The IBJJF Master World Championship 2023 took place from August 31st to September 2nd, 2023 and as usual, the event attracted some of the most experienced grapplers on the planet. It was scheduled to form part of the annual Jiu-Jitsu Con event and this year was even more impressive than ever before, as this actually broke the record for the biggest BJJ tournament ever. The majority of the attention was on the black belt divisions of course, as several legends of the sport took to the mats to battle it out against their peers. Shortly before that though, UFC Hall of Famer Demetrious Johnson won gold in the brown belt master 2 featherweight division.
The light-featherweight division stood out among the master 1 black belt brackets, as Hiago George beat some big names to win. Paulo Miyao took the silver medal while his brother Joao Miyao occupied the third position on the podium. Michael Liera Jr won gold at master 1 lightweight, beating fellow ATOS representative JT Torres in the final. They weren’t the only master 1 divisions with legends of the sport competing either, as the medium-heavyweight was won by Manuel Ribamar and Rafael Lovato Jr emerged victorious at super-heavyweight. ADCC veteran Max Gimenis left with two medals, a silver at ultra-heavyweight.
The women’s divisions at master 1 featured top grapplers too, as Nathalie Ribeiro won gold at lightweight and Maria Malyjasiak triumphed at heavyweight. The older divisions were just as fun, with Ricardo Evangelista winning master 2 ultra-heavyweight and Josh Hinger taking home gold medals from both the master 3 middleweight and absolute divisions. The IBJJF Master World Championship 2023 attracted some classic BJJ competitors too, with Cassio Werneck winning gold at master 4 middleweight and Wellington ‘Megaton’ Dias winning the master 6 lightweight division.
The full results from all of the at the IBJJF Master World Championship 2023 can be found here.
