Gustavo Batista

Day 2 of the 2016 European championship was all devoted to blue belts and purple belts.

The highlight was the open class division both for men and women.

In the blue belt, Brazilian team PSLPB Cicero Costha closed out the male division with André Porfírio and Francisco Andrade.

After finishing Mebtouch Reda with a foot lock in the semifinal, André got the gold medal.

In the female division, another close out, now between NS Brotherhood teammates Izadora Silva and Amanda da Silva.

Izadora took the title home.

In the purple belt, Natalia Zumba recovered from a second place in the lightweight division to win the open class in great fashion.

She finished Jesmine Latrach with a foot lock for the gold medal.

Kennedy Alencar

In the male division, Gustavo Batista repeated the gold double campaign he had in Lisbon as a blue belt in 2015.

First he won the heavyweight division and then won three more matches to conquer the open class.

He finished Pete O with an ezequiel choke for the gold medal.

Click here for the partial results after day 2.

Another standout of the day was Rubens Cobrinha’s son, Kennedy Maciel.

With four outstanding performances, he conquered the light-featherweight division finishing three opponents.

Here is a photo gallery of day 2.

Coverage offered by Gameness.

Day 3 kicks off this Friday, at 9AM (Lisbon time).

Click here to follow the complete coverage on Instagram.

The IBJJF has released the official brackets for the 2016 European championship, which kicks off this Wednesday, in Lisbon, Portugal.

The black belt division is scheduled for the weekend, but we can start having fun with it right now.

Click here to check the brackets and schedule for the event.

Here are our Editor’s picks for the most probable final matches in each black belt division.

Coverage brought to you by Gameness.

Male 

Roosterweight: Caio Terra is a favorite for the title. His most probable opponent in the final is the always tough Koji Shibamoto. Can someone spoil the party? Final: Caio Terra vs. Koji Shibamoto.

Lightfeather: João Miyao is the clear favorite for the title, so he should make his way to the final. On the other side of the bracket, Miyao’s teammate Hiago Silva and also Luis Felipe Pinto and Edvaldo Ferreira should fight for the other spot. Final: João Miyao vs. Hiago Silva

Featherweight: One of the most stacked divisions, with names like Marcio Andre, Isaac Doederlein, Italo Lins, Brian Mahecha, Renan Sancar and Paulo Miayo, it’s tough to pick the two finalists. Even so, our Editor is beting on a Miyao vs. Andre showdown. Final: Marcio André vs. Paulo Miyao.

Lightweight: Another great mix of talents, the lightweight features Kevin Mahecha, Edwin Najmi, Mansher Khera, Michael Liera and Victor Genovesi, just to name a few. It’s gonna be a sight to see and very tough to predict the finalists. Anyway, here we go. Final: Edwin Najmi vs. Michael Liera.

Middleweight: Also a fun division to watch, it’ll probably be a clash of generations. Allan Nascimento and Yan Cabral leading the the team of the experienced fighters against young guns like Lucas Barbosa. Final: Allan Nascimento vs. Lucas Barbosa

Medium-heavy: With Leandro Lo out, the spot in the final against favorite Romulo Barral should be decided between Gabriel Arges and Patrick Gaudio. Final: Romulo Barral vs. Gabriel Arges

Heavyweight: Two names stand out as favorites here. Can someone make it to the final other than Pena and Sousa? Let’s see. Final: Felipe Pena vs. Jackson Sousa.

Super-heavyweight: Filled with good names, the division will a sight t see. Lucio Lagarto is going for his sixth title in Lisbon. Erberth Santos wants his second as a black belt. Final: Lucio Rodrigues vs. Erberth Santos

Ultraheavy: Andre Galvão was registered to compete, but his name was scratched from the bracket, which makes things much more undefined. Final: Pedro Moura vs. Alan Ferreira.

Open Class: Considering all the names registered and confirmed in the black belt division and if all the big names register for the open class, the most probable final is Barral vs. Pena. Final: Romulo Barral vs. Felipe Pena.

