The IBJJF Dallas Winter Open 2025 took place on January 25th and 26th, 2025 and several exciting grapplers competed in both gi and no gi. Helena Crevar led the charge for the colored belts, as she made her brown belt gi debut at the event. Considering the elite level of opposition that she’s been beating lately, it was no surprise that she ended up winning gold in both the middleweight snd absolute divisions. She actually beat another talented young competitor, Laylah Watkins, in the final of the absolute as well. Watkins’ teammate and fellow top brown belt prospect Jett Thompson also made an appearance snd won gold in the no gi ultra-heavyweight division.
There were quite a few more established competitors at the IBJJF Dallas Winter Open 2025 as well, with Yan Paiva walking away as the gi double champion after winning the absolute and a default gold at ultra-heavyweight. The absolute silver medallist next to him was Carlos Henrique, who had just won a bronze medal in a very tough lightweight bracket. The men who made it to the lightweight final ahead of Henrique were Richar Nogueira and Gabriel Cardoso, with Nogueira taking home gold. He finished the weekend with a perfect run too, as he also won the no gi lightweight division on the second day.
Henrique returned for the no gi divisions too, winning gold in both the roosterweight and absolute divisions despite the size differences. The absolute silver medallist that time around was Brad Schneider, who had just won the heavyweight division. There weren’t many female black belts competing, so Maria Ruffatto was given three default gold medals along with a hard-earned one in the gi absolute. She beat Deise Leonanjo in the final, while Natasha Druggan had to settle for a bronze medal both there and at lightweight. That weight class was won by the 2018 IBJJF World Championship winner and veteran black belt Amanda Monteiro.
