UFC BJJ
Episodes 5-8 Recap | UFC BJJ: Road to the Title
The Lightweight And Welterweight Finals Are Now Set After The Final Four Episodes Of UFC BJJ: Road To The Title Set The Stage Ahead Of UFC BJJ 1
A new era began at the UFC APEX, as two teams of lightweight and welterweight grapplers went head to head in the inaugural season of UFC BJJ: Road to the Title.
Heading up the two teams were multiple-time world champion Mikey Musumeci and rising star Rerrison Gabriel, who will face off at the end of the season for the inaugural bantamweight title.
Meanwhile, the two teams of lightweights and welterweights entered into a seeded elimination tournament to crown UFC BJJ's first champions at 155 and 170 pounds.
Episode 5: One In, Two Out
The fifth quarterfinal bout saw Team Musumeci's Jason Nolf go head to head with Team Gabriel's Elijah Carlton in a bout that pitted Nolf's wrestling-based grappling against Carlton's jiu-jitsu game.
The clash of styles was evident as the match got underway, with Carlton working off his back, looking to draw Nolf into his guard. But Nolf, guided by non-stop advice from Musumeci in his corner, did well to stay out of serious trouble.
After Carlton appeared to take the opening round, Nolf had a better second frame, with the result hanging in the balance heading into the final five minutes. Encouraged to pursue scoring techniques by Musumeci, Nolf went on the offensive for much of the round, but in his enthusiasm to rack up the points to win the round, he got caught in a last-gasp triangle armbar attempt by Carlton. That technique helped the Team Gabriel welterweight earn the split decision win, leaving Musumeci frustrated at the scoring.
Carlton's victory means he'll move on to face number-one seed, and his Team Gabriel teammate, Andrew Tackett, in the semifinals.
There was drama heading towards the episode's second match, as Josh Cisneros collapsed and needed to be helped out of the sauna at the UFC PI. After receiving an intake of fluids to get his levels back to normal, UFC medics told Cisneros that he should not cut more weight, and as a result he was forced to exit the competition.
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UFC BJJ Senior Director Claudia Gadelha acted swiftly and called up Cobey Fehr, who swapped his appearance at the UFC Fight Pass Invitational for a short-notice shot at the UFC BJJ lightweight tournament.
Fehr arrived ready to make weight and dove straight into the competition as the replacement second seed against Team Musumeci's seventh-seeded Kyvann Gonzalez. But his dreams of gatecrashing the tournament semifinals ended in defeat as he was submitted by Gonzalez via first-round foot lock.
Progressing to the welterweight semifinals: Elijah Carlton (Team Gabriel)
Progressing to the lightweight semifinals: Kyvann Gonzalez (Team Musumeci)
Episode 6: Chewing Gum And Getting Taps
Episode 6 saw the final two quarterfinal matches. At welterweight, Team Gabriel's number two seed Andy Varela took on the seventh seed, Nathan Haddad of Team Musumecit, while at lightweight, Team Gabriel's Mauricio Rios faces off against Danilo Moreira of Team Musumeci.
First up, the focus fixed on Varela vs Haddad, with Varela stating that his matches are always "must-see TV," while Haddad said the matchup had "all the makings of being the match of the season."
After a tight, tactical opening round, Varela showed why he's he's one of the top seeds when he hits a duck-under and takes the action to the mat. Varela instantly secured the back and locked up a rear-naked choke to force the tap.
The performance was impressive enough on its own, but the fact he did it all while chewing gum made it even more eye-catching!
With the welterweight semifinals completed, it was time for the final lightweight semifinal to complete the bracket, as number six seed Rios took on third seed Moreira.
Rios described himself as "a pretty stubborn Mexican” who's never gonna stop fighting. But that stubborn resistance was broken
Rios escaped an early rolling foot lock attempt, but soon found himself in more leg entanglements as Moreira kept the pressure on through the whole of the opening round.
Round 2 saw Moreira go on the attack again as he forced Rios to defend off his back. But, when Rios turned the tables on the Brazilian, he looked close to finishing the fight with a heel hook.
Despite having more success in the second round, Rios was told he needed a submission in the final round to win the matchup. And while the Mexican pushed the pace for much of the final frame, he wasn't able to create a true opening for a submission as Moreira defended smartly off his back to take the match to the scorecards.
Moreira took the unanimous decision to progress to the lightweight semis and complete a semifinal lockout for Team Musumeci.
Progressing to the welterweight semifinals: Andy Varela (Team Gabriel)
Progressing to the lightweight semifinals Danilo Moreira (Team Musumeci)
Episode 7: A 'Good/Bad Problem'
The penultimate episode of UFC BJJ: Road to the Title began with heartbreak for number four seed Elijah Carlton, who sustained an arm injury during his quarterfinal victory over Jason Nolf. After inspection by the UFC medical staff, it was determined that Carlton was unable to continue in the tournament.
