The rivalry between ADCC 2024 and the Craig Jones Invitational came to a head over the weekend but that wasn’t the only rivalry that took place, as the best grapplers from both New Wave Jiu-Jitsu and B-Team Jiu-Jitsu stepped on the mats. Not only are they two of the biggest names in the no gi competition circuit, but they were both formed when the Danaher Death Squad died. That split into two separate teams both located in Austin, Texas, meant that every major no gi grappling event is an opportunity for fans to measure them against one another. With so many representatives of both teams competing, would New Wave or B-Team get the upper hand?
Click here to see our full play-by-play of the Craig Jones Invitational 2024.
Click here to see our full play-by-play of ADCC 2024.
Did New Wave Or B-Team Win The Weekend?
New Wave and B-Team Jiu-Jitsu are known for being at the highest level of the no gi grappling and given that the two biggest no gi events of the year happened on the same weekend, it was only natural that they would both be heavily represented. Not many people would have predicted just how many competitors they would send though, as there was 9 New Wave and 12 B-Team grapplers across the Craig Jones Invitational and ADCC 2024. One man from each team was competing in superfights only, while the rest were all in stacked tournament brackets.
The Superfights
The superfights that New Wave and B-Team competitors were involved in over the weekend were always going to be a bit of a mismatch. Craig Jones and Gordon Ryan were leading their teams from the front, with Jones taking on one match and Ryan taking on two. Jones faced Gabi Garcia in the biggest intergender match in the history of the sport and he made it look pretty easy really. He was expected to win from the start and although it was a fun match, it was pretty clear that he had the advantage all the way up until the submission finish.
That match was put together largely for fun, but the superfights that Ryan had at ADCC 2024 were far more serious affairs. His first match was the fourth in his long-standing rivalry with Felipe Pena and it was actually a fairly close battle, with Pena being very offensive off his back. Neither man got close to a submission and Pena couldn’t score against Ryan, with Ryan scoring the only points of the match and winning 2-0 in the end.
His second superfight against Yuri Simoes was nowhere near as close, and Ryan was in control for almost the entire match. He racked up an extensive lead on the scoreboard and did attempt a few submissions, but he couldn’t get the finish and ended up winning 21-0 instead. Both the New Wave and B-Team representatives won their superfights on the weekend but Ryan’s had much more at stake, even if his performance wasn’t as dominant as what fans might be used to seeing from him.
The Champions
Both New Wave and B-Team finished the weekend with a champion, one at each event. Nicky Rodriguez was on absolute fire for B-Team during his run through the Craig Jones Invitational over 80kg division, as he submitted all four of his opponents to win the million-dollar grand prize. He looked unstoppable in every match, putting on a wrestling and guard-passing clinic before taking everyone’s back and finishing them all with rear-naked chokes. He even hit a high note after his run was complete too, as he took the opportunity to challenge Ryan to a million-dollar bet match.
Over at ADCC 2024, Giancarlo Bodoni put on a classic performance of his own in the under 88kg division. Not only did he beat 3 elite opponents to make it to the final, but he also won the biggest direct match between New Wave and B-Team over the weekend when he got there. He beat Nicky’s brother Jacob Rodriguez on points there in order to win the title at that weight for the second year in a row, displaying a fantastic level of technical and tactical skill while cementing his status as one of the best grapplers in the world right now.
Bodoni also made an appearance in the absolute division too, where he went 2-2 and finished in fourth place despite some incredibly tough opposition. That was a very respectable outcome for someone competing at under 88kg, even if one of his losses did come to a lighter competitor. It was very tough to separate Bodoni and Rodriguez’s runs really, but the fact that Bodoni won the most high-profile direct match between the two teams just about sealed the deal for New Wave.
The Top Four Finishers
Looking at the New Wave and B-Team competitors who managed to make it to the final four of their respective divisions on the weekend really helps to show the depth of the respective teams. Adam Bradley competed in the over 80kg division at the Craig Jones Invitational and although he eventually lost to his teammate Rodriguez in the semi-final, the fact that he got through two elite grapplers who were both bigger than him is a real testament to his skill level. He might not have been as well-known as some of his teammates but he should be now after two split decision wins against tough opponents.
At ADCC 2024, quite a few B-Team competitors actually made it on to the second day of the tournament. Obviously Jacob Rodriguez finished with a silver medal at in the under 88kg division beating three talented grapplers, and he had some moments of success in his match with Bodoni in the final too. He actually beat his teammate Chris Wojcik in the semi-final, and Wojcik had a close battle for the bronze medal before having to settle for a fourth-place finish.
The podium in the over 99kg division was mostly made up of New Wave competitors though, as they took up both of the spots available either side of the champion Felipe Pena. It was Luke Griffith who left with a silver medal after beating everyone in front of him other than Pena, including his teammate Dan Manasoiu in the semi-final. Manasoiu also finished the event with a 3-1 record though, as he bounced straight back and made very short work of his third-place match to win the bronze medal. Both men put in great performances and showed that New Wave has some of the best bigger grapplers in the world.