Female

Lightfeather: With five names, Kristina Barlaan, Ariadne Oliveira and Chelsea Donner are the favorites. Final: Kristina Barlaan vs. Ariadne Oliveira

Featherweight: Only two athletes registered. Final Mackenzie Dern vs. Yasmine Wilson

Lightweight: Four good names in the division in Jessica Santos, Sarah Black, Laurence Cousin and Maria Gonzalez. Final: Sarah Black vs. Chelsea Donner

Middleweight: The most stacked weight class in the female black belt division, the middleweight has two very well known names as favorites for the final. Final: Luanna Alzuguir vs. Luiza Monteiro

Medium-heavy: Andresa Correa is the favorite here. Final: Andresa Correa vs. Karolina Zawodnik

Heavyweight: Only two athletes registered. Final: Ewelyn Arruda vs. Venla Luukkonen

Open Class: If all of the big names register for the open class, we should have great thrills in the female absolute division. Final: Mackenzie Dern vs. Luiza Monteiro

After the registration deadline, we can now take a look at the black belt divisions to see what great matches are in store for us.

Here are the highlights.

Roosterweight

Caio Terra vs. Koji Shibamoto: Terra is going for his third title in the black belt division in Lisbon. If they meet again, they will repeat the 2014 final, won by Caio. Shibamoto is also a European champion, as he won the roosterweight in 2012.

Featherweight

Paulo Miyao vs. Marcio Andre: Andre is the reigning champion, as he beat Gianni Grippo in 2015. Miyao moved up from the light-featherweight and if they meet should be a sight to see. The division also features newcomer to the black belt Isaac Doederlein and Brian Mahecha.

Lightweight

Michael Liera Jr. at the Atos JJ Camp

Edwin Najmi vs. Michael Liera vs. Mansher Khera: Yes, that’s right. All three names combined are a recipe for great thrills. They represent a talented new generation of black belts coming out of the USA and making waves in the competition circuit.

Middleweight

Lucas Barbosa

Lucas Barbosa vs. Alan do Nascimento: a generational clash between the Atos newcomer and the Checkmat experienced black belt. The division also has great names in Oliver Geddes, Darragh O’Çonaill and Charles Negromonte.

Medium-heavy 

Romulo Barral Photo: Ivan Trindade.

Romulo Barral vs. Patrick Gaudio: Barral is the clear favorite here, but Gaudio also has very good credentials coming in the division.

Heavyweight

PENA VS. SOUSA

Felipe Pena vs. Jackson Sousa: they just met at the heavyweight final of the Worlds No-Gi, when Pena came out on top. This time, with the gi, who knows what could happen.

Superheavy

Lucio Lagarto

Lucio Rodrigues vs. Erberth Santos: in another generational battle, Lagarto wants to keep his impressive record at the European. he is the only black belt to have won medals in all but three of the event’s editions, since 2004. If he wins again, this is going to be his 6th title in Lisbon.

Open Class

Romulo Barral vs. André Galvão: This should be the highlight of the highlights. A true all-time classic with two of the greatest competitors off all times. Galvão just beat Barral in a no-gi event in Russia, so Barral is looking for a payback. Let’s just hope the two sign up for the absolute.

Female

Middleweight

Luanna Alzuguir

Luanna Alzuguir vs. Luiza Monteiro: Traditional rivals, Luanna and Luiza should put a great show for the crowd. In fact, the middleweight division is the highlight of the female division (with the exception of the open class).

Open class

Mackenzie Dern

Mackenzie Dern vs. Andresa Correa: Maybe they will repeat the Worlds No-Gi final. Luanna, Luiza, Shanti Abelha, Sarah Black and Kristina Barlaan could also be in the mix.

Follow the complete coverage of the 2016 European on GRACIEMAG’s social media channels and right here at GRACIEMAG.com

Coverage brought to you by Gameness.

The growth of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu around the world is continuous and seemingly impossible to be stopped.

The IBJJF just confirmed the 2016 European championship as a five-day event, on January 20-24.

The pre-schedule was updated this Tuesday, after the closing of the registration period this Monday.

The event reached the impressive mark of 3,517 athletes registered.

If that number is confirmed, the 2016 European will become the biggest IBJJF event of all times.

if you are registered, check your name on the athletes list and know that if there’s any mistake, the registration check day in January 16.

Click here to know more.

Coverage brought to you by Gameness .

Here’s the pre-schedule.

