First Entrants Announced For ‘KASAI Pro 7’ World Heavyweight Championship Tournament
KASAI kicks off 2020 with its final weight class battle at The Bomb Factory in Dallas, Texas on February 1st.
November 5th– New York City, NY – KASAI Elite Grappling Championships (“KASAI”) today announces four initial entrants for the KASAI World Heavyweight Championship Tournament at ‘KASAI Pro 7’ on Saturday, February 1st at the Bomb Factory in Dallas, Texas. KASAI World Light Heavyweight Champion Kaynan Duarte, ADCC standout Nick Rodriguez, Jiu-Jitsu legend Bruno Bastos, and Joao Gabriel Rocha are the first names confirmed with more to come soon. The show will also feature numerous compelling superfight matchups, which will be announced shortly.
“We are assembling the top heavyweights in the world to vie for this final belt” said KASAI CEO Rich Byrne. “The athletes we have lined-up are truly the best in the sport. Get ready for a showdown in Texas!”
Kaynan Duarte is a black belt under Andre Galvao of the Atos Jiu Jitsu Academy in San Diego, CA. He is the KASAI World Light Heavyweight Champion, a title he won at ‘KASAI Pro 5’ in April of this year. The young star had an unbelievable 2019 winning the IBJJF World Championship, ADCC +99kg World Championship, Abu Dhabi Pro Championship, IBJJF Pan American Champion, and of course the KASAI World Light Heavyweight Championship.
Wrestling standout Nick Rodriguez burst onto the grappling scene in 2019, storming the elite level of the sport with under two years of submission grappling experience. Although known to hardcore followers of the scene, he was still a mystery to many when he showed up at ADCC and defeated Mahamed Aly, Orlando Sanchez, and Roberto “Cyborg” Abreu on his way to a silver medal in the +99kg division.
Bruno Bastos is a black belt under Wendell Alexander. His current Academy is based in Midland, Texas. Some of his accomplishments include: CBJJE World Cup Champion (2010, 2009, 2007), CBJJE World Champion (2008), IBJJF Master and Seniors World Champion (2013), IBJJF World No-Gi Champion (2012 weight & absolute masters division), and IBJJF Pan American Champion (2011 masters division).
João Gabriel Rocha is a black belt under the instruction of Rafael “Formiga” Barbosa and Leandro Escobar. Before earning his black belt, Rocha was regarded as one of the top brown belts in the world, having won every important competition in the Jiu-Jitsu community. He has since become one of the top contenders of the super heavyweight black belt division, with medals at the world’s top tournaments. He is also the Abu Dhabi King of Mats and Abu Dhabi Pro Champion for this year.
In addition to the four announced fighters so far, ‘KASAI Pro 7’ will also showcase some of Jiu-Jitsu’s most decorated names in compelling feature fights to be announced shortly.
