Braulio Estima vs. Ronaldo 'Jacare' Souza

One of the most interesting ADCC Super Fights will be this one. We are talking about two top class athletes! Estima was at the peak of his career in 2009, winning gold at ADCC in his weight division and in an open division, and also three times Abu Dhabi World Pro champion. Jacare is five times World Pro champion since the age of 17 and a Strike Force belt holder.

Jacare has a really strong stand up game. He would probably try to keep the fight 'up' and wait for the last minutes to shout for a take down. Control the position and eventually win. On the other hand Braulio has a strong 'guard' and the amazing ability to attack for submission from almost every position. He would probably attempt a take down from the very beginning of the fight and eventually bring the fight in his court.

Andreas

Eddie Bravo vs Royler Gracie 2

The long anticipated match between the two rivals, Bravo and Gracie. Back in 2003, Bravo got the win with a triangle. Is it possible Royler will make the same mistake for a second time? The match at the time, Royler, an already big name, underestimated the basically unknown Bravo, who managed to impose his game plan and tap-out the never before submitted Royler Gracie. Even now, after so many years, Bravo still gets much credit for that match.

The re-match promises much. We are going to see a completely different game, looking at the old match, we've seen Bravo has no problem replacing to guard from cross-side. Royler will need to switch his base and move to North-South. From there attack with guillotines and arm-triangles. Bravo will not stay still, he will turn on all fours or play reverse guard. This gives Royler the opportunity to get the back or attack the legs. I would also like to see Bravo passing Royler's guard. Bravo is such a creative and unorthodox player, we never know what new game plan he's going to bring to the table. In any scenario both players are so flexible and masters of the game, that predictions are hard to make. Here we are split, Andreas believes that Royler is too old to handle Eddie. If the rematch was in the same year, Royler would have won the rematch. But too many years have passed, so he believes unorthodox Eddie is the favourite to win this rematch, while I feel that Royler will have done his homework and be alert this time. He will not as easily fall into Eddie's traps and win this the old fashioned way.

Pantelis

ADCC Finals 2011

So guys, if you're looking for the most spectacular grappling event, look no further: the ADCC finals are on September 24th & 25th in Nottingham, England!

ADCC finals take place every two years, with trials being every other year in different countries on all the continents. The winner of every country's trial then competes in continental trials before making it to the finals. Only the top two have the opportunity to compete in the Finals. ADCC also gives 5 invitation passes to five top grappling athletes (which has included UFC fighters, previous ADCC winners, and other big names). This year, they allowed fans of ADCC Facebook to vote these five invite passes in each weight category.

In this tournament, Aspida mates are competing, such as Pantelis's instrustor Renzo Gracie, friends Braulio Estima, Danny Prokopos, Mario Rinaldi and Penny Thomas. We wish them all GOOD LUCK. We are sure they will all do well!

List of competitors is here and my predictions:

-65.9kg
Rafael Mendes
Greger Forsel
Marko Ramos
David Marinakis
Tetsu Hadairo
Jeff Glover
Bruno Frazzato
Timo-juhani Hirvikangas
Ryan Hall
Rubens “Cobrinha” Charles
Rani Yahya
Baret Yoshida
Robson Moura
Denny Prokopos
Tom Barlow

*** Prediction: Rafael Mendes***

-76.9kg
Jorge Britto
Vagner Rocha
Davis Hart
Takanori Gomi
Enricco Coco
Murilo Santana
Daniel Strauss
Marcelo Garcia
Gunnar Nelson
Leo Vieira
JT Torres
Kron Gracie
Gregor Gracie
Augusto Mendes “Tanquinho”

***Prediction: Marcelo Garcia***

-87.9kg
André Galvão
Marko Helen
Rustam Chsiev
Cameron Rowe
Jeon Doo Kwang
JJ Holmes
Claudio Calasans
Zbigniew Tyszka
Pablo Popovitch
Rafael Lovato jr
Romulo Barral
Rousimar Palhares
Sergio Moraes
Paulo Filho
Dan Schon

***Prediction: Andre Galvao***

-98.9kg
Xande Ribeiro
Kari Peltola
Joseph Lee Baize
Igor Praporshchikov
Animal Anzai
James Poupolo
Augusto Ferrari
Kamil Uminski
Roger Gracie
Rodolfo Viera
Joao Assis
Dean Lister
Alexander Trans
Robert Drysdale

***Roger Gracie***

+99kg
Fabricio Werdum
Janne-Pekka Pietiläinen
Mario Rinaldi
Mick Wilson
Sekine Hideki
Jared Rosholt
Gabriel Vella
Mateusz Juskowiak
Jeff Monson
Bruno Bastos
Roberto “cyborg” abreu
Antonio ”bigfoot” Silva
Vinny Magalhaes
Geraldi Rinaldi
Fereira Jose Junior

***Fabricio Werdum***

-60kg Women
Luanna Alzuguir
Lara Jayne Ng
Hashi Takayo
Cathilee Albert
Michelle Nicolini
Sara Svensson
Kyra Gracie

***Kyra Gracie***

+60kg Women
Hannette Staack
Fiona Muxlow
Penny Thomas
Talita Nogueira
Devi Ahuja
Gabi Garcia
Cris Cyborg

***Cris Cyborg***

*Competitor list subject to change.

BJJ for girls

Hi all.

Andreas thought it would be a good idea to hear a girl's perspective on Brazilian Jiu Jitsu as sport and as a form of self defense. I started jiu jistu almost a year ago, almost be default. As a child and teen I did do many sports, including karate and ballet, but am by no means a tom boy. I came to the class with a friend to check it out. Having no previous knowledge of the sport, or of grappling, it did not at first appeal to me, sweating on the ground with someone else on top of me did not sound like fun. Some months later I attended a class for the first time. Pantelis showed me some self defense moves and explained the concept of the sport. It's a strategic game where every move has many possible counter moves and defenses.

As a self defense martial art, the principle of BJJ makes sense. All women can quite easily be knocked to the ground and that's were a grappling sport is much more effective as height and weight does not play a role, technique is far more important. You don't need to be strong enough to throw a punch, as a swift triangle or armbar are much more effective. BJJ is a great strength, conditioning and flexibility training. Above all, is the mutual respect we have for each other and the friendships and connections forged with your team mates through the sport.

Hope this was useful and informative for any girls and women who may be looking for something effective as a self-defense and as a great work out.

Anastasia

BJJ white belt