The IBJJF No Gi Pan Championship 2024 took place on November 1st to 3rd, 2024 and we’ve put together a preview of every division at the tournament. As always, there are a number of reigning champions from the 2023 edition who will be returning and a number of divisions wide open for the taking. There’s also several different storylines coming into the tournament, with top prospects attempting to break through to the highest level and established veterans looking to return to the top. There will undoubtedly be plenty of surprises throughout the weekend, but here we’ll break down the most likely winners and dark horses to keep an eye on.
IBJJF No Gi Pan Championship 2024 Full Preview
Men’s Divisions
Roosterweight
Favorites: John Stapleton is the reigning champion in the lightest weight class here and he’s also coming off a silver medal at the IBJJF No Gi European Championship this year. Stapleton will be a top contender for sure, but he has the next stage of a tough rivalry in front of him. Christopher Tran beat Stapleton in the final of Euros and lost to him in the final of this tournament last year, so the likelihood is that they get a rubber match here. Everton Teixeira is ready to throw a spanner in the works though, as he is the reigning world champion and he holds a win over Tran too.
Dark Horse: Denis Beenan just won a bronze medal at No Gi Euros behind two of the favorites here and although it’s a tall mountain to climb, he might cause an upset or two.
Light-Featherweight
Favorites: Light-featherweight is unusually small compared to the divisions either side of it, with just 11 competitors this year. The clear favorite here is Edwin ‘Junny’ Ocasio, who has been virtually perfect in IBJJF competition over the last two years. Ocasio is the reigning champion here, the reigning world champion, and he’s coming off a second European title in a row too. Leonardo Martins is probably second in the running but he actually lost to Ocasio in the final of no gi Euros and it was such a clear win on points that a rematch likely goes the same way.
Dark Horse: Roiter Lima is going to be a tough opponent for anyone and he was the bronze medalist here last year, only losing to Ocasio on advantages. He’ll probably get that rematch at some point in the bracket and it’ll be interesting to see what he does with a second chance.
Featherweight
Favorites: There are 14 men at featherweight and the reigning champion is Gianni Grippo, who will be eager to win his 6th title at this event. Emilio Hernandez is moving up in one weight class after winning a silver medal at light-featherweight last year, and he’s going to be very tough to beat. The final top contender here is Julian Espinosa, who won bronze at the IBJJF No Gi World Championship 2023 and is fresh off winning a gold medal at no gi Euros.
Dark Horse: Cole Abate is one of the youngest competitors in this whole preview of the IBJJF No Gi Pan Championship 2024, but he’s also one of a handful of ADCC veterans. Abate is a very tough opponent for anyone and he’s coming in on good form, so he may very well be a surprise winner here.
Lightweight
Favorites: Carlos Henrique is the reigning champion here at lightweight and he’s also the favorite, even if there are 12 other men gunning for his spot at the top. Yigit Hanay has just won the IBJJF No Gi European Championship and he’s been making waves for a little while now, so he’s another clear contender. Another big name who will almost certainly make it to the podium at least is Danilo Moreira, the bronze medalist from the IBJJF No Gi World Championship last year.
Dark Horse: Max Hanson has been one of the best-kept secrets in the BJJ world for quite a while now, and he’s won a number of titles at smaller promotions. The competition is fierce and he’ll have to beat some elite grapplers in order to make it to the podium, but he’s more than capable of doing so.
Middleweight
Favorites: This is the biggest division of the IBJJF No Gi Pan Championship 2024 and because there’s no returning champion, there’s almost too many contenders to name in this preview. Luiz Paulo won ADCC Trials earlier this year and also earned a bronze medal at the IBJJF No Gi World Championship at the end of 2023, so he is in a strong position here. Matheus Galvao was the bronze medalist here last year and Pierre Olivier-Leclerc is coming off a silver medal at the IBJJF No Gi European Championship, so they will probably make it to the later rounds alongside Paulo.
Dark Horse: Natan Chueng is another big name in the middleweight division and although he’s known as more of a gi competitor, he’s definitely capable of causing an upset. He isn’t the only one though, and there’s several grapplers here who could make it to the podium on the right day.
