Guest post by Gench Gordo of the excellent skatesurfjiujitsu.com
You can watch the replay of all matches on FloGrappling.com
See full results HERE
The professional Jiu Jitsu tournament – Copa Podio – that is known for its exciting events and world class competitors did it again!! The latest episode took place in the beautiful Argentinian city of Buenos Aires.
Competitors and spectators from all around the world were in the jammed packed arena to see the best of the best. Fans lined up in front of the arena hours before the event just to see their favorite fighters. The Middle Weight Grand Prix had fighters from Brazil, USA, Norway, Argentina, Paraguay and Chile showcased their skill to the delight of the fans.
Alongside the Champion Leandro Lo and big names like Erberth Santos, Braulio Estima, Alexander Trans there were also relatively new and up and coming fighters of the grappling world like Nicholas Meregali, John Combs, Max Gimenes.
On the Night of the Middle Weight Grand Prix there was more then a single winner.
The Winner of the night – Fans of Copa Podio.
Taking Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and grappling into the unchartered territory of professionalism and excellence, Copa Podio gave the fans what they have been accustomed to getting from Copa Podio, a world class event, the best athletes and the most exciting jiu-jitsu event to date. The event in Buenos Aires was by far the most packed and loudest Copa Podio event ever. Exubarant fans cheered their lungs out for the pinacle of grappling. Thank you Copa Podio!
The Champion of the night – Leandro Lo
There is no doubt, the Champion of the night was Leandro Lo. One of the most exciting and skilled fighters of all time – Leandro Lo – proved one more time why he is the champion. From the 1st round fights, until the end of the final fight, the fan favorite Lo fought with patience, skill and experience which gave him the top spot on the podium by the end of the night. A fighter with his charisma and fanfare is hard to come by. Leandro Lo is truly an amazing athlete.
Another Winner of the night – Erberth Santos
Erberth Santos has been a controversial figure in the BJJ world. He was invited to the Copa Podio when he was just a brown belt. Now a 22-year-old (Yes!! Just 22) black belt has lost to Leandro Lo in the finals after impressive submissions in the earlier rounds. Regardless of your opinion about Erberth, he not only showed that he is getting better technically but also he is becoming a better person and finding his true self. We are witnessing “the making” of a World Champion. Although Erberth lost in the finals he gained more fans, more respect and more experience. “Sometimes you have to take a step back to make a great leap forward.”
The Fight of “The Big Guys”
Alexander Trans of the GFT faced with one of the legends of the sport Braulio Estima. The fight between the gentle giant Trans and crowd favorite Braulio Estima was a nail biter until the very last second. Not moving like a heavy weight, two fighters went back and forward and in the end it was Trans who got his hand raised.
2 More Winners of the Copa Podio Middle Weight Grand Prix
The 78 kilo (172 lbs) John Combs and the brown belt Nicholas Meregali were the other 2 winners of the night. Although they couldn’t make it to the podium, both John and Nick put on super exciting and action packed fights. This “No stalling, Go for the Finish” attitude made them crowd favorites.
Overall
Copa Podio did it again. They raised the bar in the previous event yet managed to smash it in this latest episode. The professional Jiu Jitsu with more exciting fights, more exciting fighters all to the delight of the fans. We can not wait to see the next Copa Podio.
PS: The Funniest Moment of the Night
Multiple World Champion Braulio Estima and Mario Reis were coaching (for their brother & student respectively) at the event. Known for his very active and exciting coaching style -Mario Reis- was yelling out instructions for Nicholas nonstop. “Passsa, Passa… Nossa Casa, Nossa Casa, AEEEEE, AEEEEE” at one point he said somethling like “YES, YES..You got it!!” Hearing what Mario said 5 feet away from him Braulio was not sharing Mario’s view as he yelled at his younger brother with a big smile “Naaaaah, He got nothing” 😉
Gench Gordo reporting from Buenos Aires
