The third edition of The Crown is scheduled for November 23rd, 2025 and the we’ve put together a full preview of one of the biggest events in the IBJJF calendar. There are 6 divisions being contested and each one features 8 of the best gi competitors in the world, including a few returning champions from The Crown 2024. Each winner will receive the grand prize of $20,000 and everyone will be fighting tooth and nail to take it home, although there’s money on the line for both second and third-place as well. Here we’ll break down the favorites in each bracket, along with the competitors who might surprise everyone with a deep run.
IBJJF: The Crown 2025 Full Preview
Men’s Featherweight Division
Favorites
There’s no returning champion here but Joao Mendes did finish with a silver medal last year. He might not have been one of the favorites that time around but he is now, and he has a favorable matchup in the opening round too. The man he beat in the first round last time was Kennedy Maciel, and he’s also coming back for another shot at the title. Maciel is on the opposite side of the bracket and he also has a very good chance of making it to the final. Although Mendes beat him last time, Maciel is 4-1 against him overall and would be the safest bet to win that direct matchup again.
Top Contenders
It’s easy to forget that Cole Abate is still just 21 years old given how long he’s been competing at the top of the sport now, but that’s just how good he’s been. He’s generally known for his success in no gi but he’s had some electric performances in the gi too, so he could go very far if things go his way. Then on Mendes’ side of the bracket there’s last year’s bronze medalist Ademir Barreto; and he also stands out as having a good chance of making the podium again. Abate and Barretto are most likely going to meet in the third-place match, but it wouldn’t be too surprising to see them both in the final instead.
Dark Horses
Danilo Moreira probably has the best chance among the rest of the division, and his first-round match against Abate is certainly one he has the skills to win. Marco Mendes would probably have been slightly ahead of Moreira, if not for the fact that he has the unenviable position of facing Maciel first. Maciel lost his first match here last year of course, so it’s not as if getting past him is impossible. After that is Eduardo Granzotto; who is the underdog in his match with Barretto after getting submitted by him here last year. Keven Carrasco is the final man in the bracket and he’ll be facing Mendes first, a very tough opponent for everyone here.
Women’s Lightweight Division
Favorites
Brianna Ste-Marie won the title at this weight last year and she looks poised to do it again, but there’s been quite a few big changes in the lineup and the division is a completely different challenge this time around. Janaina Lebre was the woman she beat in the final last time and she’s one of just two other women returning; likely heading for a rematch with Ste-Marie in the final. Lebre is now 3-1 against Ste-Marie but every match has been decided by advantages or decision, making this one of the toughest matches to call.
Top Contenders
Thalyta Silva is coming into this off winning the IBJJF World Championship this year so she has plenty of momentum behind her, and she’s a pretty safe bet to make it to the podium. It’s far from a foregone conclusion of course and if she wants get to the final then she’ll probably have to get through Ste-Marie in the second round. On the other side of the bracket is veteran contender Bianca Basilio, who has already won pretty much everything there is to win in the sport. The biggest problem Basilio will face is that she will be at a size disadvantage against most of her opponents, and that will likely be tough to overcome.
Dark Horses
Cassia Moura finished fourth last year and that was a remarkable achievement for such a young competitor. She has only improved since then though and she could easily make it on to the podium this time around, but she has a very difficult match with Silva to get through first. Elisabeth Clay also has a great chance of going far and she has the size advantage to do very well in her first match against Basilio, even though she is generally more successful in no gi competition. Sarah Galvao and Sabrina Gondim are the final entrants and both of them could beat some of the women in this bracket; particularly Galvao. The difficulty is that they’re both against the favorites in the opening round, Ste-Marie and Lebre respectively.
Men’s Middleweight Division
Favorites
The reigning champion here is Andy Murasaki and he’s back to defend the title, but the run will be even tougher this year as his final opponent last year was forced to withdraw due to injury. He’s in another league to most men at this weight though and he should make it to the final again; where he will likely face his toughest test from Jackson Nagai. Nagai is the favorite on the other side of the bracket and although he’s a little lighter than most here, he did win this weight class at the IBJJF World Championship in 2024. This seems like a very likely final pairing, and Murasaki probably has the slight edge in the direct matchup.
Top Contenders
Pedro Maia has a favorable matchup in the opening round but things get very tough for him from that point onward, as his most likely opponent in the semi-final is Murasaki. It’s not as if Maia can’t beat him of course but he’s lost both their previous meetings, including a 4-0 loss on points earlier this year. Jose Steve is coming off a world title at brown belt earlier this year and historically, most people winning gold at that level are capable of competing at black belt immediately. He has last year’s brown belt world champion in the first round though, so it won’t be easy for him.
Dark Horses
Mateus Moraes is the man facing Steve in the first round and although he’s still chasing his first major title since being promoted to black belt in 2024, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him make it through to the second round here. Danylo Wruck probably has the next-best chance of making it to the semi-finals, as he faces Maia in his first match. He’s in the same boat as Moraes; and this could be his breakthrough moment if he can get an upset early. Then there’s Mateo Cardona, who has so far been on fire in his limited number of appearances at black belt. He has Murasaki in the opening round though so it will take something special for him to progress, and Luiz Victor has a similar challenge by facing Nagai first.