Wednesday:
White adult
White master 1 and 2
Blue adult male – Rooster to Light

Thursday:
Blue adult male – Middle to Open Class
Blue adult female
Purple adult male
Purple adult female

Friday:
Blue master 1 to 6
Purple master 1 to 6

Saturday:
White juvenile
Blue juvenile
Purple juvenile
Black master 1 to 6
Black adult male open class
Black adult female open class
Brown master 1 to 6

Sunday:
Black adult male – Rooster to Ultra Heavy and Open Class Final
Black adult female – Rooster to Super Heavy and Open Class Final
Brown adult male
Brown adult female

The registration deadline for the 2016 European championship is this Monday, January 11.

As a matter of fact, it’s most likely that the full capacity will be reached before the clock strikes midnight, as we are over the 90% mark.

Click here to register now and compete on January 20*-24, in Lisbon, Portugal.

Here are seven things that make the annual stoppage at the beautiful city of Lisbon such a particular occasion in the Jiu-Jitsu calendar.

The coverage of the 2016 European is brought to you by Gameness. Click here for great offers.

1. The crowd

The bleachers in Lisbon are always full and the crowd is not shy in being a huge part of the show. They cheer, they boo and they applaud great moments on the mats. Gabi Garcia said last year that meeting the crowd in Lisbon is one of her favorite things in Jiu-Jitsu. André Galvão was cheered in every single match during last year’s edition.

2. Location, location, location

Lisbon has all the great things you would expect from a major European capital, but without having to pay for Paris or London prices. The food is amazing, it’s not that cold, the people is super friendly and there are a lot of great sights to be visited in your free time. Brazilians love it to go there because they speak the same language as the locals (well, almost), so everybody is happy.

3. History

Since 2004, the European championship has been the setting for some of the most touching moments in Jiu-Jitsu history. In 2005, it was in Lisbon that Roger Gracie and Ronaldo Jacaré met for the first time after the famous armbar final at the 2004 Worlds. In 2009, Kron Gracie fought and won the middleweight division hours after learning that his grandfather Helio Gracie had passed away in Brazil. Kron’s celebration after the final win was one of the most touching moments ever. In 2013, Alan “Finfou” Nascimento brought the entire venue to tears when he returned the black belt Fernando Tererê had once sold to him while battling drug addiction.

4. Annual reunion 

The European championship is the first event of the calendar and also the moment of reunion for the Jiu-Jitsu community after the holiday break. Other than that, it’s the largest gathering for the BJJ people in Europe and so they come from all over the continent and beyond to celebrate the art they all love.

5. Surprise!

The European championship has also been the stage for some of the most surprising moments in Jiu-Jitsu history. Featherweight Mario Reis won the open class division in 2006 and still is the lightest competitor to have that title. Alex Trans broke the Brazilian domination in 2014, when he became the first European-native to win the open class gold medal. In 2013, Keenan Cornelius had two thrilling battles with the Miyao brothers before winning the brown belt open class division. What thrills can we expect from 2016?

The final deadline to register for the 2016 European championship is January 11.

If you are thinking of competing on Jan.20-24, in Lisbon, Portugal, you need to hurry and sign up now.

When you do, you’ll be joining an impressive roster of talents already registered to compete.

The adult black belt division will feature world champions like Romulo Barral, Felipe Pena, Mackenzie Dern, Luana Alzuguir and other big names like Erberth Santos, Lucio Rodrigues, Jackson Sousa, Mansher Khera, Edwin Najmi, Isaac Doederlein, among many others.

Click here and register now for the 2016 European.

In 2014, Danish Alex Trans did something no had ever done before (or since for all that matter).

He became the first European native to win the adult black belt open class division of the European Championship.

He did that after a tough final against Yuri Simões.

GRACIEMAG was matside and taped the whole match.

Click play and what how Trans achieved the most important title of his career so far.

Remember to register for the 2016 European, schedule once again in Lisbon, Portugal, on January 20-24.

The final deadline is January 11, but you have to hurry once it’s common for the event to fill up before the final date.

Click here to register now.

The 2016 European is right around the corner and should not wait too long to register for the event.

The final deadline for signing up is January 11 and the event is scheduled January 20*-24.

Remember that the European is one of the few 4-star events in the IBJJF calendar, which means you will add valorous points if you are a black belt competing in the adult division and needs 50 pts to qualify for the 2016 Worlds.

This year’s edition will be the first one in a long time at a new venue in the city of Lisbon, Portugal.

