This article is part of our Craig Jones Invitational 2024 coverage. To get live results, play by play, and commentary, we’ll have a live updates article running all weekend.
Kenta Iwamoto has just added his name to the list of grapplers leaving ADCC 2024 in order to compete in the Craig Jones Invitational. Iwamoto was originally supposed to be competing in the under 77kg division at ADCC 2024, and he won his place at the Asia and Oceania Trials in 2023. This would have been the third consecutive time that Iwamoto has actually appeared at an ADCC world championship, as he’s been winning ADCC Trials events since 2019. He would have been one of the dark horses in the tournament thanks to his extensive experience under the ruleset, but now he’s left an open space in the under 77kg bracket instead.
Iwamoto has actually taken up the last available slot in the under 80kg division at the Craig Jones Invitational, and he’ll be joining 15 of the best grapplers in the world. Although the bracket will be incredibly tough, the million-dollar prize available for the winner is a big reason to make a run at it. It doesn’t hurt that Iwamoto will also be getting $10,001 just for competing at the event, whereas he would only receive anywhere near that amount if he managed to win the every single match at ADCC 2024.
He will also be joining the other ADCC Asia and Oceania Trials winner Levi Jones-Leary in the tournament, along with several other competitors who would have been in his original bracket at ADCC 2024. By going head-to-head with ADCC and taking place on the same weekend, the Craig Jones Invitational has been able to convince a ton of top talent to switch over. Although Iwamoto will have plenty of challenges waiting for him at the event, he has a style that will suit the three-round format very well and he has a solid chance of making a deep run.
The Craig Jones Invitational announced that Kenta Iwamoto had left ADCC 2024 in order to enter the under 80kg division in a recent post to their official Instagram account:
