Yes, you’ve read that right…
Matheus Diniz has become the latest former ADCC world champion to decline his initial invite to ADCC 2024 – in favor of competing at the Craig Jones Invitational (CJI)!
Diniz was supposed to compete in the under 88kg division at ADCC 2024, where he was considered a top contender for his third consecutive appearance.
He previously won the division at ADCC 2019 but exited in the second round at ADCC 2022, losing to eventual champion Giancarlo Bodoni.
In a surprising CJI move, Diniz will drop further down in weight for this new competition.
He plans to compete in the under 80kg division, a significant cut considering he has competed up to 94kg in gi tournaments.
Despite the weight cut being challenging, the prospect of a million-dollar prize has motivated him to make the sacrifice:
I’m very happy to announce that I will be competing at CJI.
I’m grateful for all the other opportunities that I had but this is huge and I have to go for [it].
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Lucas “Hulk” Barbosa, another ADCC veteran, also announced his switch to the Craig Jones Invitational, dropping to the under 80kg division.
Diniz and Barbosa have faced each other six times since 2015, and their rivalry is expected to continue at CJI.
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