Few things can be harder to achieve than a gold medal in a high-level Jiu-Jitsu competition.

The preparation, the sacrifices, the doubts and the sheer quality of opponents make it all more tasteful when the victory finally comes.

That’s why champions usually experience a burst of emotions the moment they realize they have achieved their goals.

At this past week’s WPJJC, our photographers were able to capture several of those moments and we have put them together in this thrilling photo gallery.

The black belt finals at the 2016 WPJJC this Saturday had all the ingredients to become instant classics.

They had non-stop action, the highest level of technique, lots of drama and thrills to spare.

Our news team was right there to capture all that in 69 images that will leave you wanting more.

Browse away and relive the excitement!

The 2016 WPJJC is in the books after four days of trills at the IPIC Arena, in Abu Dhabi.

Gracie Barra’s Felipe Pena and Alliance’s Tayane Porfírio walked away with the open class belts for the black belt divisions and the big checks.

Pena caught Jose Junior with an armlock to pocket $30,000 and join the rankings of absolute champions in the UAE.

Tayane Porfírio

Tayane completed her collection from previous years with a shinning brown/black belt open class division title after a 3-0 win over the always tough Bia Mesquita. The points came from a guard pass early in the match.

In the other divisions of the black belt, results were as follows:

MALE 

62kg – João Miyao alleged an injury to not fight his teammate Hiago George. George took home the gold medal.

69kg: Marcio Andre managed two near guard passes to beat Paulo Miyao and win the division.

77kg: Gabriel Arges swept Roberto Satoshi three times to win 6-4 and become the champion.

85kg: Leandro Lo beat Claudio Calasans Jr. by referees decision after a 2-2 tie.

94kg: Erberth Santos started out fast to pass guard and get to mount and score 7-2 on Felipe Pena.

+94kg: Ricardo Evangelista swept and got to mount to beat Victor Honorio 6-2.

FEMALE

55kg: Mackenzie Dern beat Marina Ribeiro 2-1 on advantages for the title.

62kg: Bia Mesquita caught Bianca Basílio in a kneebar to win.

70kg: Nathiely Jesus caught Priscilla Cerqueira with abow and arrow choke to be the champion.

+70kg: Tayane Porfírio choked Fernanda Mazzelli from mount to win the division.

The final day of the WPJJC also featured three BJJ legends matches.

Marcio Pé de Pano beat Rodrigo Comprido 2-0 with a sweep; Alexandre Soca beat Robinho Moura by one advantage after a 5-5 tie; Vitor Shaolin choked Daniel Moraes from the back.

In the lower belts, open class results were:

Brown Belt

Nicholas Meregali beat Rudson Matheus 4-0 with two sweeps for the open class belt.

Purple Belt

Gustavo Batista caught Pedro Elias with an armlock for the title.

Gabrielle Lima managed an armbar to beat Renata Moreira.

Blue Belt

Luis Carmo finished Bruno Lima with an americana lock from side control.

Katharina Araujo beat Amelia Lui by referees decision after a 0-0 tie.

Catch the full results at uaejjf.org

Relive the thrills on GRACIEMAG’s Instagram account.

Our team stayed mat side up until the very last second of the last match to bring you the best images of all the action.

Browse through more than 70 images and relive all the thrills of matches like Pena vs. Galvão, Barral vs. Calasans, Erberth vs. Faisal, etc.

Here are 92 images that will help you relive the thrills of the black belt (brown/black for women) open class at the 2016 WPJJC.

You will catch the best moments tnat led our four finalists (Felipe Pena, Jose Junior, Tayane Porfirio and Bia Mesquita) to earn their spots in the gold medal deciders.

You will also see amazing images of top notch black belts like Leandro Lo, Claudio Calasans Jr, Andre Galvão, Erberth Santos, Roberto Cyborg, Luiza Monteiro, Fernanda Mazzelli, Jessica Trindade, etc.

Just browse and get ready for more action until all champions are crowned this Saturday, April 23.

Follow the complete coverage on GRACIEMAG’s social media channels.

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Pena, Junior, Porfirio, Mesquita in the open class finals

Fifity six men registered for a shot at the $30k big prize while 44 women tried their luck in search of the $10k destined for them.

In the end, Felipe Pena had a performance that matched the expectations and made his way to the final.

Pena’s path to the final was made easier after Marcus Buchecha decided to pull out of the open class following orders from Checkmat’s leader Leo Vieira.

Even so, Pena had to first beat Marcio Andre 4-0, then Claudio Calasans Jr. 4-2 and Alex Trans 2-0.

“I’m so happy with my performance. This was such a tough bracket,” said Pena after the semifinal.

Jose Junior teaches Jiu-Jitsu in Abu Dhabi. He has had other good showings at the WPJJC in previous years.

This time, he was on point to go all the way to the final.

His first big challenge was in the round of 16, when he beat Luiz Panza 4-0. His next challenge was against Jackson Sousa and one advantage after a 2-2 tie earned Junior the win.

