The full lineup that will represent South America at the Polaris Squads Intercontinental Championship 2025 has now been released by the promotion and there’s some serious talent involved. When the year-long tournament was first announced, South America immediately stood out as one of the favorites because of their deep talent pool. These 6 men will be making their first appearance as a team at Polaris 33 on September 12th, where they will be facing some of the best grapplers coming out of Asia and Oceania. If they are able to beat that team then they will book a place in the grand finale at the end of the year, where they will face team Europe after they beat North America earlier in the year.
The first man that Polaris announced for the South American team is also the most accomplished no gi competitor in it, Gabriel Sousa. Although Sousa might end up being at a size disadvantage against a lot of his opponents, he still won a silver medal at ADCC 2022 and is one of the top lightweights in the world. He was quickly joined by Romao Carvalho from London Shootfighters; a talented grappler who recently made his MMA debut and will undoubtedly be out to make a name for himself with some big wins against the more well-known names in the Asia and Oceania team.
Samuel Nagai was the next man announced for the team and although he’s generally known for his achievements in the gi, he’s still one of the best grapplers in the world at his weight and will be a tough opponent for anyone. ADCC Trials winner Charles Negromonte is the man who’s reached the highest level out of the heavier grapplers on the team, and he is known for being almost impossible to submit. Rounding out the trio of heavyweights in the lineup from there is ADCC Trials medalist and Polaris veteran Jean Maltese, and the young rising star Jorge Gabriel.
Polaris announced the full South America lineup for the Polaris Squads Intercontinental Championship 2025 in a series of recent posts to their official Instagram account:
