The largest Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Tournament in the United States is once again coming to California. For the official details visit http://www.cbjj.com.br/english/pan2006ingles.htm The Pan Americans are this weekend! The largest Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Tournament in the United States is once again coming to California State University Dominguez Hills, Carson – California. Competitors are not only coming from all over the United States for this prestigious event, but from many other countries including Brazil, Canada, England, Japan, Korea, Australia and more to truly make this an international affair. While you happen to be in the Los Angeles area, be sure to check out the new OTM Fight Shop: 1010 Aviation Blvd Hermosa Beach CA 310-376-3586 This week make any purchase over $25 and get a free Video! All Pan Am medalists get a free video just for stopping by the shop! We also have 5% off for all Pan Am fighters! All sales are while supplies last. The shop is just a quick drive from the Pan Ams. We will be featuring the new 101 Submission Chapter 3 all weekend long! There will of course be an enormous amount of competitors this weekend, and there will be divisions ranging from novice white belt all the way to senior black belts competing. While attempting to provide as comprehensive and entertaining of a preview as we possibly can, it was impossible to focus on any but a few select groups of competitors: the Women’s Brown/Black divisions, the Men’s Adult Brown and the Men’s Adult Black divisions. The competitor lists were gathered from the official list available on the CBJJ.com website at http://www.cbjj.com.br/english/checagempan2006.htm Some competitors that are rumored to be attending (by our good friend Kid Peligro) but are not on the official list are earmarked with an * asterick. Ladies Brackets Brown/Black This year, the CBJJ gave the women a separate purple belt bracket, which is an important step in legitimizing women’s combat athletics, however this may have resulted in a steep drop off in registrations. That’s a shame, because the women featured in this division have always provided tremendous action and talent. As of right now there are only two possible matchs up in the weight classes, hopefully either more names will be entered or we’ll see good action in the absolute division. Pluma 2005 Champion Tessa Queen Kanako Inaba Sharon Bonewicz Pena 2005 Champion Kyra Gracie Megumi Fujii *Kyra Gracie Leve 2005 Champion Cindy Hales Mariana Coelho Medio 2005 Champion Kelly Paul Kelly Paul Meio Pesado 2005 Champion Luciana Dias Maria do Carmo Teixeira Brown Belt Men’s Adults Brown belts of today are the black belts of the future, and perhaps with competitors who have more to prove the matches here can be the most exciting of the tournament. It’s also the division where the host country fighters might have the best chance to shine as looking over the 2005 champions list Americans took gold in most of the divisions. Pluma (Super Feather) 141.0 lbs 2005 Champion Felipe Lattari Bruno Maniaudet Bastos Felipe Lattari Hee Sung Lee Destin Simmons Luis Tosta Makoto Sawada Brandon Mullins As the defending champion, Felipe Lattari can be called the favorite of this division, but the honest truth is I don’t have a good scouting report on anyone in this field (yet). Pena (Feather) 154 lbs 2005 Champion Jeff Glover Tommy Malmberg Eric Burdo Daniel TCruz Donald Park Fabricio Medici Lopes Roy Neeman Aramaki Makoto Yuki Ishikawa Salvatore Saguinetti I should probably just call him to confirm if he is fighting or not, but if Jeff Glover is in he is definitely the favorite here. If he is not, then it’s more wide open, but this division has been dominated by the North Americans for the last three or four years now. Ironically, all of those past winners are STILL brown belts. Leve (Light) 167.5 lbs 2005 Champion: Jonatas Gurgel Tulio Perrone Alfredo Barum Mike Pellegrino Jeremy Geaga Aaron Moeller David Hart Randy Malacas Bill Cooper Naoyoshi Watanabe Toru Nakayama I’ve never seen a boring match involving Bill Cooper, thus this division could be one of the most entertaining to watch. There is an eclectic group here, including Shooto Fighter Toru Nakayama and top brazilian judoka Tulio Perroneas well, there will be plenty of excitement to go around Medio (Middle) 181.0 lbs 2005 Champion: Nick Diaz Joao Claudio Antunes Mohammad Aldabbas Paul Schreiner Murray Ballenden Jared Vanderzyl Victor Estima Otavio Souza Daniel Brandao Romulo dos Santos de Melo Raphael Chaves Luciano Yamasaki Keisuke Takizawa Steven Kim Jason Brudvik Bryan Atterson *Alan Marques Naturally, I will be following this division with extreme interest as I’m participating in it (well hopefully I’m participating as I’m NOT on the current list, but I