The ADCC North American West Coast Trials 2024 is scheduled for March 30th and 31st, 2024 and we’ve broken down every division in a preview of the event. This is the last chance for athletes from this continent to win invites to ADCC 2024 and as this is the second edition of ADCC Trials, there are also invites available for female competitors too. There are plenty of big names competing in each division, with ADCC veterans and returning medalists from the ADCC North American East Coast Trials 2023 who are all standing out as the top contenders in their respective weight classes. That isn’t all though, as there’s dozens of talented prospects and competitors on the rise who could emerge victorious under the right conditions.
ADCC North American West Coast Trials 2024 Full Preview
Men’s Divisions
Under 66kg
Favorites: This is one of two divisions in this preview of the ADCC North American West Coast Trials 2024 that has almost reached capacity, with 245 grapplers competing at under 66kg. There’s so much talent here that anything can happen, but Deandre Corbe is the top seed for a reason. Dominic Mejia is the silver medalist from the last Trials and another elite competitor who should be able to go very far in the division, while ADCC veterans Gianni Grippo and Keith Krikorian are serious contenders too.
Dark Horse: It might seem strange at first to pick out Damien Anderson as a dark horse given that he’s one of the top competitors at B-Team Jiu-Jitsu, but that’s just how stacked this division is. It’s gonna require a series of great performances against some of the best around for him to reach the top of the podium, but he’s definitely capable of pulling it off.
Under 77kg
Favorites: Under 77kg is the other division that almost reached full capacity, and the competition here is just as fierce as the lightest weight class. ADCC veterans Oliver Taza and Andy Varela stand out as the most likely winners here and the wealth of experience they have competing under this ruleset is what sets them apart from most. There are several other elite grapplers who have the skill to overcome the experience advantage though, with Kieran Kichuk and Max Hanson being the most likely to do so.
Dark Horse: With 243 competitors at under 77kg there are so many talented grapplers who might be able to cause an upset, but Andrew Tackett is the one we’re picking. He’s been an exciting prospect for quite some time now, following in the footsteps of his older brother William in that regard. His recent win over PJ Barch was a big moment for him though, and it could be a sign that he’s going to break through to the highest level here.
Under 88kg
Favorites: This might not be the busiest division of the tournament but the eventual winner will still have to beat 7 or 8 matches in order to win an invite to ADCC 2024. Jacob Rodriguez and William Tackett have both done that before though and they stand a good chance of repeating their previous success, even if Tackett’s Trials win was at 77kg before. Elder Cruz and Hunter Colvin are the most likely winners outside of these two men, as they have both reached the podium of Trials in the past and are very likely to do so again.
Dark Horse: Sean Yadimarco is an exciting grappler who already holds wins over a lot of the other competitors in this division. The top contenders will obviously be big challenges for him and beating several of them in the same weekend would be a monumental achievement, but it wouldn’t be surprising to see him standing on the podium somewhere.
Under 99kg
Favorites: There’s no real clear and convincing favorites in the under 99kg division and there will probably be quite a few surprises as the bracket progresses. That being said, Kyle Boehm and Devhonte Johnson are the two men with the highest level of success to date and will both be very tough to beat. Beyond that things are even tougher to predict, although Steve Joachim and Steffen Banta both have a good chance of making it deep into the bracket.
Dark Horse: Calon Sabino has had some really difficult times at the last two ADCC Trials he’s entered, as he’s been on the losing end of some close matches early on. The division is wide open though and if he can bring everything together on the day then he could easily cause some upsets and make it to the final rounds this time.
Over 99kg
Favorites: This is the smallest men’s division in this preview of the ADCC North American East Coast Trials 2024 and with 66 competitors it seems relatively easy to pick out the most likely men to stand on the podium. The most obvious choices are Damon Ramos and John Hansen, the silver and bronze medalist from the last ADCC Trials who both competed at ADCC 2022 as well. They are the safest picks but Breylor Grout is the other top contender for gold, and will likely be standing on the podium with them in some order.
Dark Horse: The talent pool naturally gets shallower in the heavier weight classes and it’s not uncommon to see smaller competitors move up in weight only to achieve similar success. Michael Perez is a surprise entry at over 99kg and although he’ll almost certainly be smaller than everyone he faces, he’s also a fantastic competitor who might be able to overcome that size difference over and over again.
Women’s Divisions
Under 55kg
Favorites: Alex Enriquez won the last edition of North American Trials and she’s been in unstoppable form since then so naturally she’s the favorite to take home gold. The woman she shared the final with last time was Jasmine Rocha, and she’s also back with a good chance of taking home the title if she’s made improvements. The main difference between then and now is that Tammi Musumeci is here, and the five-time IBJJF No Gi World Championship gold medalist is the other top contender in this division.
Dark Horse: Trinity Pun is a solid competitor with a ton of talent and she’s been one to watch for quite some time now, and she’s just approaching the age that young grapplers tend to reach the highest level. She also moved to New Wave Jiu-Jitsu last year and that switch might have had an effect on her development, so she might make a big impact here.
Under 65kg
Favorites: This is actually the biggest women’s division in this preview of the ADCC North American West Coast Trials 2024, but there are a handful of names who stand out as the most likely winners. Morgan Black won the last edition of North American Trials and she stands a good chance of doing it again, but she has two tough opponents waiting. Top prospect Helena Crevar might have been able to close the gap between them since losing the final against her last time, and veteran competitor Nicole Mathew will be out for revenge for their last match too.
Dark Horse: Laylah Watkins is still just 16 years old and obviously has a lot to work on in the coming years, but she’s already beaten some very good adult competitors. She should make it through the first few matches unless she runs into one of the favorites early on and if she can build up some momentum, she might be able to cause a huge upset.
Over 65kg
Favorites: Amanda Leve is the woman who won the over 65kg division last time around at the North American Trials and she has a good chance of repeating that success. The returning silver medalist is Bridget McEliece and Elizabeth Mitrovic has burst into the highest level of the sport last year, so these two women are Leve’s biggest threats. Collectively, they make up the most likely to reach the podium in some order once the dust settles on this weight class.
Dark Horse: Jaidyn Mueller is one of the top female competitors training under Tom DeBlass and she’s still young enough to made huge steps in her development over short spaces of time. It’s going to be very difficult for her to reach the podium in such a tough division but she’s definitely one to watch as the bracket progresses.
The full ADCC North American West Coast Trials 2024 event, including all of the above divisions in this preview, will be available to watch live on FloGrappling.
