Abu Dhabi Grand Slam Tour Abu Dhabi: black belt champions crowned in thrilling matches under new scoring system
The black belt division for men and the brown/black belt division for women were the highlights of Day 3 at the ADGS Tour in Abu Dhabi, this Saturday, January 18. For the first time competing under the new scoring system that turned penalties and advantages into points, some of the best competitors in the world treated the crowd to exciting action all throughout the day. Here’s how each weight class played out until the podium was set.
FEMALE BROWN/BLACK BELT
49KG – Mayssa Bastos and Brenda Larissa met in the gold medal match for the third event in a row this 2019/2020 season of the ADGS. In Abu Dhabi, Mayssa first outscored Clarissa Lacerda 12-1 in the semifinal while Brenda beat Tatiane Nunes 14-2 for her spot in the final. The decision was a thrilling one, as Mayssa and Brenda waged a sweep battle and traded points. In the end, Mayssa was able to hold on to a 10-8 lead and celebrate the title.
PODIUM
1st – Mayssa Bastos (Brazil)
2nd – Brenda Larissa (Brazil)
3rd – Clarissa Lacerda (Brazil)
55KG – Ana Rodrigues stays on top. After winning in Rio, she repeated the outcome in Abu Dhabi. She first beat Elina Moestan 2-1 in the semifinals. On the other side, Amal Amjahid outscored Sayuri 2-1 to compete for the gold medal. The final was a close match, as both Ana and Amal gave no space for their opponents. In the end, Amal made the mistake of turning to the wrong side while attacking a foot lock, which caused her disqualification. Ana once again celebrated the gold medal.
PODIUM
1st – Ana Rodrigues (Brazil)
2nd – Amal Amjahid (Belgium)
3rd – Ariadne de Oliveira (Brazil)
62KG – Larissa Paes could not hold back her tears after winning the gold medal. Her campaign started with a finish on Josilma Batista. In the semifinals, she also finished Deborah Costa. On the other side of the bracket, Australia’s Hope Douglass beat Alexa Yanes 8-0 and then outscored Charlotte Von Baumgarten 7-5. The final was decided only in extra time after a 1-1 tie in regulation. A beautiful throw gave Larissa the 3-1 lead and ended the golden score extra time.
PODIUM
1st – Larissa Paes (Brazil)
2nd – Hope Douglass (Australia)
3rd – Charlotte Von Baumgarten (Germany)
70KG – Thamara Silva sure is hard to beat. She managed to stay on top of the weight class for yet another event in the 2019/2020 season. In the semifinals, she beat Rafaela Bertolot 2-0. On the other side, Sweden’s Martina Gramenius first outscored Natalia Zumba 4-0 and then caught Silvia Silva with a leg lock. In the final, Thamara and Martina took the match all the way to the end of the extra time. With a 3-3 tie on the board, Thamara took the gold medal for having scored last during regulation time.
PODIUM
1st – Thamara Silva (Brazil)
2nd – Martina Gramenius (Sweden)
3rd – Rafaela Bertolot (Brazil)
95KG – Perfect weekend for Gabrieli Pessanha. After becoming the first ever heavyweight Abu Dhabi Queen of Mats, she went back in to defend her hegemony in the weight class. First, she beat Samantha Cook 6-0 in the semifinals. Her opponent for the gold medal would be Yara Soares, who beat Nathiely de Jesus for scoring last after a 4-4 tie and then finished Kendall Reusing with a triangle in the semifinals. The gold medal match was one of the most thrilling of the day, with Gabi and Yara exchanging sweeps all the way to the end. Gabi was able to build a 10-7 lead and take the title.
PODIUM
1st – Gabrieli Pessanha (Brazil)
2nd – Yara Soares (Brazil)
3rd – Nathiely de Jesus (Brazil)
MALE BLACK BELT
56KG – Two matches for the title in a round robin bracket. Kalel Santos first beat Japan’s Masaaki Todokoro 3-1. Next, Todokoro beat Wellington da Silva 3-1. On round 3, Kalel secured the gold medal with a 4-1 lead over Wellington. It’s Kalel’s second title in the 2019/2020 ADGS season.
