JULY 10, 2021, DENVER, COLORADO, US was the set for another edition of the Fight 2 Win grappling show, one of the longest-running professional jiu-jitsu events on the American circuit.
The 176th F2W had a whopping 50 superfights (!), a true marathon of matches headlined by the title fight between Unity’s Junny Ocasio (the promotion’s 135 lb no-gi champion) and Carlos Alberto “Bebeto” Oliveira of GF Team, with the co-main event being a superb style clash between leg locker Tex Johnson and IBJJF gi world champion Gustavo Batista in the no-gi ruleset.
MAIN EVENT, OCASIO BEATS OLIVEIRA
Although both athletes love to play guard, there were many differences between how they approach the bottom game. Bebeto being more of a positional-based grappler and Junny a submission hunter in his core.
The match was very close with Carlos Alberto taking the role of passer and Ocasio hunting for leg controls from the bottom. Although Bebeto appeared to be the more dominant grappler positionally, Junny kept his cool and never deviated from his game-plan (attacking the legs). The continuous push for submissions, in the end, saw victory fall on Junny. A very close match.
SOLID GUARD PASSING SEALS THE DEAL FOR BATISTA
The pressure was on for Gustavo “Braguinha” Batista after a lackluster performance a couple of weeks ago in the gi specialist’s black belt no-gi debut. A loss to Pedro Henrique Rocha at the Third Coast Grappling.
To rebound from the loss, Braguinha accepted an even harder opponent in Tex Johnson, one of the most dangerous leg-lockers in the game.
Johnson pulled guard early, immediately seeking his trademarked K-guard entries to Gustavo’s legs. The Atos representative kept his cool, defending his legs and slowly wearing Tex down with steady, solid pressure passing. Batista conquered a few passes, dominating the match from a positional standpoint. Very solid work for the Brazilian who took the win via unanimous decision.
MAIN NOGI MATCHES
– Junny Ocasio def. Bebeto Oliveira via decision
– Gustavo Batista def. Tex Johnson via decision
– Jonathan Wilson def. Mike Alfieri via decision
– Walker Madden def. Guilherme Cordiviola via split decision
– Joe Baize def. Jeff Ake via outside heel hook
– TJ Steinebach def. Dalton Grinstead via decision
– Brian Lupo def. Carlos Espinosa via inside heel hook
– Tyrell Anderson def. Andrew Nott via RNC
– Hunter Colvin def. Hiago Adão via RNC
– Matt Paul def. Isiah Wright via straight ankle lock
MAIN GI MATCHES
– Samir Chantre def. Orlando Castillo via split decision
– Jeremy Hastings def. Christopher Gabrielson via shoulder lock
– Suellen Lima def. Erin Johnson via mounted Ezikiel choke
– Cesar Miyahra def. Blake Dvorak via bow and arrow choke
– Joshua Sauseda def. David Lucarelli via kimura lock
– Augusto Maciel def. Hanes Oliveira via decision
