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.
The full roster of five experienced grapplers who will be working as judges for the very first Craig Jones Invitational have now been announced. Not only is it a great idea to announce the judges publicly for transparency purposes, but Craig Jones has also shown that he’s done a great job of sourcing veteran competitors and coaches to fill the slots. It’s a good job he’s done that too, because the three-round format that the event will operate under will need some of the best minds in the sport overseeing it to ensure that every decision is made to the highest standard.
Not only are the five Craig Jones Invitational judges very experienced, they also bring a wide range of expertise to their roles as well. BJJ and Judo black belt Justin Flores is taking up one spot and he’s known as one of the best standing grappling coaches in the world, having coached the 2020 US Olympic Judo team along with several Bellator and UFC world champions. Working alongside him is another Jiu-Jitsu and Judo black belt who is one of the top Legion Jiu-Jitsu representatives, Miha Perhavec.
Jones has also invited top 10th Planet coach and submission-only expert Zach Maslany to be a member of the judging panel, bringing a totally different point of view on matches. Maslany will be joined by certified IBJJF referee and IBJJF Master World Championship medalist Johnny Souza, alongside third degree BJJ black belt and veteran MMA judge Chris Crail. The panel of five judges collectively represent pretty much every possible outlook on a professional grappling match and this should go a long way to reducing any bias in decisions made at CJI. While that’s great for the fans, it’s undoubtedly most important to the competitors who will be fighting tooth and nail for a million-dollar grand prize.
The Craig Jones Invitational announced the five men who will be working as judges for the event in a recent post to their official Instagram account:
