Felipe Pena may be one of the few athletes in Jiu-Jitsu history who has conquered both worlds – the traditional era of IBJJF dominance and the modern age of super-fight driven pro grappling.
But now, he’s now saying that the IBJJF World Championship no longer defines who the best athletes are.
During an appearance on the FloGrappling Show, the three-time ADCC titleholder explained that the landscape of elite competition has fundamentally changed:
I think the main goal is not to be a world champion anymore.
In my opinion, the main goal is to be our champion to be able to get in on the super fights.
I think that’s the main goal.
According to Pena, winning Worlds simply doesn’t carry the same weight in proving who the best athletes are, largely because many of them aren’t even entering the tournament anymore:
I think this is how you prove today you are the best – it’s not anymore that you go for a world championship.
You win a world championship, it doesn’t prove anymore you are the best because mostly the best guys, they are not there anymore.
Instead, he argues that the true proving ground now lies in invitation-only events featuring large prize purses and recurring super fights:
How you prove you are the best now is get in a big event, get the belt, defend the belt against the best ones, and be the best athlete.
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