PODIUM
1st – Kalel Santos (Brazil)
2nd – Masaaki Todokoro (Japan)
3rd – Wellington da Silva (Brazil)
62KG – Hiago George is back on top. In two matches, he first finished Jonas Andrade with a foot lock in the semifinal. On the other side, Diego Batista beat Bebeto Oliveira 8-5 to reach the final. The gold medal match was decided when Hiago found a triangle choke to force Diego to tap.
PODIUM
1st – Hiago George (Brazil)
2nd – Diego Batista (Brazil)
3rd – Francisco Jonas Andrade (Brazil)
69KG – Three matches for glory. Gabriel Sousa first beat Tiago Bravo via referees decision. In the semifinal, he caught Abdullah Nabbas with an armlock. On the other side, Israel Almeida beat Ali Monfaradi 7-6, then Ariel Tabak 3-3 (scored last) and finally Thiago Macedo 5-2 in the semifinal. In the gold medal match, after a 4-4 tie in regulation and a scoreless extra time, Gabriel took the title for scoring last.
PODIUM
1st – Gabriel Sousa (Brazil)
2nd – Israel Almeida (Brazil)
3rd – Thiago Macedo (Brazil)
77KG – Tommy Langaker was merciless. Three matches and three submissions on his way to the gold medal. He first caught Natan Chueng with a triangle and then worked a kimura lock on Matheus Ferreira to make it to the final. On the other side, Diego Ramalho beat Adriano Araujo 1-1 (scored last) and outscored Flavio Vianna 2-1 in the semifinal. The gold medal match was one-sided. Langaker imposed his game until he found a way to finish Diego with an armbar.
PODIUM
1st – Tommy Langaker (Norway)
2nd – Diego Ramalho (Brazil)
3rd – Natan Chueng (Brazil)
85KG – Back to back titles for Charles Negromonte. After winning in Rio, he repeated the feat in Abu Dhabi. In three matches, he first beat Bradley Hill 14-0 and then beat Max Lindblad 4-4 in the semifinal (scored last). On the other side, Julio Junior fought once to make it to the final, beating Igor Sousa 3-1. The gold medal match was a tough one for Charles. After a 1-1 tie in regulation, he managed a takedown for the golden score and a 3-1 final score in overtime.
PODIUM
1st – Charles Negromonte (Brazil)
2nd – Julio Junior (Brazil)
3rd – Max Lindblad (Sweden)
94KG – Adam Wardzinski feels right at home in Abu Dhabi. The Polish fought twice to win his second gold medal in the UAE. He first beat Renato Cardoso 10-1 and then outscored Vandre Barbosa 10-0 in the semifinal. On the other side, Helton Junior fought twice to reach the final. He beat Matheus Godoy 1-1 (scored last) and then outscored Jackson Sousa 6-3 in the semifinal. The gold medal match did not happen as Helton injured his arm in the final seconds of the semifinal and could not compete.
PODIUM
1st – Adam Wardzinski (Poland)
2nd – Helton Junior (Brazil)
3rd – Renato Cardoso (Brazil)
120KG – Rodrigo Ribeiro fought twice to reach the top of the podium. In the semifinal, he beat the always tough Gerard Labinski 3-1. On the other side, Igor Schneider beat Mansur Makhmakhanov 5-0 to reach the final. The gold medal match fought all the way to the end, when Rodrigo was able to open a 5-1 lead for the title.
PODIUM
1st – Rodrigo Ribeiro (Brazil)
2nd – Igor Schneider (Brazil)
3rd – Mansur Makhmakhanov (Kazakhstan)
For the complete results of the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam Tour Abu Dhabi, go to ajptour.com. Relive the thrills with the complete recap on Instagram, at @ajptour and @jjwplus. The Abu Dhabi Grand Slam Tour returns on March 7-8, at the Copper Box Arena, in London, UK. Click here for more info and to register now.