View the official brackets for both 16-man divisions at the inaugural Craig Jones Invitational (CJI).
Now less than two weeks out from the inaugural CJI, brackets for each of the 16-man divisions have been revealed and first-round matchups are set. On Tuesday, Craig Jones held a live bracket reveal.
Each division had four predetermined top seeds. The remaining 12 competitors were slotted in at random. Watch the bracket reveal below.
Every athlete in each division will receive $10,001, win or lose. Division winners will earn $1 million – the biggest payday in the history of submission grappling and BJJ.
Check out the full list of first-round matchups below.
Craig Jones Invitational first-round matches
-80kg
Nicky Ryan vs. Andrew Tackett
Magid Hage vs. Eoghan O’Flanagan
Renato Canuto vs. Tommy Langaker
Kade Ruotolo vs. Matheus Diniz
Jozef Chen vs. Andy Varela
Lucas “Hulk” Barbosa vs. Kenta Iwamoto
Roberto Jimenez vs. Levi Jones-Leary
Tye Ruotolo vs. Jason Nolf
+80kg
William Tackett vs. Joao Gabriel Rocha
Greg Kerkvliet vs. Fellipe Andrew
Ignacio Santos vs. Pedro Alex
Victor Hugo vs. Lucas Kanard
Luke Rockhold vs. Pat Downey
Adam Bradley vs. Kyle Boehm
Owen Livesey vs. Mahamed Aly
Nick Rodriguez vs. Max Gimenis
At -80kg, several first-round matchups stand out as particularly notable.
Top-seeded Tye Ruotolo – a popular pick to take home the $1 million prize – will square off with three-time Division I national wrestling champion Jason Nolf. While Ruotolo holds a significant edge in submission grappling experience, Nolf can present a stylistic challenge for the young Californian, who almost always fights for takedowns on the feet rather than pulling guard.
Also, Ruotolo’s twin brother, 2022 ADCC world champion Kade Ruotolo, will face 2019 ADCC world champion Matheus Diniz. Even though Diniz has struggled to find consistent success against elite competition in recent years, he remains a world-class competitor and a top-tier tactician.
Finally, early favorites Nicky Ryan and Andrew Tackett will collide in perhaps the most anticipated first-round match of the event. Ryan is a master technician with skills in all areas and comes into the event following a sensational submission win over two-time ADCC champion JT Torres. For his part, Tackett looked nothing short of spectacular in his gold-medal run at the 2024 ADCC West Coast Trials, and his seemingly endless gas tank will surely pose a stiff test for Ryan.
The +80kg division offers plenty of interesting first-round matchups, as well.
Dominant gi competitor Fellipe Andrew will face a unique stylistic challenge, as he’s set to take on Division I national wrestling champion Greg Kerkvliet. Andrew is one of the division’s most active and technical BJJ players, but the Penn State wrestler is arguably the bracket’s most explosive athlete – and likely its best pure wrestler.
Also, top-seeded Nick Rodriguez will have no easy opponent in the first round. He’ll face decorated veteran black belt Max Gimenis. Despite competing infrequently over the past couple of years, Gimenis owns a recent notable win over heavyweight standout Dan Manasoiu, proving he belongs among the world’s elite.
How to watch: The inaugural Craig Jones Invitational takes place on August 16-17 in Las Vegas, Nevada, and will air live and free on The B-Team YouTube channel.
