ADGS London: Amateurs kick off the tournament with action-packed duels

April 11, 2025

The time has come for the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam Jiu-Jitsu World Tour London. Taking place at the Copper Box Arena between April 11th and 13th, the competition comes as the penultimate event in the tour's itinerary, giving athletes of all ages and graduations the chance to reach the top of the podium and become ADGS champions in the last stretch of the 2024-2025 season. Starting this Friday, April 11th, the Amateur category took the stage and brought a lot of action to the AJP mats in the UK as they sought to rack up the necessary victories and experience to take the next step in their Jiu-Jitsu careers.

Starting in the blue belt 85kg division, The English Lyes Djellali impressed fight fans with his energy and technical know-how as he defeated four opponents on his way to the title. After submitting Michael Unkner and outscoring Mouad Hajji in the bracket, Lyes entered the semifinal full throttle and made short work of Joshua Capon, going all-out and submitting his opponent with less than thirty seconds on the clock. In his last match, Lyes went toe-to-toe against Switzerland's Habib Diakite, who managed to slow down the Englishman's onslaught and avoid any submissions. Despite that, Lyes still managed to take the upper hand on the scoreboard and use his game to control the flow of the match, ending the bout with a 12-2 score and bringing the gold medal to the Apex Jiu-Jitsu HQ team.

Shifting to the Master 1 category, the South African blue belt Nick Sachs highlighted the competition as he represented GFTeam with an incredible campaign in the 120kg division. Fighting in a three-man bracket, Nick first went up against Nikita Bulgakov in the semifinal, taking control of the match and scoring multiple times before landing a submission in the final moments of the duel. In the final round, Nick faced Poland's Daniel Ivisic for the title, once again completely dominating his opponent and scoring multiple times throughout the regulated time. When the clock ran out, a whopping 21-0 score gave Nick Sachs the win and the top spot on the podium.

Back on the Amateur side, the French blue belt Keci Bakari brought the victory to the NSM Team after an amazing run in the 77kg division. Opening the bracket with a hard-won battle against Tamir Barham in the quarterfinals, Keci made his way into the semis and got the better of Sebastião Silva at the last possible second to secure his spot in the final. After two challenging duels, Keci had the most daunting opponent in his last match, going up against the Kuwaiti and ADGS Rome Champion Jassim Alhatem, who reached the final after a solid campaign with one submission and two points wins. The gold round began and Keci didn't take long to gain the lead in the scoreboard, showcasing his technique as he landed point after point while giving his opponent no chance to do the same. At the end of it all, a solid 10-0 score gave Keci the win and the title in London.

Last but not least, the British Zoe Chan became an ADGS champion after a flawless campaign in the women's 55kg division. With two opponents in the bracket, Zoe went straight for the semifinal and faced Eva Bashar in a quick but intense match, briefly sizing up her opponent before going on the offensive and locking the winning submission with a little over one minute on the clock. Facing a Checkmat International teammate in the final, Zoe did it again against her compatriot Jazz Bowen, quickly planning her attack and then showing her technical mastery as she breached Jazz's defenses to submit once again and take her rightful spot atop the podium.

With its first day concluded, the ADGS London now gets ready to welcome the Youth and Master categories this Saturday, April 12th. Watch all the action live and exclusively on the TX7.com platform, and be sure to follow @ajptour on social media to keep up-to-date on all things ADGS.