The 2015 NY BJJ Pro took place this Saturday at the NY City College, in Harlem.
Hundreds of athletes gathered to compete for a chunk of the $30k in money prizes being offered by the IBJJF.
In the black belt division, four competitors came out on top at the end of their brackets.
Here is how they made it to the top of the podium.
Female
Sarah Black vs. Jessica Smith
GD Jiu-Jitsu’s Sarah Black was the standout with double gold in the lightweight division and the open class, which secured her a $1,5k big check. After beating Jessica Smith 2-0 in the division final, she went on to finish Megan Nevill with a leg lock for the open class title.
Male
Featherweight – In three matches, Kim Terra made his way to the top of the podium. First he caught Masahiro Iwasaki with a bow and arrow choke. In the semifinal, another bow and arrow to finish Tsuyoshi Tamaki and get to the final. His opponent would be Gianni Grippo, who made it to the final after choking Paulo Santana from the back.
Kim Terra vs. Gianni Grippo
The final match was a very strategic one, with Terra and Grippo exchanging sweeps throughout the entire regulation time. In the end, the socre was 8-8, with four sweeps and piece and the three referees decided to give Kim the win by unanimous decision.
Middleweight – Otavio Sousa fought twice in the division to secure his $4k check. In the semifinal, he swept Kevin Machecha once to score the winning two points. His opponent in the gold medal decider would be Victor Silverio, who first swept Nathan Mendelsohn and after that beat Mansher Khera 4-0 for his spot in the final.
Otavio Sousa vs. Victor Silverio
The battle for the gold medal was decided by one advantage after a 2-2 tie on points. Otavio Sousa managed to score three advantages against two scored by Silverio to go home with the big prize.
Heavyweight – Marcos Tinoco fought befor his Marcelo Garcia Academy’s teammate and walked away with the $4k prize. First he beat Thiago Sá 2-1 on advantages for near-sweeps in the semifinal. His opponent in the final would be Rafael Barbosa, who didn;t have to fight because of Tanner Rice’s no show.
Marcos Tinoco vs. Rafael Formiga
The final match was a battle of sweeps and Tinoco was able to score one more than Formiga to win 4-2 and be the champion.
Here is a photo gallery of the black belt finals (click on the arrows to browse).
In the team’s division, the results were:
1 – Alliance Marcelo Garcia – 105
2 – Team Lloyd Irvin – 79
3 – Nova União – 72
4 – New England United BJJ – 71
5 – TAC Team BJJ – 56
6 – Unity Jiu-jitsu – 56
7 – Vicente Jr. Team – 53
8 – Soul Fighters BJJ Connecticut – 50
9 – Balance – 49
10 – Black Hole Jiu-Jitsu – 47
For the full results, click here.
