13TH ADWPJJC: BLACK BELT ACES FIGHT TO THE END IN COUNTRY QUALIFIERS TO SECURE THEIR SPOTS IN THE MAIN BRACKETS

Day 4 of the 13th ADWPJJC, this Wednesday, November 17, was devoted to the country qualifiers in the adult black belt and adult brown belt divisions, as well as the main brackets in the adult purple belt and blue belt divisions.

Among the black belts, a long list of well known names had to work very hard to guarantee their chances to compete for the gold medal in the next two days. Here's how each weight class of the adult black belt division for men and adult brown/black belt division for women played out.

BRAZIL QUALIFIERS

Adult Male Black Belt

56kg – Nathanael Fernandes beat three very well known competitors on his way to the main bracket. First he beat Thalison Soares for scoring last in a 4-4 tie. Then he beat Oziel Carvalho 1-0 to meet Rodnei Junior. A 2-1 lead took Nathan to the main bracket.

62kg – Four matches and four wins. Diogo Reis secured his right to compete in the main bracket by beating Valmecir Junior 16-0, Matheus Fonseca 7-0, Lucas Pinheiro 2-1 and finally Meyran Alves 1-0.

69kg – Israel Sousa kept his dream of a second gold medal in a row by qualifying for the main bracket in three matches. He beat Thiago Macedo 2-0, finished Diego Medeiros and beat Leo Saggioro 5-2 in a thrilling final.

77kg – Total control. That's how Micael Galvão made his way to the main bracket. He finished Francisco Diego, beat Leo Lara 9-0 and caught Julio Cezar Jr with a choke from the back in the final.

85kg – Isaque Bahiense is on his way to defend his title. He made it to the main bracket by finishing Elias Costa with a choke from the back. Then he beat Igor Souza 5-2. In the final, Isaque secured the spot with a referee decision win over Catriel Fernandes following a 0-0 tie.

94kg – Matheus Xavier was flawless. In four matches, he beat four opponents. He beat Anderson Munis 2-1, Ithalo Lopes by WO, finished Francisco Lima and beat Renato Cardoso by decision.

120kg – Gutemberg Pereira fought twice to secure his spot in the main bracket. He beat Tacio Carneiro 1-0, then beat Wallace Costa via WO. The final was against Ricardo Evangelista and Gutemberg found a choke from the back to win.

Adult Female Brown/Black Belt

49kg – Vanderlucia Barbosa never quit! In three matches, she secured her spot in the main bracket by finishing Tatiane Nunes and beating Flavia Bastos 5-3. The final challenge was the toughest, as Vanderlucia found an armbar/triangle to finish Diana Teixeira in the final seconds.

55kg – Bia Basilio wants her 4th gold medal in the ADWPJJC. Her run started with two wins in the qualifier. First she beat Dayane Bazzoni via WO and then faced a tough opponent in Leticia Muramaki to win via referees decision.

62kg – When six-time ADWPJJC champion Bia Mesquita wants a spot in the main bracket, it is hard to stop her. In three matches, Bia finished Vitória Vieira, beat Deborah Costa via WO and finally outscored Gabriela Pereira 1-0.

70kg – Three matches for Larissa Dias to secure her spot in the main bracket. She beat Rafaela Bertolot 5-0, Izadora Silva 1-0 and Thalyta Silva 2-0 in the final.

95kg – Gabrieli Pessanha had the toughest of challenges to make it to the main bracket. She had to beat 2-time ADWPJJC champion Tayane Porfirio in a best of three bracket. The first match was close and Gabi won via referees decision. The second match was all thrills, as Tayane went ahead 3-0 with a guard pass and Gabi scored four points to win the very last seconds.

RUSSIA QUALIFIERS

Adult Male Black Belt

69kg – In three matches, Isa Karasanov made his way to the main bracket. He beat Magomed Ansarov via referees decision, outscored Khas Bataev 3-0 and finally beat Vladimir Kuchmistyi 3-1.

COLOMBIA QUALIFIERS

Adult Male Black Belt

69kg – In two matches, Mauricio Ospina finished Jose Antonio Rios twice to secure his spot.