Medium-Heavyweight
Favorites: The medium-heavyweight division is another one without a reigning champion and it’s wide open for the taking. Jacob Couch won a bronze medal here last year and his leglock game is elite-level, but there’s still plenty of challenges waiting. Sebastian Rodriguez is probably his biggest opposition and he’s coming off an impressive performance that earned him gold at no gi Euros, but Couch did submit him earlier this year. Another top contender is Jeremy Skinner, who just took silver behind Rodriguez at no gi Euros.
Dark Horse: Rene Sousa is one of the top 10th Planet representatives around right now and he’s had some great performances at smaller events, so he might be poised to make an impact here.
Heavyweight
Favorites: There’s 14 competitors in the heavyweight division and an interesting setup, because nobody from the podium of this weight class last year is returning. Reigning medium-heavyweight champion Francisco Lo is the most obvious pick as a favorite but things definitely won’t be easy for him. His toughest opposition will likely be coming from no gi worlds silver medalist David Garmo and Luccas Lira, who is moving down in weight after winning bronze at super-heavyweight last year.
Dark Horse: Gabriel Brod has only been competing at black belt for a little over a year now, but he was one of the top colored belt prospects under Felipe Pena prior to that. He’s very tough to submit and has a lethal leglock game that could cause some upsets as the bracket unfolds.
Super-Heavyweight
Favorites: There’s 17 men competing at super-heavyweight and although there’s no reigning champion, there’s still a clear favorite in the bracket. Rafael Lovato Jr might be 41 years old but he’s really turned back the clock this year, most notably by earning a silver medal at ADCC 2024. He also won no gi Euros at this weight too, so it’s hard to imagine anyone stopping him from adding yet another title to his collection. Gabriel Duarte and Yan Paiva look like they might be his main competition, but it’ll take something special for anyone to stop Lovato Jr right now.
Dark Horse: Fellow ADCC veteran Daishi Goto should do well in this bracket and there’s plenty of winnable matches, so a favorable draw could see him standing on the podium. He’ll have to beat some of the best in the world if he wants to make it to the top though.
Ultra-Heavyweight
Favorites: There’s just 10 men competing at ultra-heavyweight, so it’s a pretty small division with no reigning champion. Devhonte Johnson was the silver medalist at super-heavyweight last year and his style will actually translate a little better against heavier opposition. Johnson looks like the early favorite to win, although ADCC veteran Damon Ramos is also in the bracket and he’s always a difficult opponent. The most likely outcome here is that either Johnson or Ramos ends up winning gold.
Dark Horse: Igor Schneider won a bronze medal here at this weight last year and although none of the men who stood above him are returning, he still has a really high level of competition to get through. He might end up with a similar outcome but winning a handful of key exchanges is all it takes to come out on top at this level.
Women’s Divisions
Roosterweight
Favorites: There’s 6 women competing in the lightest weight class and no returning champion, but Amber Rymarz-Freitas was the silver medalist last year and bronze medalist at no gi Worlds. She has a great rivalry with Mariana Rolszt going on at the moment and the two women are 1-1 in no gi matches, so the third match between them might actually end up deciding the champion.
Dark Horse: Thais Loureiro is not someone that can be counted out easily and even though Rymarz-Freitas and Rolszt are the more likely winners, it wouldn’t be surprising to see her take one of their place’s in the final.
Light-Featherweight
Favorites: There’s no returning champion at light-featherweight and 7 very talented grapplers in the bracket, so it’s a tough one to predict. Mara Kelly won silver last year and without the woman who beat her in the final, she may well end up on top of the podium this time around. Kelly also won bronze at no gi Worlds and the other bronze medalist, Jessica Crane, is also in this bracket as the other favorite to win.
Dark Horse: Sophia Cassella is a very fresh black belt and she only made her debut at this level just a few weeks prior to this tournament. She went 1-1 with a former world champion though, so she clearly has what it takes to make a deep run in this bracket.
