The lights of the Pavilhão de Odivelas in Portugal only needed to shine on one spot: the mat for the adult black belt finals, men’s and women’s, at the IBJJF European Championship. The event ran for ten days in Portugal, from January 15 to 24, and the most illustrious matches are always saved for the end. After every other match, Gabi Pessanha and Sarah Galvão had the responsibility of closing out the night, the first time a women’s match closed an IBJJF Grand Slam event. Two Jiu-Jitsu powerhouses, face to face, in a matchup that brought the community to a standstill. One a lightweight, the other a super-heavyweight, the kind of open class match that gets everyone excited before it even happens.
Gabi Pessanha is young, but she already has the career of a legend of the sport. A ten-time IBJJF gi Jiu-Jitsu world champion, she matched that number of titles at the Europeans with this season’s double gold. At super-heavyweight she beat Marina Carraro by submission, and in the open class, against Sarah Galvão, she won by a single advantage.
André Galvão’s daughter has been a black belt for only six months and is a phenomenon with love for the sport running through her veins. If Gabi is the queen, Sarah has already had time to claim her own crown. With a debutant’s enthusiasm and a veteran’s skill, she became the newest royalty at The Crown last November, dethroning athletes like Brianna Ste-Marie and Janaína Lebre. Her open class spot at the Europeans, after winning every match by submission the day before, Friday, became the fans’ favorite topic.
The context behind the weight of the matchup is already laid out. But what about the action itself? Each of them, in the most important match of the night, delivered a contest that showed the following: a war between highly skilled athletes can be excellent, but add will to it and it lives on in history. Gabi Pessanha won by one advantage in a match that stayed alive until the final second. The reaction of everyone watching made it clear that Jiu-Jitsu, in the performance of two women, was more than well represented.
THE LAST DAY OF THE EUROPEANS WAS ALSO MARKED BY MATCHES THAT NEVER HAPPENED; CLOSED-OUT FINALS ARE THE REASON
This season’s Europeans also reignited a debate that constantly surrounds major competitions: teammates closing out divisions. On black belt day, four matches didn’t happen. On the men’s side, Diego ‘Pato’ and Gustavo Ogawa closed out the featherweight final, and the same happened in the ultra-heavyweight final between Pedro Alex ‘Bombom’ and Seif Houmine. In women’s lightweight, Sarah Galvão and Tamara Toros, from Atos, did the same and agreed on the top of the podium. The open class final between Sarah and Pessanha was the main attraction because the deciding match of the men’s open class didn’t happen. Erich Munis and Gabriel Veloso, his student at Soldiers, didn’t compete in the final.
The number of close-outs on the final day of the Europeans stands in direct contrast to one of the matches that stopped the Pavilhão de Odivelas earlier, in the quarterfinals. Matheus and Davi Vetoraci, twin brothers, fought for a spot in the heavyweight semifinals. Cheered by the crowd, the Brazilian brothers live in Portugal and make a living from Jiu-Jitsu there. Matheus and Davi showed that it’s possible to go to war on the mat even with a very strong bond off it. It’s true they represent different academies, but blood ties could have spoken louder at that moment. Last year, in fact, they closed out the European final at medium-heavyweight.
In the weight class finals, at roosterweight, Jalen Fonacier was one of the standouts with a gold earned with a perfect record, winning every match by submission. On the women’s side, Thais Loureiro won her second title at the tournament and pulled off the upset by beating Mayssa Bastos on points.
At women’s roosterweight, Ashlee Funegra lived up to the favorite tag by beating Josefine Modig by submission with a choke from the back. The featherweight final between Kennedy Maciel and Cole Abate excited the crowd, with the Brazilian, ‘Cobrinha Jr.’, breaking the tie late in the match to beat Cole Abate, one of the biggest talents from the Mendes brothers’ school. On the women’s side, Cassia Moura, always gritty and ready to deliver excellent performances, beat Larissa Campos with heart to take control of the scoreboard.
FOUR-TIME CHAMP! TAINAN DALPRA’S PERFORMANCE DRAWS APPLAUSE AT THE PAVILHÃO DE ODIVELAS IN PORTUGAL; THE AOJ BLACK BELT SUBMITTED EVERY OPPONENT
Tainan Dalpra, in the middleweight final, faced José Steve, fresh blood from Belgium who has just arrived at the elite level. With an energetic cheering section and a performance that dazzled the Europeans crowd, José gave way to the experience of Tainan, now a four-time champion of the tournament, who added another submission to his current European run. At women’s middleweight, Larissa Martins beat Amanda Schrutz on points.
Will Wilson, an American athlete from Carlson Gracie South Bay, shone with self-control as the quality that let his strategy prevail amid the danger of brutal matches in the lightweight bracket. In the final, he beat Mateo Cardona on points, a strong AOJ name who opened his first season among the elite after an excellent brown belt run
Eduardo Alves and Luiz Maxnuk, two newcomers to the elite level, starred in the medium-heavyweight final. Eduardo took gold on points. The women’s medium-heavyweight champion was Denise Krahn, who beat Ingridd Alves in the only match decided by referee decision.
Leonardo Ferreira, an Alliance prospect, won his first European gold by submitting Matheus Vetoraci. It was a highly anticipated final because of the dynamic style of both athletes. At women’s heavyweight, Brazil’s Yara Soares controlled the scoring against the tough Anabel Lopez.
Vinicius Liberati, from Soldiers, opened the 2026 season with gold around his neck. He beat fellow Brazilian Harryson Pereira 2-0 in the super-heavyweight final.
This article was originally published in Portuguese: read the original version.