Then, in the quarterfinals, he beat Ricardo Evangelista 2-0 with another sweep.

Junior did not have to fight in the semifinal as both Erberth Santos and Victor Honório were disqualified during the quarterfinal match for lack of combativeness.

“I know we had a lot of tough guys in this division, but I trained very hard to achieve this very important goal,” said Junior about his campaign.

In the female division, the final will be between a upcoming powerhouse in Tayane Porfirio and a very well accomplished star in Beatriz Mesquita.

Tayane proved once again that she’s not only strong and owner of a huge amount of pressure, but also tremendously skilled.

The quarterfinal match against Mackenzie Dern was the perfect example of how many weapons Tayane has.

She swept and then passed the guard to win 5-2 in a thrilling match.

The semifinal was against Jessica Trindade and the win came in the form of a toe hold at the very end.

Bia Mesquita seemed on point throughout the entire day.

She had nothing but tough matches in Ana Carol Vieira (2-0), Luiza Monteiro (4-0) and Bianca Basilio (ref. decision after 2-2).

This Friday the black belts fight in their weight classes until all finals are set. 

The finals go down this Saturday, April 23.

Follow the complete coverage of the 2016 WPJJC on GRACIEMAG’s social media channels.

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2016 WPJJC opening ceremony at the IPIC Arena. Photo: UAEJJF

The 2016 World Professional Jiu-Jitsu championship is in full swing in Abu Dhabi.

The event kicked off this Monday, April 18, and goes all the way to next Saturday, April 23.

The black belts step on the mats on this Thursday, the 21st.

They first will compete all the way until the finals are set for the male and female divisions.

On Friday, they are back for the weight classes, also fighting until the finals are set.

The finals take place on Saturday both for the weight classes and the open class.

Click here for the complete schedule.

Click here for the brackets.

Follow the complete coverage of the black belt division and more on GRACIEMAG’s social media channels.

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2015 WPJJC at the IPIC Arena in Abu Dhabi

The UAEJJF released this Wednesday in Abu Dhabi the pre-schedule for the 2016 World Professional Jiu-Jitsu championship.

The event will span throughout a 10-day period, with three different competitions and an invitational tournament.

Things start out with the Abu Dhabi World Jiu-Jitsu festival, for kids only, on April 15-16.

Then, it will be time for the Abu Dhabi World Jiu-Jitsu Cup, for athletes under 18 years old, on April 17-18.

The 2016 WPJJC starts on April 19 and wraps up on April 23, with competitors of all belts from adult to master 2.

The adult black belt division will compete on April 21-23.

On April 23, the UAEJJF will hold the first ever World Jiu-Jitsu Legends, an invitational event.

The event wraps up on April 24, with the World Jiu-Jitsu Awards – Red Carpet.

Click here to register now for the 2016 WPJJC.

If you liked what you watched on the video above and you want to be part of it the next time it happens, register now for the NY International Pro.

The event scheduled March 5 and organized by the UAEJJF will gather athletes of all nationalities to compete for travel packages for the 2016 WPJJC.

You have until March 1 to register.

Click here and sign up now and join some of the best athletes of the continent.

In the black belt division, Luiz Panza, Thiago Sá and Francisco Iturralde are already in.

The UAEJJF is launching another series of events next March 5, in New York City.

The NY International Pro will gather athletes of all nationalities at the Aviator Sports And Events Center, in Brooklyn.

The registration deadline is March 1.

The event will give away travel packages for the 2016 WPJJC to champions of selected categories.

Hurry up and click here to sigh up now.

Keenan vs. Magid Photo: Blanca Garcia

You have until Feb.8 to register for the US National Pro Orlando, scheduled February 13.

The event will award travel packages for the 2016 WPJJC, in Abu Dhabi, this coming April.

Citizens of all countries of North and Central Americas can sign up.

Click here for more info and to sign up now.

A video posted by GRACIEMAG | English Edition | (@graciemagazine) on Feb 5, 2016 at 3:53pm PST

Lo vs. Keenan at the 2015 WPJJC

Keenan Cornelius was the standout at the US National Pro Long Beach, this past Sunda, January 24.

The black belt from Atos JJ won both the adult male open class division and the -94kg division at the event organized by the UAEJJF.

With that, Cornelius secured one of the travel packages to compete at the 2016 WPJJC, this coming April.

Other athletes who won the travel package were: Andrew Wiltse (blue belt heavy open class), Emmanuel Ortiz (blue belt light open class), Devon Delbrugge (purple belt heavy open), Angelo Guerrero-Barden (purple belt light open), John Combs (brown belt heavy open), Ian Sanders ((brown belt heavy open), Ram Amada (black belt master 1 light open), Danielle Martinez (blue/purple open).

The next installment of the US National Pro is scheduled February 13, in Orlando, FL.

Once again, several travel packages will be offered for selected champions.

The event is open for citizens of all countries in Central and North Americas.

The registration deadline is February 6.

Click here to know more.