MARCH 16, 2025. All eyes were on the latest Sapateiro Invitational tournament, the biggest event on the professional grappling circuit this weekend. The promotion laid out a 160 lb (72.5 kilogram) Grand Prix with a cash prize of 100,000 US Dollars. A very big sum by any standards in this sport.
With this epic cash prize, there was no surprise in seeing athletes such as 2023 IBJJF World No-Gi Champ Diego “Pato” Oliveira, 2023 silver medalist Deandre Corbe or 2024 World No-Gi silver medalists Julian Espinosa and Gianni Grippo on the roster, as well as ADCC veteran Ethan Crelinsten as the main figures on the card. A very impressive line-up with other names like Cole Abate or Diogo Reis likely missing due to the event’s proximity to next week’s Gi tournament, the Pan American Championships.
There were many things to praise about this Sapateiro Invitational alongside its historic prize. The Grand Prix followed the ADCC ruleset, which is a more recent addition, breaking from previous events in the less desirable submission-only format, a set-up that provided very fun matches with lots of scrambles, wrestling exchanges, and submissions.
The man of the hour was Deandre Corbe. The Standard Jiu-Jitsu athlete had an epic run with tough matches, making the best of his well-rounded game to take athletes out at their own game. This was evident in his battles against Pato and Cisneros, where he was able to escape every footlock attack by the Brazilian specialist and out-scramble the scrambler Cisneros.
A fun surprise at this event was Josh Cisneros. The American player has had his ups and downs over the past couple of years, struggling to make any consistent winning streak in the IBJJF circuit but pulled through an amazing performance last night taking out 3 solid names, putting a particularly solid performance against B-Team standout Ethan Crelinsten, whom he dominated with better wrestling and positional dominance.
SAPATEIRO INVITATIONAL 160 LB GRAND PRIX
FIRST ROUND:
– Diego “Pato” Oliveira DEF. Jordan Holy via triangle choke
– Gavin Corbe DEF. Jett Thompson via 2×0
– Deandre Corbe DEF. Maning Leverett via Armbar
– Kade Tsitos DEF. Tristan Sainz via decision (0x0 pts)
– Josh Cisneros DEF. Anthony Valdes via Armbar
– Gianni Grippo DEF. Werther Marciales via RNC
– Ethan Crelinsten DEF. Reese Lefever via 3×0
– Max Hanson DEF. Julian Espinosa via 3×0
QUARTER-FINALS:
– Diego “Pato” Oliveira DEF. Gavin Corbe via decision (0x0 pts)
– Deandre Corbe DEF. Kade Tsitos via 3×0
– Josh Cisneros DEF. Gianni Grippo via adecision (0x0 pts)
– Ethan Crelinsten DEF. Max Hanson via RNC/Cross Face
SEMI-FINALS:
– Deandre Corbe DEF. Diego Oliveira via decision (0x0 pts)
– Josh Cisneros DEF. Ethan Crelinsten via 5×0
FINAL:
– Deandre Corbe DEF. Josh Cisneros via kneebar
(no 3rd place match, Pato forfeited his match to Crelinsten)