e-mailed the CBJJ looking to clear it up). Steve Kim took third place in this division last year, Paul Schriener took second in the purple belt division at this weight last year, but I think the most dangerous competitor in this division is probably Jason Brudvik, who posseses one of the most dangerous guards in the game. Meio Pesado (Medium Heavy) 194.5 lbs 2005 Champion: Romulo Barral Ryan Ellison Tarsis Humphreys Steven Medina Luciano Moraes Bruno Monteiro Simoes Leandro Rameh Raul Castillo Hironori Tohyama Tarsis Humphrey’s, who has fought in a number of brown belt divisions around the world, is the favorite in this division and maybe the most dangerous person in the absolute division. His American teammate Ryan Ellison has devestating pressure on the top and could share the championship. Pesado (Heavy) 207.5 lbs 2005 Champion: Nick Kline Chris Moriarty Jay Mansfield Kouitirou Oka Roberto Camargo Jason Collard Luke Stewart This is one of the divisions I’m looking forward to most. Roberto Camargo took third in the worlds and is a slight favorite here. The pride of Alliance Atlanta, Chris Moriarty is looking to make a statement as a brown belt here, but the twin attack from Ralph Gracie in Jasn Collard and Luke Stewart might be very difficult to overcome. Super Pesado (Super Heavy) 221 lbs 2005 Champion: Eliot Marshall Eliot Marshall Eduardo Guerra Rodrigo Queiroz Here is a rare instance of a lower division title holder coming back to defend his title. Eliot Marshall has taken gold in each division (blue, purple, and brown) he has fought in the Pan Ams and is definitely the favorite to repeat here. Pesadissimo (Super Super Heavy) Over 221 lbs 2005 Champion: Roy Nelson Dimitri Mavraganis Brandon Vera Ulpiano Malachias Fabiano Monteiro Jose Silva Junior The name the will garner the most attention in this division would be UFC Heavyweight contender Brandon Vera. Black Belts This year promises to be among the toughest black belt fields ever, and there are serious contenders from all over the world filling out the ranks. The absolute division promises to be interesting as well; a new champion will be crowned as 2005 champ Marcio “Pe de Pano” Cruz prepares for the UFC next week, and 2004 champion Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza is not registered. However Roger Gracie is as promising a candidate for the title as anyone ever has been, but not if Xande Riberio has anything to say about it. Pluma (Super Feather) 141.0 lbs 2005 Champion Bibiano Fernandes Joe Scovel Dai Yoshioka *Bibiano Fernandes Hard to see Bibiano losing in this division, he has been the most dominant competitor in this weight class for the last few years with multiple Pan American and World Titles under his belt. Bibianio’s matches don’t tend to go very long either. Pena (Feather) 154 lbs 2005 Champion Mario Reis Andre Monteiro Wilson Reis Wellington Dias Naoya Uematsu Jonatas Gurgel Kazumasa Sekiguchi David Jacobs Andre Monteiro Wilson Reis The title holder, Mario Reis has moved up a weight class this year, and with none of the placers from 2005 entering this years Pena class is wide open for a new champion to emerge. Wellington “Megaton” Dias has the experience edge in this competition, having competed at a high level for a very long time. Naoya Uematsu will be an interesting competitor to watch, as he is more well known for his Shooto career than his BJJ one, and has 10 wins via submission (although his five career losses have come in his eight matches. The lone American in the division is Dave Jacobs, who took third in brown belt at this weight class last year. Leve (Light) 167.5 lbs 2005 Champion Marcio Feitosa Daisuke Sugie Edson Diniz Jorge Vidal Thiago Gomes Marcus Kiko Cacella Rafael Monteiro Barbosa Carlos Eduardo Vieira Jared Weiner Mario Reis Pedro Vianna Jose Marcos Fraga Jon Stutzman Theodoro Almeida Feitosa isn’t fighting this year, so we’ll have a new champion this year. The odds on favorites would have to be last years second place finisher Edson Diniz, 2005 Mundial 3rd place finisher Rafael Barbosa, or last year’s Pena champion Mario Reis. Daisuke “Amazon” Sugie is considered to be the top jiujitsu stylist from Japan right now, he placed third last year but is riding a wave of momentum including a win over Mike Fowler in Japan. Also competing are Americans Jared Weiner and Jon Stutzman. Medio (Middle) 181.0 lbs 2005 Champion Andre Galvao Eduardo Barros Shawn Williams Michael Fowler Carlos Alejandro Rodrigo Teixeira Andre Galvao As the defending Pan Americans and Mundial Champion, Andre Galvao is a heavy favorite in this division. If he is allowed to be on the offensive for the match, there isn’t anyone’s defense that can really withstand his onslought. Carlos “Sapao” Alejandro has been out of the tournament scene for awhile with injuries, but has a very