The IBJJF have scheduled The Crown for November 19th, 2023 and the promotion have just announced the full lineup for the women’s openweight division at the event. The event will feature several 4-person brackets and already there are some of the best grapplers on the planet competing, but this latest announcement is truly incredible. There are only two divisions available for female competitors, and the women’s lightweight division was already announced previously. This means that these four women in the openweight division are the final female competitors taking to the mats at the event.
The early favorite in the women’s openweight division at The Crown is obviously Gabrieli Pessanha, as she has been an unstoppable force on the mats for years now. She has won gold medals in both the super-heavyweight and the absolute division at every single major IBJJF event for two straight years, and it would take something truly impressive to stop her from winning the $15,000 grand prize. Melissa Stricker has already had three chances to beat Pessanha in the past and she hasn’t been able to do so, but she has been able to put up a stiff challenge each and every time.
The other two entrants are the ones that most eyes will be on though, as each of them has only had one match with Pessanha until now. Amy Campo was on the losing end of an incredibly close decision in 2022 and she’ll undoubtedly be eager to get revenge on Pessanha by becoming the first women to beat her in two years. The final woman completing the bracket is Nathiely de Jesus, who has been on an absolute tear since coming back from time away from competition to have a baby. De Jesus lost to Pessanha on points 3 years ago and a lot has changed for both women since then, so it’ll be interesting to see how they match up now.
