Roy Billington
Polaris announces UK vs. Europe team event
Polaris were scheduled to put on a blockbuster Grand Prix on April 4th, but the Coronavirus pandemic limited international travel to the UK and the event was cancelled. Since then they have returned with a UK based tournament, but the promotion has announced today that international athletes will be returning for an interesting new team […]
Tom Breese and Ross Nicholls sign on for Polaris UK tournament
Back in February, Polaris 13 was announced as an ‘Absolute Grand Prix’ openweight tournament. Unfortunately, however, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has necessitated a change of course for the pro-grappling promotion. However, the even it still set to go ahead, just with a slightly more limited scope. While social distancing still remains in the UK, Polaris […]
Polaris set to return with a tournament in the United Kingdom
Polaris’ blockbuster GP was called off due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but Europe’s leading grappling promotion has announced they will be returning with a show next month. While the world GP remains postponed, the promotion has decided to return with a behind-closed-doors tournament featuring some of Europe’s best grapplers. Participants are rumored to include UFC […]
BJJ star Tom DeBlass returns to MMA, signs with ONE Championship
One of the BJJ world’s most popular athletes is returning to MMA competition. Tom DeBlass last appeared in the cage in 2013, when he put together a two-fight win streak at Bellator before retiring to focus on BJJ. Years later, and the 38-year-old has now signed with ONE Championship. DeBlass debuted in the UFC on […]
ADCC 2021 set for Las Vegas
There is no bigger event in submission grappling than ADCC. The bi-annual tournament which attracts a who’s who of grapplers and MMA fighters is set to touchdown in the fight capital of the world in the Fall of 2021, according to their lead organizer Mo Jassim. ADCC traditionally changes country for each iteration, but 2021 […]
Grappling Report: Chael Sonnen wants Craig Jones to face Rafael Lovato Jr. at SUG 14
Forget about ‘Fight Island,’ this week has been all about Chael Sonnen’s secret gym and the Submission Underground. While to many Vinny Magalhaes is known for his TUF run and his stint in the PFL, to grappling fans he is known firstly as an ADCC champ and for his maxim that leglocks aren’t effective in […]
BJJ and the Coronavirus: Deciding to close your gym
Nobody could have anticipated the random appearance and rise of COVID-19. Over the last decade, BJJ has risen from a sport on the periphery to a popular and thriving ecosystem. There are very few major towns across the globe without a gym and in recent years, the gyms have moved from some garage operations to […]
Polaris 13 to go ahead behind closed doors amid coronavirus pandemic
The global spread of the coronavirus (Covid-19) has caused disruptions world wide and the martial arts community has been hit hard. Across the globe, leading promotions such as the UFC and KSW have been forced to postpone or cancel shows . BloodyElbow.com can exclusively announce that one major player in martial arts is proceeding with […]
Report: BJJ promotion that featured Rumble vs. Blaydes sumo bout unable to pay athletes
Promoting takes skill. When Substars, a relatively new promotion, announced a blockbuster card featuring ADCC champions and UFC fighters some people in the BJJ community were skeptical. Submission grappling is a notoriously difficult sport for promoters to turn a profit and all the major players either stream through UFC Fight Pass or Flograppling. Substars decided […]
Geo Martinez vs. Ash Williams set for Pantheon featherweight title
The UK is fast becoming a hotbed for professional grappling. Promotions like Polaris and Grapplefest have been putting on shows for years and now there seems to be a new player on the scene. Pantheon have put on two shows to date, but it looks like their third iteration is going to be something special. […]
Nick Rodriguez signs on for Polaris Absolute Grand Prix
After an impressive performance against former UFC champion Luke Rockhold in the main event of Polaris 12, Nick Rodriguez has made a quick turnaround and signed on for the upcoming Polaris Absolute Grand Prix (h/t mmafighting.com). Rodriguez has won 3 straight in the promotion, previously defeating UK stars Ben Dyson and Ash Amos. Before he […]
ADCC vet Mike Perez joins Polaris for openweight grand prix
Another name has signed on the dotted line for the highly-anticipated Polaris GP. While all eyes are on Kaynan Duarte, another challenger has joined the field alongside Patrick Gaudio, Adam Wardzinski and Freddie Vosgrone. Michael Perez, a black belt under Andre Galvao has become the latest participant to be announced for the tournament and he […]
ADCC champion Kaynan Duarte flagged by USADA, stripped of IBJJF title
BJJ is one of the least regulated combat sports. Only one major organisation regularly tests and the IBJJF announce their tests ahead of time. Much to the surprise of the BJJ community, it has been announced that one of the sports biggest stars, Kaynan Duarte has been flagged for a drug test violation. According to […]
ADCC champ Kaynan Duarte signs on for Polaris GP
Everybody loves a grand prix and Polaris have announced a monumental one for April 4. While Polaris is primarily known for their super fights, the promotion has elected to host its first grand prix and the brackets are starting to fill out. Reigning European champion Patrick Gaudio recently signed on and the fan-friendly Freddie Vosgrone […]
Polaris switches to tournament format, announces 8-man openweight grand prix
Submission grappling just got a whole lot more interesting. When the Eddie Bravo Invitational popped up onto the scene with professional tournaments, it garnered a lot of popularity and helped to create stars like Eddie Cummings, Garry Tonon and Gordon Ryan. In recent years, Eddie Bravo has switched his focus to combat jiu jitsu, and […]