Top prospect Helena Crevar was another new medalist for New Wave and she put on a solid display of elite grappling in her ADCC debut. She was the only female competitor that either New Wave or B-Team had in action on the weekend and she won her first match with a quick submission on day one. Things were harder on day two but she got the win in a very tough match against Brianna Ste-Marie, making it into the final. Crevar couldn’t beat Ana Vieira there and had to settle for a silver medal, but for such a young competitor this was a truly amazing result.
Crevar wasn’t the only young competitor from New Wave or B-Team who made it to the semi-finals on the weekend, as Owen Jones put on an amazing performance in the under 66kg division. Although he normally trains in the UK, Jones conducted his camp at B-Team HQ under the watchful eye of Dima Murovanni and it clearly paid off. He submitted top contender Gabriel Sousa first and one of the division’s best wrestlers in Gairbeg Ibragimov, before falling in the semi-final to Diego ‘Pato’ Oliveira. Jones couldn’t compete in the bronze medal match and settled for a fourth-place finish, but he was one of the breakthrough stars of the weekend regardless.
B-Team finished the weekend with a silver and three semi-finalists while New Wave managed to leave with two silvers and a bronze. There wasn’t all that much in it, with B-Team managing to get more competitors into the final four but New Wave getting theirs just a little bit further on average. With Bodoni’s fourth-place finish in the ADCC absolute division included in the tally as well, New Wave definitely have the edge here.
The Rest Of The Field
There were other competitors representing both New Wave and B-Team at both of the events on the weekend, although they weren’t able to make it as far as their teammates. B-Team had three more grapplers in the Craig Jones Invitational as Nicky Ryan, Jozef Chen, and Kenta Iwamoto all competed in the under 80kg division. Chen was the only one to win his opening round match and he was submitted by Lucas ‘Hulk’ Barbosa in the quarter-final, leaving these three grapplers with a collective record of 1-3. This was of course one of the most stacked brackets ever assembled though, so any matchup was going to be tough.
There was more B-Team competitors in action at ADCC 2024, with Ethan Crelinsten being one of the biggest names at under 66kg. Declan Moody was also competing in the under 88kg division, and both him and Crelinsten went 1-1 in their respective brackets. Moody also went 1-1 in the absolute division on the next day, while his teammate Vince Pezzuto went out in the opening round at over 99kg. Haisam Rida competed at the same weight and 1-1, losing the only other direct match between B-Team and New Wave on the weekend to Dan Manasoiu.
New Wave had Garry Tonon and Dorian Olivarez in the under 66kg and 77kg divisions respectively, and they were both seen as real contenders before the event started. Things didn’t go to plan for either of them though, as they both lost their opening round matches. Oliver Taza also competed in the under 77kg division and he did make it further than his teammate Tonon, but he was beaten by Mica Galvao in the quarter-final and finished his run at 1-1. With a collective record of 1-3 from their grapplers in the lightest weight classes, a lot of New Wave’s chances rested on their competitor in the under 99kg division.
Nicholas Meregali started out as one of two men who seemed almost certain to make the final of the division, but that was not to be. He won his first match by submission but ran into Michael Pixley in the quarter-final, where he was on the receiving ends of one of the biggest upsets of the whole tournament. Pixley submitted Meregali with a D’arce choke and took him out of the bracket, but things went from bad to worse when it was confirmed that Meregal had dislocated his shoulder when Pixley threw him to set up the choke.
Tallying up the results of all the New Wave and B-Team competitors who didn’t make it to the final four of their brackets on the weekend shows just how close things were. New Wave went 2-4 from four competitors while B-Team went 5-8 from seven competitors, having a slightly better collective record. Taking into consideration that several of the New Wave grapplers were predicted to do very well originally, it seems like this should be an area where B-Team would be considered the winners.
The Results Of The Weekend, New Wave or B-Team?
It was pretty close in the end really, as New Wave and B-Team had pretty similar performances over the course of the weekend. New Wave’s total record at ADCC 2024 was 18-9, while B-Team competitors managed to go 15-13 across both events. With a win-rate of 66% compared to B-Team’s 53% and two extra medals from tournaments, New Wave managed to win this battle. It was a solid performance from both teams in fairness, but in the end they were both just battling for second place. The honor of being the most successful team over the weekend can only really go to the men and women competing under Andre Galvao.
ATOS had a far better weekend than both New Wave and B-Team, with Kade Ruotolo winning the under 80kg division at CJI and leading his team to a collective 9-3 record at the event. Then Kaynan Duarte and Adele Fornarino both became double champions on behalf of ATOS, bringing back four gold medals and a 14-0 record with 11 submissions. Rafaela Guedes also won her division and finished the weekend with a 4-1 record after the absolute. Their other four ADCC competitors went 2-5 collectively to bring their total record to an incredible 29-9, and six out of the 12 titles available on the weekend were won by grapplers representing ATOS.
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