Weekend Recap: Portugal, Angola, and Estonia kick things off in June
June 6, 2023
With the ADGS Rio 2023 only a few days away, the first weekend of June kept our fans and athletes warmed up with three different tournaments. Now, as we patiently await June 9th to signal the beginning of a new Abu Dhabi Grand Slam Jiu-Jitsu World Tour season, check out below the highlights of each of this weekend’s tournaments!
Davi Vetoraci takes the gold in Portugal
On Saturday, May 3rd, athletes from all over the world headed to the Pavilhão Municipal da Penha, in Portugal, for the AJP Tour Faro International Jiu-Jitsu Championship 2023. Black and colored belts of all ages were welcomed to test their skills and show the results of their training in the federation’s mats.
In the Professional 69kg division, Brazilian black belt Davi Vetoraci (Focus Jiu-Jitsu) was a standout. With three matches between him and the title, Davi started by submitting Romanian Paul Bordnar (Portugal Gold Team) in the quarterfinals. He then landed another submission against local Pedro Machado (Alexandre Machado Association) in the semis to reach the final round, where he bested Antonio Miguel de Alencar (Alliance) with a 5-3 score.
Angolan Teenagers take the spotlight at the Luanda Festival
Still on Saturday, the AJP Luanda Jiu-Jitsu Festival 2023 had colored belts in a frenzy. With three fight areas set up in the Complexo da Cidadela Desportivo, young athletes and even some adult white belts took to the mats to show their prowess and give us a peek into what the next Jiu-Jitsu generation looks like.
Three Angolan warriors from the Youth category tied up their blue belts and took the event’s highlight. First, in the 60kg division, Jorogesio Muachambi (GFTeam) submitted Marco Liberato (Gracie Barra Angola) in the semis and beat Tiago Alfredo (Z1 Academy) in the final via referee’s decision. Then, Amadeu Ucuahamba (Aliança do Tatame Angola) outscored Geanny Fernandes (Z1 Academy) twice to take the 66kg gold. Finally, on the women’s side, Yura Ataide (Dchasers Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu) fought twice against Luzia Katele (Gracie Barra Angola) for the 63kg title, taking the first win by 20-0 and the second one by 10-0.
Aleksandr Cassen takes the Master gold at the Estonia National
Back in Europe, the AJP Tour Estonia National Jiu-Jitsu Championship 2023 brought its three fight areas to the Play Arena, in the city of Tallinn. On this Sunday, June 4th, all bets were off as warriors from all ages and graduations fought for the highest spot on the podium.
With his black belt and experience only a Master can have, Finnish Aleksandr Cassen (Orion’s Belt) used every tool in his arsenal to take the gold. In a one-match bracket against local Taavi Vaigla (Bjj Globetrotters), Aleksandr saw himself evenly matched by his opponent throughout the regulation time, a balance that was shown on the scoreboard when the duel ended. With a 2-0, Aleksandr took the win and the medal.