Grapplefest 17 took place on November 18th, 2023 and although the event itself was a fantastic night of elite grappling, a brawl took place backstage between competitors. The altercation actually took place while the event was still ongoing, and was even before one of the men involved had stepped onto the mat. Footage of the brawl was released by Oskar Svels, the man who was on the receiving end just a matter of minutes before he was due to compete. He claimed that he was attacked by another grappler who had just competed, Thomas Bracher, and several of his teammates.
It’s worth remembering that incidents like this don’t really reflect on the promotion at all, and more on the individuals who instigate the fight. Grapplefest 17 was a great event from start to finish and the promotion put together dozens of exciting matches featuring some of the best competitors from all around the world. Sadly though, isolated incidents like this can sometimes overshadow what would otherwise be a perfect night. Below are a series of screenshots from Oskar Svels’ official Instagram account story, where he explains the background behind the brawl at Grapplefest 17:
Svels has clearly attempted to make sure that all of the relevant people with any power to punish the offenders are aware of the incident. Not only did he tag Grapplefest directly but he also tagged Victor Estima, younger brother of Braulio Estima and one of the top figures in Gracie Barra in the UK. There’s no news yet on what action will take place following the altercation, and it’ll be interesting to see if any of the parties involved do decide to take the matter further.
Footage of the brawl that took place backstage at Grapplefest 17 was also uploaded to Svels’ official Instagram story:
