The Professional Grappling Federation (PGF) World Season 6 finale took place on April 26th, 2024 concluded with a buzzer-beater finish. The week-long Jiu-Jitsu league’s playoffs came down to a face-off between one of the most well-known and highly regarded 77kg Jiu-Jitsu competitors in the world and a 17-year-old phenom. Which of these grapplers could submit the other in less time was the question that decided the PGF World Season 6 Champion. And it all went down on UFC Fight Pass where fans can still go to watch all the action.
The week-long Jiu-Jitsu league season began with an auction draft with four Jiu-Jitsu legends bidding to complete their five-competitor teams. Then starting Monday, the 20 competitors had three matches a night, trying to submit their opponents to earn points towards the $100,000 regular season team championship prize, but also to earn points towards their own standings. The top eight scoring competitors from the regular season made the playoffs. The PGF World Season 6 Finale included the eight-competitor, single-elimination championship bracket, as well as the Battlerama, and the co-main event women’s 125lbs championship.
The Battlerama is a tradition of the PGF where four of the competitors who were not seen much during the season (normally the replacement/reserve competitors) get a four-man bracket in the finale for a chance to shine and earn some cash. The Co-Main Event female championship featured two-time female champion Kiaya Jackson defending her 125lb title against former PGF Season 4 teammate Kaida Dewitt.
You can also find our full recaps of the best moments from each day of PGF World Season 6 here:
PGF World Season 6 Finale Recap And Results
The PGF World Season 6 finale started off with the first round of the championship bracket. The first match embodied the uncertainty and dynamic nature of the PGF World league format. Pre-season Top Ranked PJ Barch faced off against PGF Regular Season Champion Davis Asare in the first match of the night. PJ Barch is a former ADCC competitor and black belt head of 10th Planet South Bay. He came into the PGF World 6 Season with serious momentum after winning the Polaris 170lb Grand Prix a few weeks prior. Davis, a purple belt representing New Wave Jiu Jitsu and its coach John Danaher, also having some momentum after having finished second in the ADCC European trials.
PJ Barch vs Davis Asare
Even though he was the preseason #1, Barch did not originally make the playoffs. One of the top eight finishers pulled out of the playoffs in the last minute and that gave Barch a chance to compete in the playoffs. One could make the argument these two competitors were the deadliest in the season, as they were the only two competitors to sink in submissions against top eight finishers, with Asare heelhooking Daniel Sathler and Barch dispatching Kevin Beuhring, Elijah Carlton, and Renato Canuto during the regular season.
When this highly anticipated match started, Asare took the initiative. Despite facing an accomplished wrestler, Asare took the fight to PJ Barch. Asare kept attacking as he did all season. Unfortunately, he fell into Barch’s best game seen in PGF World Season 6 – Asare tried leg locking Barch. Barch featured his excellent counter-leg locking game, using it to take out the competitors mentioned above. Once in the leg lock game, Barch found a way to roll into position and get the inside heel hook on Asare.
Andy Varela vs Kevin Beuhring
Andy Varela had both momentum and a chip on his shoulder entering PGF World Season 6. 10th Planet Las Vegas black belt Varela only gave up 2 points via a takedown in the ADCC West Coast Trials, but those two points forced him to settle for bronze (getting the medal by hitting a RNC on fellow PGF World 6 competitor Max Hanson). The only member of Team Epic Roll to make the playoffs, Varela assured his playoff spot by getting four Kills in the season, via rear naked chokes.
Kevin Beuhring entered the season as a dark horse, with the purple belt hailing from the always-competitive 10th Planet Atlanta squad led by Coach Sean Applegate. Beuhring garnered two kills and a break during the regular season. Team 1st Phorm’s four winning blocks and the resultant team points helped assure Beurhing made the playoffs. Beuhring most potent weapon is his leglock game, so naturally he pulled guard against the great wrestler Varela. Unlike their regular season match, Varela quickly passed Beuhring’s guard. Varela worked his way to Beuhring’s back and got his fifth RNC in PGF World. Varela showed he was dialed in, on a mission.
Renato Canuto vs Elijah Carlton
The World Champion vs the multi-season PGF champion – the third match in the PGF World Season 6 finale featured Renato Canuto vs Elijah Carlton. Canuto is the black belt head of Hybrid Jiu Jitsu in Las Vegas. He wowed all the PGF World fans with his submission of the night flying armbar on day 2. But he faced the Royce Gracie of the PGF in Elijah Carlton, who won the submission of the night on day 3 with his patented triangle choke. Both competitors had targets on their backs coming into PGF World 6. Both competitors scored 0 points on the first day. But both competitors got into their grooves with Carlton finding his way into second place in the regular season right along his XMartial teammate Davis Asare. Canuto came into the last day of the season on the outside of the playoff picture, but found a way to win his way into the finale.
