Kaynan Duarte, Tainan Dalpra, And Ruotolo Light Up IBJJF GP

MARCH 1, 2024, COSTA MESA, CALIFORNIA, USA, was the setting for the latest edition of the IBJJF (International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation) Grand Prix in the no-gi ruleset, the professional and most prestigious tournament of the organization where some of the top of the grappling food chain compete for a 40k USD prize money. The event also marked the start of a spectacular weekend of jiu-jitsu, a schedule that will feature the 3rd edition of AJP’s ADXC, the ADCC Brazilian Qualifier, and the UFC Fight Pass.

The IBJJF GP had some of the most interesting superfights of the year in the gi ruleset, which included the return of two stars of the sport to the gi, namely Tainan Dalpra (AOJ) and Kade Ruotolo (Atos) who did not disappoint. Overall the event had plenty of interesting matches but credit to the Tainan & Kade who lifted spectators from their seats with their outstanding work on the mats.

Kade put on a splending and aggressive performance over the very game Natan Chueng who also had his moments in the match but was unable to outscramble the scramble king in key scoring positions. Ruotolo was relentless and ended up winning via two takedowns in regulation while also attempting a few flamboyant (unsuccessful) guard passes which drew standing applauses from the crowd.

Tainan Dalpra was able to maintain his status as one of the foremost middleweights in the world with another dominant performance against the highly regarded Mauricio Oliveira of Fratres. Dalpra’s match was summed up by a clean single-leg takedown to a back take that resulted in the finish via RNC.

In the no-gi tournament, many expected Kaynan Duarte (Atos) and Giancarlo Bodoni (New Wave) to meet in the final and indeed they did, a rematch of their 2021 showdown at Who’s Number 1, won by the Atos athlete via decision. Both Duarte and Bodoni were fairly dominant on their way through to the finals despite the solid opposition they faced, showing their skills were necessary, be that standing, passing, or playing guard.

Kaynan applied the same strategy used at the Polaris Grand Prix last year, starting every match like a bat out of hell, scoring early, and working from his preferred counter-attacking stance from then on, a plan that worked to perfection with 3 flawless wins and no points scored against him.