After igniting one of the biggest rivalries in modern grappling, Craig Jones has confirmed that the Craig Jones Invitational (CJI) will not go head-to-head with ADCC in 2026.
In 2024, the inaugural CJI took place on the exact same weekend as ADCC, creating a high-stakes fork in the road for top-level competitors.
With over $1 million in prize money on the table, CJI challenged the established no-gi hierarchy – and drew global attention for doing so.
But heading into CJI 2 and beyond, that scheduling approach is now being replaced by something more collaborative.
Speaking on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, Jones reflected on the past conflict and revealed a more reconciliatory attitude:
Time heals most wounds, you know?
I was just trying to prove a point with that first event…Obviously we had a lot of differences about how we’d do it, but really at the end of the day I feel like we won a little too much and I don’t want ADCC to disappear.
Jones acknowledged that Mo Jassim, ADCC’s head organizer, was limited by tradition and the structure ADCC has followed for decades – but emphasized he never wanted to erase the legacy event.
Instead, Jones is now focused on cooperation.
Looking ahead to 2026, when ADCC returns, he wants to give athletes the chance to compete in both shows:
That’s like the legacy event of our sport…
We can coexist together.Athletes can participate in both, I wouldn’t want to rob the athletes of the ability to be able to do both.
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