impressive competition game. Mike Fowler is a fresh black belt, but has been extremely active as of late and if he’s able to be on for the duration of the tournament, he will be difficult for anyone to deal with. American Shawn Williams has also been recuperating from injuries lately, but never misses his chance to compete in the big show. Meio Pesado (Medium Heavy) 194.5 lbs 2005 Champion Givanildo Santana *Damien Maia *Braulio Estima Officially, there are no competitors listed in this division, but if the rumors are correct, this could house one of the best match ups of the entire Pan Am in Damien Maia against Braulio Estima. At the Worlds last year Braulio took second and Damien took third place. Pesado (Heavy) 207.5 lbs 2005 Champion Rodrigo Pinheiro Thiago Gaia Rick Macauley Rafael Lovato Jr Eduardo Telles Leopoldo Canal Some of the slickest guards will be featured in this division. Who will be able to solve the riddle of Eduardo Telles’ guard? This will likely determine the champion in this division. Rafael Lovato Jr. comes in as perhaps the best American BJJ competitor right now, and a lot has changed since his first match up with Telles over a year ago. Lovato of course has an extremely technical open guard. American Rick Macauley’s guard (particularly his half guard) is a lot for a lot of competitors to deal with as well. Super Pesado (Super Heavy) 221 lbs 2005 Champion Alexandre Ribeiro Vinicius de Magalhaes Alexandre Ribeiro *Roger Gracie Three competitors, but believe me when I say all eyes will be on this division. Vinicius and Xande are teammates, they won’t fight each other, but despite the double team, Roger is the favorite here and has several victories (both gi and gi less) over Xande in 2005. Saulo Riberio (Xande’s brother) maybe the best tactician in the history of the sport has stated he believes he has found a weakness in Roger’s game. Will Xande be able to avenge himself? We’ll see…. Pesadissimo (Super Super Heavy) Over 221 lbs 2005 Champion Marcio Cruz Roberto Agnese Jr Carlos Rogerio Luna Guilherme Gazzinelli Vanderson Gomes James Foster Arthur Cesar With Marcio “Pe De Pano” fighting in the UFC next week against Jeff Monson, a new title holder will be crowned this year. Arthur Cesar moves up a weight class after placing third in the Super Heavy last year, however he and Guilherme Gazzinelli each took third place in the Mundials last year. Pan-Ams Schedule: FRIDAY 17:30 White Belt Adult Male – Rooster to Light 18:00 White Belt Adult Male – Middle 18:45 White Belt Adult Male – Medium heavy to Super Super Heavy 19:30 White Belt Adult Female – Super Feather to Medium Heavy 19:45 White Belt Master Male – Rooster to Medium Heavy 20:30 White Belt Master Male – Heavy to Super Super Heavy SATURDAY 09:00 Rules Meeting 09:30 Blue Belt Adult Male – Rooster to Feather 10:00 Blue Belt Adult Male – Light 11:45 Blue Belt Adult Male – Middle and Medium Heavy 13:00 Blue Belt Adult Male – Heavy to Super Super Heavy 13:45 Blue Belt Master Male – Rooster to Middle 14:45 Blue Belt Master Male – Medium Heavy to Super Super Heavy 15:30 Blue Belt Senior 1 Male – Rooster to Super Super Heavy 16:15 Blue Belt Senior 2 and 3 Male – Rooster to Super Super Heavy 17:00 Purple Belt Master Male – Rooster to Super Super Heavy 18:00 Purple Belt Senior 1, 2 and 3 Male – Rooster to Super Super Heavy 18:30 Blue Belt Master Male – Open Class 19:00 Blue Belt Senior 1, 2 and 3 – Open Class 19:45 Brown Belt Master Male – Rooster to Super Super Heavy 20:30 Purple Belt Master Male – Open Class Purple Belt Senior 1, 2 and 3 Male – Open Class Brown Belt Master Male – Open Class Brown Belt Senior 1, 2 and 3 Male – Open Class SUNDAY 09:00 Rules meeting 09:30 Brazil x USA 11:30 Blue Belt Juvenile – Rooster to Super Super Heavy 11:45 Purple Belt Adult Male – Rooster to Light 13:00 Purple Belt Adult Male – Middle to Super Super Heavy 14:30 Black Belt Adult Male – Rooster to Feather 15:15 Black Belt Adult Male – Light to Super Super Heavy 16:30 Brown Belt Adult Male – Rooster to Super Super Heavy 17:00 Sign in to Black Belt Adult Male Open Class 17:45 Black Belt Master Male – Rooster to Super Super Heavy Black Belt Senior 1, 2 and 3 – Rooster to Super Super Heavy 18:45 Blue Belt Adult Female – Super Feather to Medium Heavy Black Belt Adult Male – Open Class 19:15 Purple Belt Adult Female – Super Feather to Medium Heavy Brown/Black Belt Adult Female – Super Feather to Medium Heavy 19:45 Black Belt Master Male – Open Class Black Belt Senior 1, 2 and 3 – Open Class Purple Belt Adult Male – Open Class Brown Belt Adult Male – Open Class See you at the Pan Ams, and once again if you’re in the LA area be sure to visit the OTM Fight Store at 1010 Aviation Blvd Hermosa Beach CA 310-376-3586 to say if you miss us on the mat! Full reports will be available daily right here at OntheMat.com!