Featherweight
Favorites: Featherweight is the biggest women’s division in this preview of the IBJJF No Gi Pan Championship 2024 and there’s also no reigning champion returning. Raquel Ferreira is coming in with some momentum after winning no gi Euros recently and she won a bronze medal at worlds, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see her standing on top of the podium. Veteran competitor Amanda ‘Tubby’ Alequin might just be the top contender though as she’s won both this event and no gi worlds in the past.
Dark Horse: Bre Stikk is one to watch in this division and although there are 8 other talented grapplers in the lineup, she’s delivered some great performances in recent years. There’s some tough matches awaiting her, but she does have the ability to come out on top.
Lightweight
Favorites: The lightweight division should produce quite a few fun matchups and the top contender here is probably Amanda Bruse, the silver medalist from no gi Worlds last year. Julia Maele was the silver medalist at middleweight last year and she’s another big name who has a good chance of winning here. She’ll be coming in with some solid momentum as she won no gi Euros just recently and a matchup with Bruse seems like the most likely final.
Dark Horse: Joanna Trindade took a silver medal from this weight class last year so it might seem strange to pick her as an underdog. She also has a bronze medal from worlds last year so she’s in the perfect position to make a run to the final if things go her way.
Middleweight
Favorites: There’s 6 women competing at middleweight and not only is there no returning champion, there’s nobody from the podium last year either. There’s guaranteed to be a new champion here and the most likely woman to leave with the title is undoubtedly ADCC Trials winner Morgan Black. An unknown quantity in the bracket is Nadia Frankland, and the Australian grappler has been on the rise over the last few years. It’s going to be tough for her to beat Black, but she looks like the woman with the best chance of doing so.
Dark Horse: Top European grappler Gabi Schuck is also in the lineup this year and although she hasn’t been able to break through to the highest level just yet, she’s still incredibly talented. She might be able to beat Frankland, but a win over Black is going to be a very big ask.
Medium-Heavyweight
Favorites: Although there’s no returning champion from this weight class, Deise Leonanjo is moving up in weight after winning this title at middleweight last year. She also won a bronze medal at no gi worlds at the same weight, so she is clearly going to be a big threat even if she might be at a size disadvantage. Salla Simola took silver at this weight at no gi Worlds so she’s coming in as the other top contender, a status she solidified by winning no gi Euros just recently.
Dark Horse: There’s also the possibility of an American champion here, as ADCC veteran Amanda Leve is in the bracket as well. There’s only 6 women here so all it’s going to take is 2 or 3 wins for Leve to take home the title, something she’s more than capable of when the time comes.
Heavyweight
Favorites: Maria Ruffatto is the reigning champion in this weight class and she would normally be a pretty clear favorite to make it back-to-back titles, but there’s two big challenges waiting for her this year. Elizabeth Mitrovic is the most obvious opponent that will cause her problems, as she is moving up after winning this event and no gi Worlds at medium-heavyweight last year. Ruffatto did beat Mitrovic earlier this year, but it was only by advantages and both women will be out for a decisive win now.
Dark Horse: Elisabeth Clay is one of the best grapplers in the world so picking her as a dark horse in this preview might seem unusual, but the IBJJF No Gi Pan Championship 2024 is a slightly different challenge for her. Clay has taken time out of competition to have her first child and is returning now less 3 months after giving birth. That’s an incredibly quick turnaround but if Clay comes back exactly the same as she left, she might just run through this bracket.
Super-Heavyweight
Favorite: This is the smallest division of the entire tournament with only 4 competitors, so the bracket will begin with the semi-finals right from the start. There’s no returning champion and anyone could take it, but Legion Jiu-Jitsu black belt Paige Ivette stands out as the potential winner here.
Dark Horse: Mayara Moreira is going to be a tough opponent for anyone in the division and she might be able to get the win over Ivette, but this division really could go in any direction.
The full IBJJF No Gi Pan Championship, including all of the above divisions in this preview, is available to watch live on November 1st to 3rd, 2024 on FloGrappling, click here to subscribe and watch.