As they started the match, the most dynamic standing jiu jitsu player in the competition… took a seat. Often competitors facing Elijah Carlton have chosen to play seated guard in an effort to take away Elijah’s best weapon – his guard. Elijah flirted with playing top position, then quickly sat as well. Canuto defended Elijah’s first leg lock, but fell to Elijah’s subsequent outside heel hook attack. All told, the match lasted 36 seconds, meaning Elijah took out a world champion in enough time to earn the Jonathan Roberts Elbow Genie point for the finish within one minute (if it was in the regular season). This submission against a world champion was the coup de grace against any notion that the Jabroni Grappler Elijah Carlton was just a regional competitor.
Daniel Sathler vs Jett Thompson
Daniel Sathler entered PGF World 6 with a lot of buzz around his name. PGF World Commissioner Brandon Mccaghren said ATOS leader Andre Galvao had specifically chosen black belt competitor Daniel Sathler to represent their world-class team in PGF World Season 6. Sathler delivered on the faith given him by his coach, hitting multiple highlight-level submissions in the regular season. He earned enough points in the first seven blocks of competitions (2 1/3 days) that he made the playoffs even though he was injured by Davis Asare via heel hook in the eighth block and couldn’t compete the last day. Sathler faced the breakout star of PGF World Season 6. Jett Thompson entered PGF World Season 6 as a brown belt out of both the Watkins Wrecking Crew and Forge BJJ, and he was the third youngest competitor in PGF history at only 17 years old.
Jett had no fear throughout the season, smiling in the face of world-class jiu jitsu talent and smiling even though frustrated men often took to hitting Jett with “hard collar-ties” – aka open hand strikes. Sathler suggested he might still be injured as he sat during the opening seconds of the match. As Jett started working his guard, Sathler put in a body lock. By not trying to advance his position, Sathler drew a stalling penalty, ending up in the bottom of referee position. Thompson found a way to Sathler’s back of the referee position restart. Thompson got the body triangle and sunk in the RNC is just over two minutes.
Battlerama Opening Round
Matt Elkins took on John Chandler in a match of high-end wrestlers. Elkins found his way onto the main PGF roster only days before the regular season as one of the highly touted competitors had an injury and could not compete. Elkins is the only person to have participated in every season of the PGF with four seasons as a competitor and two as a coach. Chandler, though undersized, answered the call only three days before the season to take Elkins spot as an alternate.
Chandler only had a couple of matches during the season, highlighted by an amazingly competitive match with his often training partner and world champion AJ Agazarm. Agazarm threatened Chandler many times with scary arm breaks, but Chandler found a way to survive. In this match, the state-champion and collegiate wrestler Matt Elkins found a way to win the standing battle. He got to the mount position and started cooking Chandler, looking for the submission. Finally, Elkins found a guillotine in a scramble, winning his first-round match.
Alvaro Pinedo, a standout from the PGF World 6 qualifier in Las Vegas took on PGF Veteran Evan Dewitt in the second Battlerama match. Pinedo, a Checkmat black belt, faced a Derby City MMA (Chewjitsu’s gym) black belt in DeWitt. Pinedo only got one match in the regular season as one of Sathler’s replacements. Team 1st Phorm gave Pinedo the unenviable task of facing Andy Varela. DeWitt had a few matches in the regular season. But now was the time for these replacement/reserve players to make their own mark. Pinedo came out with a vengeance, but Dewitt showed his resilience, defending every attack. Eventually, the match went to overtime, where Dewitt emerged victorious.
PGF World Season 6 Finale Semi-Finals
Andy Varela vs PJ Barch
In the second round opener of the PGF World Season 6 finale, fans saw the battle of the highest rated 10th Planet 77kg competitors in the world. The highly contested battle ended in overtime with Andy Varela able to secure the RNC finish over PJ Barch. Both competitors were magnanimous in their post-match interviews with PGF announcer Stephen Eakin. While their third match finally ended up in a decisive victory, fans haven’t seen the last of this matchup.
Elijah Carlton vs Jett Thompson
The first-time PGF World Season 6 standout faced the PGF superstar Elijah Carlton. Jett sat guard. Elijah sat, ready for the leg lock battle. But Thompson’s aoki lock setup found another black belt victim in Elijah. Carlton left without winning his third overall championship, but he left with the $20k he earned as the captain of Team XMartial this season. Carlton signed off, saying “catch me at 205.” Since the next PGF World season is at 205 lbs, PGF Worlds fans will get to continue with the Elijah Carlton saga next season. On the other hand, Jett “the Kid” Thompson once again showed he wasn’t a fluke as he submitted his sixth black belt of the season.
