This article is part of our Craig Jones Invitational 2024 coverage. To get live results, play by play, and commentary, we’ll have a live updates article running all weekend.
Andre Galvao just revealed that he was ready to step in to the Craig Jones Invitational (CJI) if another competitor dropped out of the over 80kg division. Most events are hit by last-minute withdrawals during the build-up but CJI only lost a single competitor, as Mason Fowler had to withdraw due to injury. Now it appears as though Galvao was actually waiting for another man to be forced out of the heaviest division at the event. He was interviewed during the live broadcast of CJI and the presenter Alex Wendling actually revealed the secret first, before asking him to confirm whether or not it was true. Galvao wasted no time in answering her either:
“Yes, I told Craig (Jones), I said ‘Craig if somebody misses a spot, I’m in!’ You know in the beginning everybody was like ‘how it’s gonna be this event, you know? Who’s gonna run this, is this real or not? and then when I spoke with Craig I saw that his idea was legit and I see everything happen, I say hey man if somebody drop out I’m in, I can fight those big dogs.”
Unfortunately for fans of the legendary grappler, there were no more withdrawals from the over 80kg division at CJI and there was no room left for Andre Galvao to enter the division. There was still a fantastic lineup of elite competitors regardless of course, and they have produced plenty of action in the alley. With the success of the inaugural CJI already obvious, the promotion is already looking towards a second event in 2025 and this may even become an annual tournament. Although Galvao missed out on competing in the first edition, Wendling also asked him if he was interested in competing in the second edition next year:
“Yes, call me and I’ll be there!”
Although nothing is guaranteed yet of course, it’s fantastic news to see that some of the biggest legends in the sport are interested in competing at CJI in the future.
The full interview with Andre Galvao where he reveals that he was prepared to enter CJI if someone pulled out of the over 80kg division was conducted on the live broadcast of the event, which was uploaded to the official YouTube channel of B-Team Jiu-Jitsu:
