November 18, 2024
Taking place this Sunday, November 17th, the seventh edition of the Abu Dhabi Extreme Championship brought some of the most talented names from both Jiu-Jitsu and MMA to show their skills inside the cage at the Riocentro arena, in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro. With 17 matches in the card between Jiu-Jitsu and Grappling bouts, the event once again delivered a show of lights and sounds while aces from the sport showed their best performances to attending fans and those following the action through the modern TX7.com platform.
Headlining the tournament, the Grappling Main Event had the crowd going wild as Rodolfo Vieira emerged victorious from his match. Up against Derek Brunson in his homeland, Rodolfo started the duel trying but not quite landing a takedown, while his American opponent managed to trap the Brazilian against the cage and waited out the clock on top. In the second round, however, Rodolfo had the eyes of a hunter as he first pressed Derek against the cage wall and then landed a single-leg takedown, entering Derek’s half-guard before mounting and ending the duel with a merciless katagatame as the crowd loudly chanted his name.
“Thanks ADXC, I hope to be back soon”, said a cheerful Rodolfo after his victory. “I had an injury at the beginning of the year and had to go through surgery, the only training I could do was Jiu-Jitsu, and then came the wonderful opportunity to be a part of this tournament in my hometown. I want to congratulate this organization and thank them for treating all athletes so well. Really happy to see this coming together.”
Meanwhile, the Jiu-Jitsu Main Event saw the experienced Paulo Miyao show just why he’s one of the most well-known competitors in the sport. Facing Junior Righetti in the cage, Paulo played to his strengths and started each of the five rounds by pulling guard and almost completely controlling the flow of the match. While Righetti had some good moments like some foot attack attempts and a particularly ingenious use of the cage wall to avoid a back take in the third round, Paulo’s game proved to be as overwhelming as ever, with the seasoned athlete repeatedly taking the back throughout the duel. At the end of it all, the referees unanimously gave Paulo Miyao his first ADXC win.
“My plan was to stay on top and impress the judges as I moved around”, revealed Paulo in the post-fight press conference. “I’m not an explosive fighter, so the shorter rounds were a challenge for me. Every time I took the back, the time ran out, but I enjoyed it because it made me challenge myself. I would definitely like to compete again in the ADXC and maybe face Zayed Alkatheeri.”
In the Grappling Co-Main Event, Gesias “JZ” Cavalcante found himself back in Rio de Janeiro after 21 years, entering the ADXC cage to a live rap performance to make history as one of the most unique openers to any fight in the organization. Facing Piter Frank, Gesias managed to stand out with powerful takedowns and dangerous attacks on the legs and feet. For his part, Piter had plenty of good movements of his own, unleashing flying attacks and other submission attempts with his usual swagger, but Gesias was simply more dominant and managed to convince the referees, who voted unanimously for him at the end of the five rounds.
“I kept the fight going forward and I think that’s what won the referees over”, JZ explained. “Although I didn’t submit, I kept landing takedowns and had more good moments throughout the match. More importantly, the fight went well and was thrilling. Piter and I said we were going to make this a memorable fight for the fans and that’s exactly what happened. Fighting in Rio de Janeiro once again has been indescribable.”
As for the Jiu-Jitsu Co-Main Event, the talented Meyram Maquiné showed once again why he stands among the best in his weight division and quickly ended his duel against the American Sebastian Serpa. Going full throttle from the beginning, Meyram showcased his agility as he landed a takedown and started working from the top, dominating the leg and staying mobile while looking for his chance to end the match. That chance, as it turns out, showed itself pretty early, as Sebastian left his arm undefended and Meyram leaped over the torso to grab ahold and lock a lightning-fast armbar.
“I would be lying if I said that was planned”, Meyram confessed. “I knew I was going to submit him, but my goal was to take his back. Still, I was glad to fight in this event and even more glad to put on a show for the younger fans. A few years ago I was one of those fans, but now I’m like a role model to them, so I try to always do things right, both inside and outside of the mats.”
While the Main and Co-Main Events had fight fans on the edge of their seats, the ADXC 7 had many more thrills as the remaining 13 duels brought the action to Riocentro. Check out below how the Main Card, Prelims, and Showcase matches went down.