Battlerama Final
AJ Agazarm entered the commentary booth for this Battlerama final match. Agazarm completed his face turn during the PGF World 6 season. Agazarm, long known to be the heel in grappling competitions, he put his boy John Chandler over after their match, recognizing his grit, skill, and desire. Agazarm was a standout of PGF World 6 as an elder statesman of submission grappling, showing both his skill and mentoring all these up and coming competitors. In the Battlerama finale, perennial PGF participant Matt Elkins took on fellow PGF Veteran Evan Dewitt.
In a turn of events, it was the first time Evan Dewitt faced his Season 4 coach in Matt Elkins. Elkins went on the offensive immediately. Dewitt continued to show his resiliency, defending submission after submission. Eventually, Elkins made a very nice move to take the back of Dewitt, getting the body triangle and sinking in the RNC. Elkins also said he was game for the 205lb season, noting it was more his natural weight, but he had no problem bringing out the abs to make the weight for the 175lb season. Elkins has shown once he gets his momentum going, he’s hard to stop.
Co-Main Event – Women’s 125lbs Title-Fight
Two-time PGF Female Champion Kiaya Jackson took on PGF Season 4 veteran Kaida Dewitt. While they were both in PGF Season 4, they did not compete against each other as they were teammates. An interesting note, Matt Elkins was both Evan and Kaida’s coach in Season 4 and was in Kiaya Jackson’s corner while Evan Dewitt was in Kaida’s corner. But as the match started, there was no question they were opponents in this match. Kiaya took a dominant top position to start and largely remained on top. Kaida was more than happy to oblige as her main weapons flow through her guard.
Kaida tried multiple Tarikoplata attempts (shoulder locks involving the legs and arms), but Kiaya was able to defend them. Kaida also had a bicep slicer from guard, but Kiaya was able to survive it. Kaida was one of the few competitors to challenge Kiaya with attacks rather than just stalling. Even as Kaida was put in VERY bad positions, she used her doctorate studies in clinical psychology to help her get into her opponent’s head with her words. Kiaya answered by putting her hand over Kaida’s mouth. Eventually, it went to overtime where Kiaya Jackson became the three-time champion.
PGF World Season 6 Grand Finale
Andy Varela vs Jett Thompson
No one would have blinked if they were told Andy Varela was in the final match for the PGF World Season 6 championship. At the same time, one could have made a tidy sum of money if one had made a bet that Jett Thompson would make the finale. Andy Varela entered the mat, followed by his long-time 10th Planet Las Vegas coach Casey Halstead. Jett Thompson entered alone, but his father and his coach from Watkins Wrecking Crew were both in the audience and provide plenty of coaching and encouragement during the match. Jett sat guard as was expected against the great wrestling of Varela.
Jett wasn’t afraid of the highly-ranked competitive black belt Varela. Jett gave a kick off to Varela, and Varela was quick to hit a very hard collar strike against Jett. Jett continued to attack and smile as is his nature. Jett continued to try for his scoop-grip setup for leg locks. Eventually, it went to overtime. Varela showed his mastery of the RNC and submitted Jett in the first round of overtime in 33 seconds. But then Jett got his chance. Jett showed serious passion and effort. He locked in the RNC, arching his back and Varela’s back, but Varela was able to withstand the Thompson storm. Varela has won the grand finale and he is your PGF World Season 6 champion!
Final Thoughts
PGF World Season 6 was a gauntlet as all PGF fans knew. The competitors and the staff gave everything they had for the fans. This war of attrition was won by a very deserving Andy Varela. Coach Casey Halstead, with tears in his eyes, told Varela and all who listened that he only had daughters, but Varela is like a son to him. Through tears, Halstead said that he had only daughters, but if he had a son, he’d want him to be just like Varela. PGF World Season 6 proved to so many fans and future fans that PGF is the most exciting submission grappling event in existence.
If I can, normally author’s don’t get to send out personal messages, but maybe a PGF author can be an individual like the PGF. I’d like to give my heartfelt thanks to Brandon Mccaghren, conscious Keelan Lawyer, Zoltan Bathory, and the incomparable Heather Grace Gracie for allowing an amateur to serve as an analyst and commentator for your PGF World Season 6. Of course, I’d be remiss if I did not thank TJ Desantis, the conductor of the live event, for his patience and guidance on adding to the competition. When PGF Season 1 hit during the pandemic, I was just a guy commenting in the YouTube chat, but I’ve been given the chance to be front and center with the show for the last three seasons.
It’s been an honor and a privilege, and I hope to continue adding to the show and spreading my PGF knowledge to others as part of expanding the PGF World. Thank you all and thank you to the competitors for giving us your best. As Theodore Roosevelt said, “it’s not the critic who counts.” But my goal, as the first PGF Super fan has always been to give every PGF competitor the attention and hype they deserve. Thank you all.