Click here for more info and to register right now.

Gabi Garcia

The 2016 European Jiu-Jitsu championship is still more than three months away, but you can start making plans for your trip to Lisbon right away.

The event changed venues for the first time in a long time and in 2016 it will be held at the Pavilhão de Oldivelas, north of the Portuguese capital city.

The new venue is larger than the Casal Vistoso Gymnasium and should fit the ever growing Jiu-Jitsu crowd more comfortably.

The 2016 European is scheduled Jan. 20*-24 and you can already register to compete.

Click here to register now.

While you do that, check out the female black belt open class final between Gabi Garcia and Mackenzie Dern.

*Fights will be scheduled on January 20 if the number of athletes registered exceed capacity for four days.

Gabi Garcia vs. Mackenzie Dern in the European 2015 final. Photo by Ivan Trindade

Gabrielle Garcia, black belt 29, had a 2015 European Championship of her dreams in Lisbon, last January 24-25^th. The athlete who once cried for being booed in the competitions showed a complete Jiu-Jitsu, much faster and offensive, and was hailed with applause by the crowd at Casal Vistoso, before and during the fight – which led her to tears again, but now from joy.

Alliance’s biggest star chatted with GRACIEMAG about what she has learned from the absolute and super heavyweight gold at the IBJJF competition, in one of her best performances until this date: five fights, five wins and five submissions.

Check it out and learn from the champion, Gabi Garcia:

GRACIEMAG: What was more exhausting until now in your career: keeping an undefeated streak since 2009 or burning 40kg and managing to stay in shape?

GABI GARCIA: I believe that maintaining an undefeated record in Jiu-Jitsu is now a more exhausting mission, physically and mentally. You need a lot of training and dedication in training, so diet and weight loss are just one component of it all. Thus, when I’m fighting I do not think about keeping an undefeated record; in fact I do not even remember that. I just think about making no mistakes – so much so that when I loose a position I do not forgive it, and then I train it with an increasingly drive. Now, losing weight and dieting will be present for the rest of my life, I come from an obese family and it makes me live on a diet!

Have you analyzed your performance in the European yet? Do you think you missed something?

In my opinion I had a magnificent championship; I’ve waited years for the moment to step on the mat and be applauded standing up by the whole crowd in the gymnasium, and at the European 2015 this day has come true! I swear I felt like crying when I stepped in to fight, it was an inexplicable emotion. I believe I made a mistake in the absolute final against Mackenzie. I missed a position that cost me an advantage: I was focused in submitting quickly and then let my hip high. After that, I had to stay calm and quietly got out of the position to finish the fight. I really enjoyed my performance because I was fearless, pulled guard, swept, got the back, and did the things I wanted to do, but now without fear of making mistakes!

What did you learn out of this mistake?

I missed a position, but I am human and can make mistakes. It was nice to see that I’m not invincible, no one is, and must train even more. I have always respected Mackenzie and now I will get even closer to her game! Mackenzie is very tough; she has experience as a competitor and her father (Megaton) is in her corner. She is a complete fighter, and was the full merit for getting the position. I’ll try to fix this loophole soon to avoid this kind of advantages.

You have demonstrated a beginner’s joy in the social networks when doing a basic technique. What do you recommend to our readers and fans that would like to work on their weaknesses?

I suggest to all Jiu-Jitsu practitioners to devote 90% of the training to their weaknesses. Today, I hardly play on top at the gym, I just do guard because I know that if I need it will have to be up to date! People said I would not take the back, did not call for the guard, and these really were my weaknesses. Now, I train so much those aspects that I trust anything can go wrong!

What valuable tips you’ve received from Fabio Gurgel for attacking the arm and submitting all the girls?

I’ve trained the armbar thousands of times, which came out twice in the European, and almost all of them came out wrong. But I fell in love with the position and tried it in every practice, from any position. Fabio even lost his patience when teaching me repeatedly where to spin and the right position of the head and body. I did it the wrong way over and over again, but it came out correctly at the right time. That means it was worth it to train a lot!

What Fabio says?

I cannot speak here exactly what happens in training to maintain secrecy and gym etiquette, but he says some things that sticks in our minds and reappears at the time of competition. For example: “Invite your opponent to live what you suffer in the gym every day.” I went out there to kill or be killed, as he always asked. I hope to have Gurgel around until I retire. He gets angry, and we argue just like every family does, but I love him like a father.