MAIN CARD
Aurelie Le Vern vs Ana Carolina Vieira (Grappling bout)
Hailing from France, the dark horse Aurelie Le Vern got the better of Ana Carolina Vieira and scored her first ADXC win. With a lot of pressure from both sides, Aurelie found herself pressed against the cage wall and used her opponent’s movement to attack with a guillotine, briefly breaking Ana’s pressure before the latter jumped to the guard and tried a guillotine of her own. Ana started the second round pushing her opponent to the fence while lining a takedown and then a guillotine, but Aurelie avoided both, landed a takedown, and started putting pressure while also using the cage once to avoid a sweep. The third round saw Aurelie start on the offensive with a lot of forward pressure before landing a takedown and putting a lot of pressure before trying a foot attack. Ana answered with another submission attempt, but Aurelie got up and once again got her opponent pressed against the wall, using a guillotine to bring Ana down again and almost pass the guard in the final seconds of the battle. At the end of it all, Aurelie Le Vern got the win via unanimous decision.
Lucas Valente vs Espen Mathiesen (Jiu-Jitsu bout)
Beating two-time ADXC winner Espen Mathiesen, Lucas Valente debuted in the organization with a sound victory. With both sides being guard players, the first round saw Espen going up and Lucas imposing his game with a tight collar grip as he shifted with his open guard and tried to submit with an armbar. With a double pull at the beginning of the second round, Lucas and Espen traded foot attacks before the latter went up and started competing for grips until the end of the three minutes. The final round was kicked off with another double pull, but this time Lucas went up and showed his pressure as he attempted to pass and then shifted to a leg attack, with Espen trying a back take in the last seconds but bringing no danger to the Brazilian. With the result of the duel up to the decision, the referees judged that Lucas was more aggressive and gave him the victory.
Leonardo Nascimento vs Antonio Assef (Grappling bout)
Entering the organization’s cage for the very first time, Leonardo Chocolate got the better of Antonio Assef and made a successful debut in the ADXC 7. With an impossibly fast pull and sweep with a leg attack by Assef in the starting seconds of the first round, Chocolate managed to defend himself with a half-guard, got up, and showcased his strength as he used a double-leg to lift Assef and bring him heavily to the ground. Armed with his Luta Livre background, Leonardo kept the action high in the second round by driving Assef multiple times to the cage wall and putting a lot of pressure to almost land another takedown as the clock ran out. In the final round, Assef showed a more strategic side as he tried to pull guard and work from the bottom, but Chocolate avoided giving his opponent what he wanted and almost got another takedown before the match ended, securing his win via unanimous decision.
Marcus Oliveira vs Antonio Braga Neto (Jiu-Jitsu bout)
Facing the seasoned Antonio Braga Neto, Marcus Castigo conquered his very first victory in the ADXC. With both sides evenly matched throughout the match, Castigo pulled guard and attempted a few submissions in the first round, while most of the second round was spent while standing as the athletes competed for grips. In the third and last round, Castigo mustered his strength and pushed Braga Neto all the way to the cage wall before pulling guard again. At the end of it all, Marcus Oliveira came out on top via unanimous decision.
Henrique Ceconi vs Javier Zaruski (Grappling bout)
After taking the win on ADXC 3, Henrique Ceconi returned to the cage and got another win in the organization. His opponent this time was the Uruguayan Javier Zaruski, who managed to use a body lock and score a big takedown against his Brazilian foe at the end of the first round and showed great cage awareness as he used the walls to defend himself. Ceconi had a good double leg takedown attempt in the second round, but the last round was what tipped the scales toward him, mercilessly attacking Zaruski’s leg with heel hook and kneebar attempts until the clock ran out. Deemed more aggressive by the referees, Henrique Ceconi got the win unanimously.
PRELIMS
Jessica Caroline vs Eliana Carauni (Jiu-Jitsu bout)
Jessica Caroline used her stellar guard game to earn a win over Eliana Carauni in the ADXC 7. Attacking dangerously with a collar choke and a toe hold in the first round, bringing more pressure in a footlock contest in the second round, and dishing out submission attempts on the ankle and knee in the third round, Jessica stayed on the offensive throughout her match and easily convinced the referees, taking the win via unanimous decision.
Ruan Alvarenga vs Mukhammad Shakhbanov (Grappling bout)
Returning as aggressively as ever to the ADXC cage, Ruan Alvarenga conquered another victory in the organization. Going toe-to-toe with Mukhammad Shakhbanov in the tournament, Ruan used the first round to measure up his opponent as they tried to find enough room to take each other down. In the following round, Ruan quickly used an arm drag to jump on Mukhammad’s back and take him down near the cage wall, but the latter managed to get the Brazilian off his back and used his technical prowess to avoid any dangerous attacks. In the last round, Ruan used a takedown attempt by Mukhammad to trap his opponent’s arm and neck in a dangerous seated katagatame, not getting the submission but convincing the referees, who voted unanimously for his victory.
