Australian standout Izaak Michell was among the notable names missing from CJI 2, despite his status as one of the top grapplers in his division.
With only eight teams of five athletes each invited, several elite competitors were inevitably left out – but Michell’s absence raised eyebrows since he is part of both New Wave Jiu-Jitsu and Kingsway Jiu-Jitsu.
His omission was especially surprising given New Wave’s roster shuffle prior to the event.
When filling their under-88kg slot – Michell’s usual weight class – the team opted to bring in Vagner Rocha as a wildcard instead.
Rocha, who has a deeper competitive resume including a run to the ADCC 2024 finals and a win over Michell at ADCC 2022, ultimately represented New Wave at CJI 2.
It wasn’t the only instance of the team going outside its core ranks, either.
At under-77kg, New Wave also tapped Mica Galvao despite already having several top athletes capable of making that weight.
Meanwhile, Michell wasn’t selected for Team Misfits Australasia and wasn’t picked up as a wildcard by any of the other six squads either.
Michell has since clarified that he was never considered for the Australasia lineup, as Lucas Kanard was locked into the under-88kg spot from the outset.
However, he revealed that both John Danaher and Gordon Ryan invited him to represent New Wave – and that someone prevented it from happening:
For all those asking why I didn’t compete on CJI. Danaher and Gordon invited me to compete on Team New Wave.
(I wasn’t invited to be on Team Australia) but I was blocked from competing in these CJI events.
Despite the setback, Michell continues to train under Danaher at Kingsway Jiu-Jitsu and is expected to return to high-level competition soon, representing his current team.
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