrielli by 2×0 pts
Light-Feather
Semi-Finals
– Ana Rodrigues def. Rose El Sharouni by lapel choke
– Talita Alencar def. Naomi Martin by armbar
Final
– Anna Rodrigues def. Talita Alencar by 1×0 adv, 0x0 pts
Feather
Semi-Finals
– Amal Amjahid def. Gabriella Fechter by 5×0 pts
– Larissa Campos def. Bianca Basílio by triangle/armlock
Final
– Amal Amjahid def. Larissa Campos by 3×0 adv, 2×2 pts
Light
Semi-Finals
– Charlotte Von Baumgarten def. Nat Ribeiro by 2×0 pts
– Ffion Davies def. Nikky Sullivan 11×0 pts
Final
– Ffion Davies def. Charlotte Von Baumgarten by choke from back
Middle
Semi-Finals
– Danielle Alvarez def. Julia Maele by 16×5 pts
– Thamara Ferreira def. Hannah Rauch by toe-hold
Final
– Thamara Ferreira def. Danielle Alvarez by kneebar
Medium-Heavy
Round-Robin – 3 person division
– Sabatha Laís def. Maria Eduarda by RNC
– Maggie Grindatti def. Maria Eduarda by 7×0 pts
Final
– Sabatha Laís def. Maggie Grindatti by triangle-armbar
Heavy
– Laura Barker def. Magdalena Loska by 2×0 pts
Super-Heavy
Round-Robin – 3 person division
– Jessica Flowers def. Venla Luukkonen by 8×2 pts
– Kendall Reusing def. Venla Luukkonen by bread cutter choke
– Jessica Flowers closed the bracket with teammate Kendall Reusing
Open Weight
Semi-Finals
– Jessica Flowers def. Vedha Toscano 3×2 pts
– Ffion Davies def. Larissa Campos by 1 advantage
Final
– Ffion Davies def. Jessica Flowers by 4×0
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