Another day in Barueri you heard jokes from an abusive supporter, such as: “Before I did not want to, but now that you’re good-looking I want a picture with you!” Did you suffer any Harassment in the 2015 European?

(Laughter!) Gabriel Medina said the other day, as I read on Graciemag_br’s Instagram, that “the more you win championships, the more beautiful you look.” There’s nothing more certain than that. Harassment increased, and it raised very much my self-esteem, so much that I realized how diet is really worth. I’ve never received so much love, so many photo requests, and I still came back from Portugal with a suitcase full of gifts from the fans! Nothing can pay for it, I’m too happy – eager to fight everything and deliver my game, even if the result isn’t victory. As another fan told me: from “Fiona” to muse! It was funny. I loved this European, I could not walk in the gymnasium because of so many people wanting to hug me and congratulate me. For anyone who has always been booed, this is the biggest slap in the face of people who always doubted that one day I would get there.

Here are some of the best images of the black belt division at the 2015 European championship, from last Sunday, Jan. 25. Andre Galvão, Gabi Garcia, Mackenzie Dern, the Miyao Bros, Caio Terra and many others in awesome moments that were born classics.

They took home the gold of the adult black belt open class divisions.

Gabi confirmed her favoritism and was able to submit all her opponents.

In the final, she had to recover from a near sweep and also an attack to her neck by Mackenzie Dern, the most thrilling moment of the event.

After putting things back to normal, Gabi passed guard and got the win with a choke from side control, like she usually does.

The same crowd that seemed to be rooting for Dern, cheered Garcia in the end, recognizing her talent and supremacy in the female black belt division.

In the male open class final, Andre Galvão also had to recover to confirm his position as favorite.

Igor Silva, who had an amazing weekend, started out hot with an attack to Galvão’s foot and a sweep that put him 2-0 ahead with one advantage.

After that, Galvão worked his game plan and was able to comeback in the match.

He had the not predicted help of a rib injury suffered by Silva in a prior match, which slowed him down.

Galvão was able to sweep back, pass guard and put the knee on the belly twice to get to a 9-2 score at the moment Silva called it quits due to the pain.

Go to our instagram page to know how the other black belt divisions played out.

For the full results, click here.

In the teams competition, the results were:

Adult Male

1 – Alliance – 78

2 – PSLPB Cicero Costha – 44

3 – Atos Jiu-Jitsu – 41

4 – Gracie Barra – 37

5 – Team Lloyd Irvin – 29

6 – Brasa CTA – 26

7 – GF Team – 25

8 – Ribeiro Jiu-Jitsu – 21

9 – Gracie Barra JJ – 19

10 – Game Fight BJJ/Manimal – 18

Adult Female

1 – CheckMat – 45

2 – Alliance – 38

3 – Gracie Barra – 36

4 – Roger Gracie – 26

5 – Frontline Academy – 21

6 – Carlson Gracie Team – 14

7 – GF Team – 14

8 – BJJ Globetrotters – 13

9 – Bruno Bastos Association – 12

10 – Gracie Barra JJ – 12

Juvenile

1 – Gracie Barra – 39

2 – UAE Jiu-jitsu Team – 24

3 – Hangon Hyrskyt – 20

4 – Rio Grappling Club Europe – 18

5 – SNAP A.S.D. – 18

6 – Art of Roll – 18

7 – UAEJJ – 17

8 – BJJ Globetrotters – 15

9 – Amazon Fight Team – 12

Masters

1 – Gracie Barra – 213

2 – Alliance – 173

3 – Roger Gracie – 142

4 – CheckMat – 136

5 – Icon Jiu-Jitsu Team – 109

6 – Brasa CTA – 77

7 – Carlson Gracie Team – 67

8 – WING BJJ – 47

9 – Ribeiro Jiu-Jitsu – 41

10 – GF Team – 35

Novice

1 – CheckMat – 60

2 – Carlson Gracie Team – 50

3 – Alliance – 46

4 – Icon Jiu-Jitsu Team – 34

5 – Gracie Barra – 32

6 – Brasa CTA – 20

7 – Jackson Paulo Team – 20

8 – Nova União International – 20

9 – Frota Team – 19

10 – Association Aranha France – 18