The IBJJF no gi Pan Championship 2023 is set to take place from September 29th to October 1st, 2023 and we’ve put together a full preview of every division that will take place at the event. As a major IBJJF event, there are plenty of top competitors entering and each weight class has multiple athletes with a good chance to win. There are reigning no gi Pan champions from last year and IBJJF no gi World Championship winners everywhere you look, and there will definitely be plenty of action once the athletes take to the mats. There will be top colored belt and masters athletes competing as well, but we’ll be focusing exclusively on the premier division: the adult black belts.
IBJJF No Gi Pan Championship 2023 Full Preview
Men’s Divisions
Roosterweight
There’s no returning champion in the roosterweight division but there’s plenty of talent here regardless. Last year’s silver medalist Henrique Oliveira stands a good chance of winning but he has some really tough opposition from the IBJJF no gi World championship silver medalist from last year, the exciting Roiter Lima. They aren’t the only challengers with a good chance of winning though, as Estevan Martinez is also in the bracket.
Light-Featherweight
Carlos ‘Bebeto’ Oliveira is the returning champion at light-featherweight and he is the clear favorite to win gold here, but it’s not as if it’s going to be easy for him. There are a few tough matches but Edwin ‘Junny’ Ocasio stands out as the most likely competitor to dethrone Oliveira.
Featherweight
Featherweight is somehow missing the majority of the podium from both the IBJJF no gi Pan Championship and the no gi World Championship last year. As a result, this division is really in an ideal for position for Gianni Grippo to win pretty comfortably. He’s the reigning world champion and the only returning medalist from either tournament, so it’s hard to imagine anyone stopping him here.
Lightweight
This is another division that’s going to look completely different to how it did in 2022, and the favorite to win is probably the silver medalist from last year’s no gi world championship, Carlos Henrique. He’s not alone though, as Max Hanson has been putting in some fantastic performances lately and should be considered one of the top dogs in the division.
Middleweight
The men’s middleweight division at the IBJJF no gi Pan Championship 2023 is the biggest bracket in this preview and there’s some fantastic competitors in it. ADCC veteran Oliver Taza will stand a good chance of winning, as will Mathias Luna, Kieran Kichuk, and a fair few more grapplers. As with any big division, things can always go wrong during the journey to the final and it wouldn’t be too surprising to see someone other than these three standing on top of the podium.
Medium-Heavyweight
While medium-heavyweight isn’t as busy as middleweight in total, it’s also stacked with top talent. Francisco Lo is always exciting and can beat anyone on the right day, but Bruno Matias and Felipe Cesar will be tough opposition for him. Pedigo Submission Fighting also stands a good chance of coming away with at least one medal at medium-heavyweight, as both Clay Mayfield and Jacob Couch are competing.
Heavyweight
Although not the biggest division at the IBJJF no gi Pan Championship 2023, heavyweight is probably the toughest in this preview to predict a winner for. Pedro Rocha is the returning champion but Adam Wardzinski and Elder Cruz will be eager to dethrone him, and both men are capable of doing so. The difficulty comes from the number of competitors just outside of these top 3 who could spring a surprise on them, including the likes of Hunter Colvin, Sean Yadimarco, and Freddie Vosgrone.
Super-Heavyweight
Fellipe Trovo is reigning champion and the clear favorite at super-heavyweight, with Devhonte Johnson and Luccas Lira standing out as the most likely challenges to him. Although these three men stand out as the most likely to reach the podium, there is one big unknown in the division that might surpass some of them. Dante Leon is moving up multiple weight classes here and it’ll be interesting to see what he’s able to do against significantly bigger opponents.
Ultra-Heavyweight
Roosevelt Sousa is the most likely winner at ultra-heavyweight and the division is pretty small, with just 10 grapplers competing. Pedro Alex has a good chance of coming out on top if things go his way on the day, as does Joao Gabriel Rocha too. Any of these three men could win here but there’s also a dark horse who is worth paying attention to as well; Breylor Grout.
Women’s Divisions
Roosterweight
The women’s roosterweight division at the IBJJF no gi Pan Championship 2023 is pretty small, and there’s no returning champion or reigning IBJJF no gi world champion entered. Mariana Rolszt and Amber Rymarz-Freitas have both reached the podium of IBJJF majors multiple times before and it looks as though one of them might be standing on top of them.
Light-Featherweight
Jessica Crane stands out as one of the early favorites to win the gold medal from the light-featherweight division and although she should come out on top, Andreza Morais will be doing everything in her power ot emerge victorious instead.
Featherweight
Even though there’s only 5 women competing at featherweight, there will be some pretty fun matches as they fight for gold. Adele Fornarino is one of the most impressive competitors in this division but even she doesn’t have a clear run to victory, as both Vitoria Assis and Karen Terra will be standing in her way.
Lightweight
This is the biggest women’s division in this preview of the IBJJF no gi Pan Championship 2023 and Nathalie Ribeiro is coming in on fine form. It’s going to be difficult for anyone to stop her from winning the division but there are two women who might be able to cause an upset, Morgan Black and Vitoria Vieira.
Middleweight
There’s some fun matches awaiting in the women’s middleweight division, as Julia Maele, Thamires Monteiro, and Gabi Schuck all stand a pretty good chance of coming away with the gold medal here. There’s another exciting competitor alongside these three women who might be able to win here, Deise Leonanjo.
Medium-Heavyweight
The medium-heavyweight division is pretty much wide open and any of the 5 women in the bracket could come away with the gold medal. Elizabeth Mitrovic could easily manage to reach the top of the podium but Maggie Grindatti also has a decent chance of doing so.
Heavyweight
Luciano Mota and Maria Ruffatto are the only two women competing at heavyweight so this will be a straight single match for the gold medal. Mota won their last meeting earlier this year, so she would be the safe bet to win again.
Super-Heavyweight
There’s only women competing at super-heavyweight and without any returning champions or former no gi world champions, it’s wide open for anyone to win. Kauane Ramos da Silva has only recently been promoted to black belt, so this might well be the moment she gets to take home her first major title.
The full competitor list for every division in this preview of the IBJJF no gi Pan Championship 2023 is available here.