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Despite his clear disappointment at missing out on a shot in the final, Carlton pulled his quarterfinal opponent Jason Nolf into a side room and informed him that, as a result of his injury, Nolf was back in the tournament, and would be facing Tackett for a spot in the welterweight final.
While Nolf received an unexpected second chance, Tackett had to adjust his gameplan to face a different opponent. And when the action got underway on the mat, Tackett showed exactly why he's considered one of the best grapplers on the planet.
Nolf initially shot for a big takedown that threatened to send the pair of them off the side of the mat, but after referee Vitor "Shaolin" Ribeiro restarted the action, Tackett got to work as he pursued the takedown.
After two minutes, Nolf went for a takedown and had Tackett in a fireman's carry. It was just the opening that Tackett needed, as he smoothly moved to Nolf's back as the action hit the mat. With the back secured, it took Tackett a matter of seconds to lock up a rear-naked choke to force the tap and seal the victory.
With one finalist confirmed, all eyes were on Team Musumeci as lightweight teammates Danilo Moreira and Kyvann Gonzalez prepared to face off for a place in the 155-pound final.
It was a tricky situation for Mikey Musumeci to find himself in, as he wished both men luck and explained that he'll take a back seat to show no favoritism ahead of the all-Team Musumeci matchup.
And in a muted atmosphere at the UFC APEX, it was Moreira who held the advantage in the exchanges and came closest to finishing the match with a late D'Arce choke as he claimed the unanimous decision victory to punch his ticket to the final.
Progressing to the welterweight final: Andrew Tackett (Team Gabriel)
Progressing to the lightweight final: Danilo Moreira (Team Musumeci)
Episode 8: Trash Talk And Tapouts
The final episode of the season completed the two tournament finals as the championship fights for the UFC BJJ lightweight and welterweight titles were set.
First up, two Team Musumeci contenders went head to head as #4 seed Carlos Henrique faced off against #8 seed Isaac Doederlein.
It was another awkward situation for Mikey Musumeci, who clearly found it tough to not coach his best friend Doederlein, as he did his best to stay professional and impartial ahead of the matchup.
When the action got underway, Henrique immediately went on the offensive in an aggressive start, but had to pause when Doederlein threatened to lock up a foot lock on the Brazilian. Henrique reset himself, then attacked again as he moved into north-south position, only for Doederlein to briefly take his back.
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Henrique continued his aggressive gameplan as he immediately forced Doederlein to play defense at the start of Round 2. And, after stacking up the number eight seed, the Brazilian locked up an armbar. Doederlein refused to tap, but matters were taken out of his hands when he screamed out in pain with a dislocated arm.
Fortunately for Doederlein, the injury was just a dislocation, with no broken bones sustained, but his dream of becoming the inaugural UFC BJJ lightweight champion ended at the semifinal stage. Henrique, meanwhile, moves on to take on another Team Musumeci teammate, Danilo Moreira, in the lightweight final.
The final semifinal saw Andy Varela of Team Gabriel take on Davis Asare of Team Musumeci in a battle between the welterweight bracket's second and third seeds.
Asare surprised Varela with his strength early, with Varela commenting that the Norwegian grappler was stronger than than he was in their previous two meetings.
After some encouragement from welterweight finalist Andrew Tackett in his corner, Varela upped the intensity in Round 2 and put the pressure on Asare, all while whispering some playful trash talk into his rival's ear.
By Round 3, Varela was clearly on top, and after forcing Asara to turtle up, he locked up an anaconda choke to seal the third-round submission victory.
Progressing to the lightweight final: Carlos Henrique (Team Musumeci)
Progressing to the welterweight final: Andy Varela (Team Gabriel)
The Final Showdown
With the tournament semifinals complete. the stage is now set for UFC BJJ 1, which takes place Wednesday, June 25 at the UFC APEX in Las Vegas.
In the lightweight final, it's a battle between Team Musumeci contenders as third seed Danilo Moreira takes on fourth seed Carlos Henrique, while in the welterweight final, the bracket's top two seeds go head to head as number-one seed Andrew Tackett faces off against number-two seed Andy Varela in an all-Team Gabriel finale.
Then, the two rival coaches will go head to head for the bantamweight title, as Mikey Musumeci takes on Rerrison Gabriel.
"This is really the match to make," said UFC BJJ Senior Director Claudia Gadelha.
"When you think of the 135-pound division, Rerrison has beaten the best guys in the division, and Mikey was supposed to compete against the guys that Rerrison has been beating. So I'm excited to see these two going against each other."
By the end of the night, three inaugural UFC BJJ champions will be crowned as a new chapter begins for Brazilian jiu-jitsu on the world stage.