Kalim Mastouri vs Ronys Torres (Jiu-Jitsu bout)
Facing the Jiu-Jitsu veteran Ronys Torres in the gi, the French athlete Kalim Mastouri got his second ADXC win via submission in the very first round. Starting the match by pulling guard, Kalim quickly attacked with a triangle but got stopped by Ronys’ defense. A few seconds later, Kalim found another opportunity to lock his triangle, trapping Ronys and ending the bout with an armbar.
Helena Crevar vs Sabrina de Sousa (Grappling bout)
Helena Crevar confirms her status as a rising star in the international grappling scene. Facing Sabrina de Sousa, Helena made it clear that she had no intentions of allowing the match to run its course, starting the first round by sitting down and spinning with attacks on both the feet and arms. The result came in the second round, with Helena once again pulling at the start and destabilizing Sabrina’s defenses as she locked the winning heel hook.
Luiz Felipe Santos vs Henrique Russi (Jiu-Jitsu bout)
Bringing the first prelim match of the ADXC 7, Luiz Felipe Santos got the better of Henrique Russi in Rio de Janeiro. In the first round, Felipe started by pulling and then sweeping to put pressure on Henrique’s half-guard, breaking free in the last minute of the round and pressing his opponent against the cage wall as the clock ran out. The second round saw Felipe trying that same sweep and then a triangle, with both defended by Henrique, but the gold came at the latter end of the round, with Felipe using berimbolo to attack with a footlock and end the match.
SHOWCASE
Saeed Alnuaimi vs Matheus Avelino (Jiu-Jitsu bout)
Closing the showcase, Saeed Alnuaimi got his first ADXC win over Matheus Avelino. Landing a good takedown at the beginning of the first round, Saeed kept his opponent under pressure throughout the match, using his agility to give Avelino a hard time from both the top and bottom. Avelino used his technical prowess to avoid most of the attacks, but Saeed locked an incredibly tight triangle choke in the last stretch of the final round and emerged victorious from the cage.
Daniel Barbosa vs Matheus Fonseca (Grappling bout)
Making good on his “220v” nickname, Daniel Barbosa was unstoppable as he faced Matheus Fonseca. Unleashing takedowns, guard passes, mounts, and back takes, Daniel had his talent on full display in his ADXC debut. Matheus Fonseca held on as best he could and even went on the offensive in the last round, but Daniel quickly countered and found his way to the back, using a body triangle to stop his opponent and ending the match with a rear naked choke.
Pietro Baseggio vs Miguel Vieira (Jiu-Jitsu bout)
Opening the tournament, Pietro Baseggio and Miguel Vieira brought a high-octane bout to kick off the night of competition. With three two-minute rounds in the match, Pietro had his full skills on display as he used his passing game to neutralize Miguel’s game. With no submissions from either side, the referees decided in favor of Pietro, who took the win unanimously.
ADXC 7
NOVEMBER 17TH, 2024
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL
MAIN EVENTS
Rodolfo Viera defeated Derek Brunson via katagatame (R2 2:47)
Paulo Miyao defeated Junior Righetti via unanimous decision
CO-MAIN EVENTS
Gesias Cavalcante defeated Piter Frank via unanimous decision
Meyram Maquiné defeated Sebastian Serpa via armbar (R1 1:20)
MAIN CARD
Aurelie Le Vern defeated Ana Carolina Vieira via unanimous decision
Lucas Valente defeated Espen Mathiesen via unanimous decision
Leonardo Nascimento defeated Antonio Assef via unanimous decision
Marcus Oliveira defeated Antonio Braga Neto via unanimous decision
Henrique Ceconi defeated Javier Zaruski via unanimous decision
PRELIMINARY CARD
Jessica Caroline defeated Eliana Carauni via unanimous decision
Ruan Alvarenga defeated Mukhammad Shakhbanov via unanimous decision
Kalim Mastouri defeated Ronys Torres via triangle armbar (R1 2:32)
Helena Crevar defeated Sabrina de Sousa via heel hook (R2 0:50)
Luiz Felipe Santos defeated Henrique Russi via footlock (R2 2:30)
SHOWCASE
Saeed Alnuaimi defeated Matheus Avelino via triangle (R3 2:23)
Daniel Barbosa defeated Matheus Fonseca via RNC (R3 2:25)
Pietro Baseggio defeated Miguel Vieira via unanimous decision