Men’s Heavyweight Division
Favorites
The clear favorite at heavyweight is Adam Wardzinski, who has been nothing short of unstoppable over the last year. Not only os he the reigning champion in this division but he also became the first European IBJJF Grand Slam winner this year. He actually came out of retirement for this tournament but seeing as that retirement only began a few months ago, that shouldn’t be a factor at all. His main challenger here is Nolan Stuart, who has only been competing at this level for a short while but has already proven that he belongs among the very best.
Top Contenders
Lucas ‘Hulk’ Barbosa has won plenty of IBJJF titles and could very easily come away with another here if he can stay tactically sound. A potential semi-final against Stuart is winnable, but like everyone else he would be considered the underdog against Wardzinski in the gi. Mateus Rodrigues is the other contender and his first opponent is one he’s beaten multiple times before. No matter who wins the other opening round match on his side of the bracket, he’s in for a very difficult second outing and making it to the final will require something special.
Dark Horses
If the bracket was drawn any other way, Igor Tanabe would have been one of the top contenders. Unfortunately he has been pitted against Wardzinski in the first round and beating him would be considered a pretty big upset. Windson Torres is on the other side of the bracket and he’s won a major title this year, but facing Barbosa in the first match is another tough draw. Mateus Rodrigues is the man opposite Merlin and he has beaten him so a win is definitely possible, but just like Rodrigues he will face either Wardzinski or Tanabe next and that is a huge challenge. The final man rounding out the bracket is Robson Chaves, who has Stuart first and then either Barbosa or Torres if he wins that.
Women’s Super-Heavyweight Division
Favorites
Gabrieli Pessanha has already done enough in her relatively young career to be considered the favorite in every single gi tournament she enters, no matter who else is involved. She’s won everything there is to win in the gi multiple times over and beaten pretty much everyone she possibly could. The only woman to beat her in the last few years is Tayane Porfirio and she’s actually on the other side of the bracket here. Pessanha has a huge lead in their series, having won 8 out of their 10 matches. She’s still the firm favorite but if anyone can beat her here, it’s Porfirio.
Top Contenders
Larissa Dias has a great chance of making it to the podium here and maybe even into the final, as Pessanha is on the opposite side of the bracket to her. She’s also one of the lighter women in the division so although she’ll have a technical edge, the size difference is still an obstacle to overcome. Izadora Silva should be able to make it into the semi-finals but she’s almost certainly running into Pessanha at that point and she’s lost all 4 matches against her up until now. It would take a huge upset somewhere for Silva to make it into the final but a bronze medal is definitely within reach.
Dark Horses
Maria Vicentini has a very tough first match against Porfirio but if she can win that, she should be able to make it into the final. That’s the moment that she would meet Pessanha and she gave her a very tough match last time around, so it’ll be interesting to see if she can improve upon that this time around. Giovanna Carneiro is on the same side of the bracket against Dias in the opening round and she also has the ability to win her first match, but things will just get harder at every stage for her. Anabel Lopez has had the toughest draw by facing Pessanha first and Maria Alencar is up against Silva, so both of them would have to pull off an upset to get a chance of winning a medal.
Men’s Ultra-Heavyweight Division
Favorites
Erich Munis has won this division at both of the previous editions of The Crown and he’s the firm favorite in this preview of the 2025 edition too. It’s hard to imagine anyone else winning this bracket really as Munis rarely loses and none of the men who have beat him are in this bracket. Gustavo Batista is probably his biggest threat but he’s also going to be one of the smaller men in the bracket. Batista is a three-time world champion but always at medium-heavyweight, so his technical ability might get him to the final but Munis can meet him on that level and has a size advantage on top.
Top Contenders
Marcos Carrozzino is an excellent competitor and he’s had flashes of real brilliance, so a place in the semi-finals is a pretty safe bet. The problem comes after that when he will likely run into Munis, who has already beaten him before. If he can manage to best Munis though, he sets himself up for an excellent chance of winning the title. Pedro Lucas is on the other side of the bracket and also has a favorable opening round matchup but just like some of the contenders in other divisions, he also has progressively more difficult opponents and it’s always tough to win as the underdog that many times.
Dark Horses
Elder Cruz has the best chance of making it to the final out of the dark horses, as long as he can make it past Batista in the first round. He has the size advantage and will then probably face Lucas, and he’d be the slight favorite against him. Francisco Papasidero is against Lucas first though and he has a similar experience where he has a tough first round but could go far if he wins that. Patrick Gaudio has the most unfortunate draw by being against Munis first, but he’s definitely got the skills to beat the rest of the bracket so an early upset could see him winning the whole thing. Finally, Guilherme Avelimo is the underdog against Carrozzino first and will then face either Munis or Gaudio; meaning he will have to register a series of surprising results to get to the final.
The full IBJJF: The Crown 2025 event, including every competitor in the above preview, will be available to watch live on November 23rd, 2025 on FloGrappling, click here to subscribe and watch.
