Can it get any better?

By Luca Atalla with photos by Guilherme Rafols


Despite his MMA fight last 18th, Roger Gracie (L) confirmed his presence. Margarida (R) is not yet guaranteed.

At around seven pm on Sunday, June 8th, California time, the MC for the event will announce the two finalists in the absolute black belt category of the Jiu-Jitsu World Championship, and two feelings will prevail among those present in the scenic Long Beach gymnasium: expectation, to find out who will be the big name of Jiu-Jitsu in 2008, and, mainly, nostalgia.

At that moment, more than a thousand fights will have taken place since Thursday. New techniques will have been introduced, and old moves will have been perfected. People who haven’t seen each other in a long time will have met, heroes from the past will mingle with the stars of today, at times in the fight area, but mainly in the stands. Rivalries between athletes and academies will have reached the breaking point in tension (for, in the end, us to realize that is where a good part of the magic of championships is seated). And, of course, lots of acai will have been consumed.

But as we have yet to go through all that less than two weeks from now, it’s worth venturing a prediction: will it have been the best World Championship of all times? I believe it will. And here’s why:


Saulo and Tarsis Humphreys (blue) do battle in last year's event. Despite a recent injury, Humphreys announced he will be fighting.

From time to time, there’s a renewal that takes place on the highest places on the winners' stand. It’s natural that old champions stop fighting, or move on to professional MMA, or just plain get hurt. That's part of the sport and those coming up from the bottom are looking for a window of opportunity like that for them to shine. But the best renewal comes when everyone is present and even so the new guy manages to win.

From what all the camps have confirmed, this year there will be little news related to absences. Yes, you will say, Jacare and Marcelinho Garcia will not fight. But they had already withdrawn their names a while back, news would be them returning. Unfortunately, that's not happening. This year, it seemed we’d lose Roger Gracie, who fought in Japan this last May 18th. But he surprised all and confirmed his presence at the championship, and arrives in California this Friday.

At the time of writing, I read an interview with Roberto Tussa (another up-and-comer) on GRACIEMAG.com saying last year's absolute runner-up, Romulo Barral, will not fight. That certainly puts a smear on these lines, but we’ll also see some fighters returning. One example: Braulio Estima, who was injured and didn't fight last year.

Cobrinha (blue) will look for his third blackbelt title and should be one of the main attractions.

And what’s there to say about the medalists who don’t quit? I spoke with Xande Ribeiro yesterday, and he agreed with me and predicted this would be the best Worlds of all times. “I feel great energy within me,” he said. The chat was brief, as he was on his way to training. “I need to polish a diamond,” he said in farewell. He seemed motivated and confident. Which is necessary in fulfilling his role.

Well, if few are left out, interesting will be the arrival of new candidates, and their collision with those who had already been there but weren’t yet at the top of their game.

The best example of the former group is Kron Gracie, who makes it to black belt with a record of 51 submissions in a row. He's not the only one: rising American star William “Bill” Cooper will be having his first World Championship as a black belt and it would be interesting to see the two face off again.


Current roosterweight champion, Bruno Malfacine goes for his second.


In the latter group, I highlight Andre Galvao, a standout since purple belt, and a star since black, but who has matured enough to fight for a top spot in the absolute, which he proved, in fact, this last Pan-American. In line with these mature stars, we have Alexandre Souza (who took the European absolute at the beginning of the year, and the Brazilian Nationals, two weeks ago); Rafael Lovato Jr, who has already shone in all competitions in his category but still owes fans a great participation in the open one; young Braga Neto, who was weight and absolute champion at all belts and last year reached third in his division, at black. But at the last Brazilian Nationals Tarsis Humphreys put in a good performance, proving why he is one of the greatest examples of persistance and maturity...

Big Mac and Lovato dispute ultra heavyweight final, last year. Both are looking to shine in the absolute.

The list would swell enormously, should we taking into account an unquestionable fact: in Jiu-Jitsu, if you keep up your rhythm of training, improvement is inevitable. However, we can only hope for the best for those who have stood out in the past and not spent the year doing nothing.

As much as the men’s black belt division steals the show, it’s far from being a spectacle unto itself. The party that goes on for four days has many other components, and all of them are promising. Let’s take a look:

1) The Women’s – The girls have been stealing the spotlight with each edition, showing greater numbers, more technique, greater competitiveness, more charm… Well, this last parameter they’ve always been better at, but the fact is that competition Jiu-Jitsu has evolved as a whole, women's Jiu-Jitsu has done so with longer strides.



2) The crowd – Last year, when there was a great geographic shift, with the World moving from Brazil to the United States, there was also a great scare. And lots of instructors who would make the pilgrimmage to the Tijuca Tennis Club at the end of the month of July ended up not making it to Long Beach. This year, everyone will be there, with the notable exception of Master Carlson, who will be hollering at the judges somewhere most don’t have access to.

3) Organization – Just like what is happening with the technical level of the athletes, the International Federation's road has gotten longer since a year ago. More tournaments in different locations and countries were held, and, with every event, details are tweaked, so as to provide for better programming and running of the event. What's good for the crowd is good for the event.

4) The growth of the sport – Jiu-Jitsu grows naturally, but one cannot deny the boost from MMA has helped, and that translates into more students, more turning of the economic wheels and better conditions for improvement of classes. The move of the main championship to the USA also contributed in there being a greater balance of power, and we will see, mainly in the lower belts, tighter disputes for the gold medals. And, the more even the level, the more the factors providing excitement count: heart, determination and the overcoming of barriers.

I could spend a day writing more about why I believe this will be the best World Championship in history. But I believe I would do better to offer one last piece of advice: Don’t get left out of this party. My bags are already packed.

And if you are able to compete, even better still, but hurry, as sign-ups end tomorrow. As our columnist Martin Rooney says, the only competition you lose is the one you don’t fight in.

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Jiu-Jitsu World Championship 2007 view; photo by Mike Pesh/IBJJF

The service: The 2008 Jiu-Jitsu World Championship will take place between the 5th and 8th of June, at California State University Long Beach. The address is 1250 Bellflower Blvd., Long Beach, CA 908040. The competition is open to all athletes, regardless of nationality.

To sign up, click here.

For further information, visit the event's official website