BJJ legend Relson Gracie arrested on drug charges in Brazil
One of the biggest names in Brazilian jiu jitsu history could be facing up to 15 years in prison. Relson Gracie, older brother of UFC Hall of Famer Royce, has been arrested in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on suspicion of drug trafficking (HT: grapplinginsider). Relson has numerous affiliate gyms in the US and has acted […]
Gordon Ryan announces he will retire from BJJ in 2020
It looks like the self-proclaimed king of grappling is about to hang up his crown. After an amazing 2019, which saw him win double gold at ADCC and win super fights at SUG and Quintet, Gordon Ryan has taken to Instagram to announce that he is stepping away from grappling to enjoy his life: View […]
Quintet Ultra Results and Highlights: UFC edges past Strikeforce
Quintet made its US return last night with an event pitting ZUFFA-owned MMA brands against each other. The opening round saw Strikeforce face-off against the WEC and PRIDE go toe-to-toe with the UFC. The card also featured super fights starring grappling phenoms Craig Jones and Gordon Ryan. Check out the full results below (h/t grapplinginsider.com): […]
Opinion: Nick Rodriguez could become BJJ’s biggest star if he beats Luke Rockhold
The business of professional grappling is booming. For the first time ever, being a pro grappler is actually financially feasible. In the past we saw great athletes supplement their jiu jitsu lifestyle by running gyms on the side, but over the last five years, we have began to witness the first generation of grapplers whose […]
BJJ vs Wrestling: Gordon Ryan to face U23 world champ Bo Nickal under modified rules
ADCC season is over, but it looks like Gordon Ryan is going to need to get back into wrestling mode. After a number of pull-outs, it seems Third Coast Grappling have settled upon a main event match for their December 7th show and it’s something special. Reigning world U23 and 3x NCAA champion, Bo Nickal […]
Luke Rockhold vs. Nick Rodriguez targeted to headline Polaris 12
It looks like Luke Rockhold is set to put his grappling to the test in Europe’s biggest BJJ promotion. Over the past few weeks, there have been rumors circulating that Rockhold has been eager to transition to the grappling world. He was very nearly was a late entrant in ADCC, but he wasn’t medically cleared. […]
Quintet set to return with PRIDE vs UFC event
Quintet is back and this time the promotion is picking MMA teams rather than its traditional focus on BJJ affiliations. While 2019 saw Kinecktic take up the mantle for team grappling on Fight Pass, many fans have called for the Sakuraba-led Quintet to return. According to a recent announcement, Quintet will be back and bigger […]
UFC veteran Marcin Held vs. PJ Barch set for Polaris 12
Marcin Held is set to meet a 10th Planet black belt again, but this time it’s scheduled to take place at Polaris. At Quintet 3, Polish leg lock phenom Marcin Held scored an upset by submitting Geo Martinez in just over a minute. While Held has always been known for his MMA grappling, tapping out […]
Gilbert Burns vs. Tommy Langaker set for Polaris 12
It looks like Gilbert Burns has finally got the fight he’s been clamoring for but it’s not in the Octagon. Bloodyelbow.com can exclusively announce that the former world gi and nogi champ, Gilbert Durinho Burns has signed on to face one of the most popular names in grappling at Polaris 12. While Burns is fresh […]
ADCC 2019 Results: Gordon Ryan wins double gold
Our friends over at grapplinginsider.com covered all the highs and lows of the final day of ADCC. If you’d rather a full play-by-play you can check it out here, but if you’re just after the results, we’ve got you covered. The story of the day was the dominance of Gordon Ryan, but a notable mention […]
ADCC 2019 day 1 results and play-by-play: Buchecha, Gordon Ryan, Craig Jones get wins
ADCC is the biggest show in the world of grappling and today we had the opening rounds. There were highs and lows as well as some big upsets, exciting finishes and questionable decisions. Our friends over at grapplinginsider.com have provided us with a copy of their play-by-play so you can check out all the action […]
Grappling Report: Dillon Danis and Keenan Cornelius withdraw from ADCC
ADCC week is finally here and as always there are some big name pull-outs. The week’s woes started when a rumor began to circulate about a mysterious eye infection making its way around the Renzo Gracie Academy in New York. Keenan Cornelius had flown to NYC to finish his ADCC camp, but unfortunately he ended […]
Grappling report: ADCC tried to book Anderson Silva vs. Georges St-Pierre
One of the biggest failures the UFC has made in the modern era is not booking Georges St-Pierre vs. Anderson Silva. When St-Pierre and Silva were in their prime, they were the best fighters on the planet and in the era of the super fight it’s sad that we never got to see the biggest […]
Grappling Report: USADA to test at the IBJJF No-Gi World Championships
The IBJJF has just signed a deal with USADA and the BJJ world is suddenly on edge. Submission grappling has long been a open play ground for doping, but the IBJJF have decided to start cracking down. Traditionally, the IBJJF only test black belts at the gi world championships, but this year they have enlisted […]
Polaris 11: A casual fan preview
This weekend, the eleventh installation of the highly-popular Polaris Professional Jiu-Jitsu Invitational goes down in Manchester, England. It features a who’s who from the world of submission grappling, boasting a wealth of world champions and even an Olympic gold medalist. The event is streaming live on UFC Fight Pass on Saturday, August 31. Submission grappling’s […]