The Abu Dhabi Grand Slam World Tour 2023/2024 season is about to begin with the very first stop in Rio De Janeiro on June 11th, 2023 and we’re on hand to preview all of the black belt divisions. The AJP Tour has pulled out all the stops to open the new season and some of the best grapplers on the planet will be making their way to Rio De Janeiro for the tournament. It’s set to be an action-packed weekend and there’ll undoubtedly be a lot of high-level BJJ at every belt level and in every weight class. In the black belt divisions, there are several key competitors in each division who could walk away with the gold medal.
Abu Dhabi Grand Slam World Tour – Rio De Janeiro 2023 Full Preview
There will be plenty of great up-and-coming competitors featured in the coloured belt divisions leading up to the main attraction of the weekend at the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam Tour – Rio De Janeiro 2024 but most of the attention will be on the men’s black belt divisions and the women’s brown/black mixed divisions, so that’s where we’ll be looking in this preview.
Men’s Divisions
Light-Featherweight – Under 56kg
Yuri Hendrex is probably going to be the man to beat at light-featherweight, but Welerson Goncalves will be doing everything in his power to stop him. Goncalves is currently leading the series between these two men 2-1 and it’s likely that the winner of this match wins the whole division.
Featherweight – Under 62kg
Leonardo Mario and Hiago George will be tough to beat though at featherweight, but really Meyram Maquine stands out as the most likely winner in the division. Maquine has looked almost unstoppable over the last three years and he still hasn’t been submitted in black belt competition.
Lightweight – Under 69kg
Thiago Macedo is normally a safe preview pick as he does very well in Abu Dhabi Grand Slam events, but his biggest challenge is competing in Rio De Janeiro in 2023. Fabricio Andrey is an incredible grappler and he’s beaten Macedo at AJP events in both 2021 and 2022, so the odds are definitely in his favor.
Welterweight – Under 77kg
Lucas Protasio stands out as the most likely champion at welterweight, but he’s not unstoppable by any means and there’s a man in the bracket who has beaten him before. Protasio holds a 3-1 record against Andre Cantanhede so he should win again, but it’s not impossible that Cantanhede provides the upset here.
Middleweight – Under 85kg
There’s quite a few tough competitors at middleweight and although Pedro Neto might be the favourite on paper, there are a few men who are just as likely to win. Uanderson Ferreira and Alex Munis represent the biggest challenges for Neto and any of these three men could come away with a gold medal from the division.
Light-Heavyweight – Under 94kg
There’s going to be some fantastic matches in this division and it’s impossible to pick a clear winner out of the bracket. With big names like Patrick Gaudio, Rider Zuchi, and Henrique ‘Ceconi’ Cardoso competing alongside exciting young talent like Rider Zuchi and Marcos Carrozzino; anyone could be left standing on the podium.
Super-Heavyweight – Under 120kg
Yatan Bueno is the super-heavyweight king and he’s been putting in dominant performances time and time again on the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam Tour over the past few years. Although his journey through the bracket won’t be easy, it’s hard to see anyone but him leaving Rio De Janeiro with the gold medal from this division.
Women’s Divisions
All of the women’s divisions listed below in this preview of the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam Tour – Rio De Janeiro 2023 are actually mixed brown and black belt divisions, just like every other tournament in the tour circuit.
Roosterweight – Under 49kg
The women’s roosterweight division is stacked with exciting competitors like Diana Teixeira, Brenda Larissa, and Jessica Dantas. These three women represent the most likely podium in the division, although Isadora Maggioni is capable of taking one of those places too if she can put in some good performances.
Light-Featherweight – Under 55kg
There’s always surprises in the lighter divisions because competitors have the ability to maintain a high pace throughout the match and find finishes from nowhere. That being said, the light-featherweight division should be pretty predictable because Alexa Yanes is going to very difficult for anyone else here to stop.
Lightweight – Under 62kg
It would have been easy to pick Julia Alves to win the lightweight division just a few months ago, but Maria Delahaye caused a huge upset at the last Abu Dhabi Grand Slam event by beating her. These two women are the most likely final matchup and it’ll be interesting to see whether Alves can get revenge this time.
Middleweight – Under 70kg
Ingridd Alves has been putting in plenty of great performances since being promoted to black belt and although she should win this division too, Thalyta Silva is going to be tough to beat. The two women in this preview are the most likely middleweight champions at the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam – Rio De Janeiro 2023.
Heavyweight – Under 92kg
There’s plenty of top competitors like Izadora Silva and Thaynara Dias in the heavyweight division, but one woman in particular stands out above all the others. That woman is the undisputed greatest female grappler on the planet right now, Gabrieli Pessanha.
