Breaking Down the 2025 ADCC Miami Open
July 12. Miami. The sun wasn’t the only thing cooking. The ADCC Open hit South Florida like a hurricane with an attitude. No air conditioning, no mercy, and no room for soft rolls. This was raw; no-gi warfare where reputations got torched and wannabes got turned into crash test dummies. If you weren’t ready to sweat through your soul, you should’ve stayed your ass in the crowd.
Here’s who showed up, who showed out, and what the rest of you need to learn before your next open mat session becomes a public execution.
Men’s Divisions: Statement Wins and Silent Bodies
At 66kg, Cole Abate reminded everyone that technique beats TikTok fame. Smooth guard work, body lock passing like butter, and an arm drag that felt like it came with a death warrant. The kid’s still evolving, but he’s already eating grown men alive.
In the 88kg bracket, Jansen Gomes played zero games. Takedowns? Money. Back takes? Textbook. Finishes? Ruthless. He showed up like he already had the gold in his carry-on. Everyone else was just warm-up rounds.
And 77kg? Straight-up shark tank. Kenta Iwamoto dropped jaws with clean transitions and a relentless pace. No fluff. Just action. His wrestling set the tone, his jiu-jitsu closed the deal.
Women’s Divisions: Cold-Blooded Killers in a Hot Room
Elisabeth Clay was on fire in the 60kg division, ironically, by being the calmest in the chaos. Smooth entries, surgical submissions, and a pace that melted her bracket like Florida asphalt. She didn’t flinch. She executed.
Leticia Cardozo made noise in 60kg+ by bullying her way through the field. Top pressure like a hydraulic press, and transitions that made her look five moves ahead. No drama. Just destruction.
Match of the Day: Fire vs Ice
Abate vs. Fabricio Andrey. The energy in that room? Electric. Both brought speed, scrambles, and sharp-as-hell tactics. But Abate kept his composure while Andrey tried to turn it into chaos. Lesson? The better scrambler wins exchanges. But the better strategist wins wars.
What Actually Mattered
Leg lock entries are still everywhere, but the winners chained them to real control. If you’re diving for feet without securing the position, congrats. You’re a human highlight… in someone else’s reel.
The body lock is back. People figured out how to stop the knee shield, and they’re turning passers into steamrollers.
Back control reigns. Everyone who dominated ended up on someone’s back. Why? Because control beats chaos, and a seatbelt’s harder to shake than your psycho ex with that egg bread.
Lessons You Better Learn or You’ll Be Learning Them the Hard Way
Positional control > flashy subs. The ones who won rounds didn’t hunt memes. They hunted domination.
Conditioning matters. ADCC rules favor pressure. If your gas tank’s trash, you’re gonna drown under someone who trained like a dog. Check out www.vtxperformance for tips on how to dominate with your conditioning.
Final Word
Miami was a reminder that ADCC doesn’t reward pretty jiu-jitsu; it rewards pressure, control, and violence with purpose. The winners didn’t ask for respect. They took it. If you’re still rolling at the pace of a 6 year old, cool. Just don’t act surprised when you get mauled by someone who’s been drilling under stress and breaking people for breakfast.
Camp Vertex doesn’t send you to opens to have fun. We send you to own the room.