It’s often said that BJJ is not a spectator sport and that the only way to really enjoy watching it is to practice it yourself, but there are plenty of grapplers out there who make Jiu-Jitsu one of the most exciting sports in the world. It really is the same as any sport, in that there are ways to play the game to make it fast-paced and action-packed, and ways to play it to make it rather slow and boring. Generally speaking, the latter tends to lead to better results but the former tends to lead to more attention.
Winning multiple world championships is certainly impressive, but is it more impressive than being the one person that everyone’s dying to watch compete? That’s down to personal preference of course, but here we put together a list of the most exciting BJJ competitors over the last two decades, a time that the sport has enjoyed an explosion of popularity. These are the five people that made entire tournaments incredibly exciting and if someone ever asks you to show them what Jiu-Jitsu is like, a match with one of these five competing is your best bet to provide them with action.
Marcelo Garcia (2000+)
Garcia was the original thrillseeker in Jiu-Jitsu competition, regularly competing at 77kg but entering the absolute division at every single opportunity. This has never been too rare but it certainly is hard to pinpoint any smaller man that has had greater success against bigger opponents. That was always a big part of the appeal of watching Garcia compete but he was no less exciting against men who didn’t outweigh him either. His mastery of the butterfly guard is beautiful to behold and from the moment he burst onto the scene with his magical performance at the 2003 ADCC world championships, it was clear that he was going to be something special. He’s rightly regarded as one of the greatest BJJ competitors to ever step foot on the mats but he’s also a shoe-in for the most exciting to watch as well.
Jeff Glover (2005+)
It’s been a good few years since ‘The Pipelayer’ last stepped on the mats and as he approaches his 40th birthday it seems unlikely that we’ll ever see him compete again. That truly is a shame, because Glover was always known as the most entertaining grappler of the late 2000s after bursting onto the scene by winning the IBJJF no gi world championships in 2007. He never managed to repeat that feat and his best result after that was a bronze medal at the 2011 ADCC world championships, but his love for the game has been ever-present. He’s well-known for being incredibly proficient from deep half guard and having an excellent arsenal of D’arce Chokes, but there really was no telling what he would do the moment he stepped on the mats.
Garry Tonon (2010+)
‘The Lion Killer’ really is incapable of having a boring match and as a result, he’s one of the most-loved fixtures of the ADCC world championships from the last decade. In fact, some of Tonon’s matches have been almost universally agreed to be the best matches of the entire tournament, like his epic matches against Kron Gracie and Renato Canuto in 2013 and 2019 respectively. This is all despite the fact that he’s never actually won a world championship, with his best finish coming in 2019 when he left the ADCC world championships with a bronze medal. While he has an affinity for heelhooks just like the rest of the Danaher Death Squad, he’s registered almost 50 submission wins by over a dozen different methods. Last year, he even had an incredible match with Dante Leon that won ‘Match of the Year’ at our 2020 awards ceremony.
Mikey Musumeci (2015+)
Musumeci is one of the most successful exciting competitors his three consecutive IBJJF world championships are proof of that fact. He finishes over half of his opponents and owing in part to his small stature and athleticism, he always puts on a fast-paced performance. He’s known for being one of the best on the planet at the berimbolo game and his footlocks are the stuff of legend, one of which earned him a Guinness world record for the fastest submission in a world championship final. At the age of just 25, he’s still very much in the early days of his career and will have much more success in the years to come; particularly if his new-found affinity for heelhooks pays off at the 2022 ADCC world championships.
Roberto Jimenez (2020+)
Jimenez has been quite possibly the most entertaining grappler to emerge over the past two years and he represents the next generation of elite youngsters like the Ruotolo brothers and Mica Galvao. He has yet to win a major tournament but he’s only 21 and hasn’t been competing at black belt for even two full years. His performances in the Third Coast Grappling Kumite events drew particular attention and he was one of the highlights of Team USA’s victory at Polaris Squads 3. He’s been found struggling with leglock defense many times but regardless, his relentless passing and picture-perfect backtakes are a thing of beauty and he’ll definitely be one of the most entertaining competitors in the next generation.
Honorable Mentions
Of course, this list is by no means exhaustive and there are plenty of elite BJJ competitors out there both past and present who are more than capable of putting on exciting fights and could easily be considered the most entertaining. Here are just a few of the names that narrowly missed out on a place in this list:
- Shinya Aoki
- Rafael Lovato Jr
- Gezary Matuda
- Nathan Orchard
- Alexandre Vieira
- Michelle Nicolini
- Dante Leon
- Geo Martinez
- Keenan Cornelius
- Murilo Santana
- Kron Gracie
- PJ Barch
- Ffion Davies
- Tommy Langaker
- Mica Galvao
- Craig Jones
- Eddie Cummings
- Elisabeth Clay
If you’re interested in watching any of the above performances from ADCC and IBJJF world championships that are not available on YouTube, then they are all available for replay on FloGrappling, click here to subscribe and watch.
