Hammadi and Ketbi carry UAE hopes at ADWPJJC finale

Yahia Al Hammadi and Faisal Al Ketbi will lead UAE charge for the gold medals in the 110kg and 85kg respectively as the Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship (ADWPJJC) heads for a dramatic finale on Friday.

In the men’s 110kg division, superstar Brazilian heavyweight Joao Rocha will face the UAE’s Hammadi, from Team 777, who won a judges’ decision in his semi-final clash with Belgium’s Paulo Brasil Da Silva. The match marks Hammadi’s first World Pro final.

“This win is for President Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the UAE’s rulers and all the people of the country. I hope to win the gold medal and wish for the people of the UAE to support,” said Hammadi.

While, the 85kg final will be a face-off between the UAE’s Ketbi, 31, also of Team 777, and Brazil’s Rudson Matheus, 23, of Brasa Cta Team.

“It feels very nice to be in the final,” said Ketbi, who is also contesting his first World Pro final. I’ve had a very hard season training with my new coaches and building a strategy for this event – it’s gone the right way and we’ll have a good strategy for the final. It’s always nice having so much support and it’s a responsibility that I cherish.”

The 94kg division title will be contested by emerging Brazilian superstar Kaynan Duarte, 21, who has won two consecutive Abu Dhabi Grand Slam events in his first full season at black belt, and Poland’s Adam Wardzinski.

Earlier, the Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship (ADWPJJC) 2019, held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces,witnessed a sensational day at Mubadala Arena on Thursday.

The penultimate day of the ADWPJJC 2019 saw 210 athletes from 52 countries take to the Mubadala Arena mats in 19 divisions which included the semi-finals for male black belt and female brown / black belt contests, and finals for male brown belts.

In-front of an expectant and passionate crowd of feverous jiu-jitsu fans, the line-ups for Friday’s seven male black belt and five female brown/black belt Finals were fixed, with seven male brown weight division also being concluded.

At the end of the day, Brazil was the top-ranked nation with five gold medals, two silver and two bronze; Portugal was second with one gold, one silver and one bronze; and Norway was third with one gold and one bronze.

Sheikh Khalid Bin Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan visited ADWPJJC 2019 to watch the closing matches of the men’s brown belt division.

UAEJJF poised for grandstand finish to ADWPJJC 2019 With some of the sport’s biggest stars and brightest young talent reaching the ADWPJJC 2019 finals, Mohammed Salem Al Dhaheri, Vice Chairman of the UAE Jiu-Jitsu Federation, Acting Executive Director of Education Affairs Sector, is anticipating a drama-filled finale.

“As we celebrate the 11th edition of the Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship, we are anticipating a grandstand finish to herald the beginning of what will be a glorious championship’s second decade for a world-class event which continues to underline Abu Dhabi’s standing as the home of jiu-jitsu,” said Dhaheri.

With seven male black belt and five female brown/black weight division titles on the line in Friday’s finals, athletes from nine countries will battle for the gold medals.

The 77kg division will see the UK’s Oliver Lovell and Norway’s Tommy Langaker go head-to-head in the only black belt final not featuring a Brazilian athlete, while the US’s Isaac Doederlein and Brazil’s Paolo Miyao will face-off in with 69kg final.

The 62kg final will be contested by Brazilian duo Joao Gabriel Sousa, the world No. 1, and Joao Miyao, with fellow Brazilians Hiago George and Carlos Alberta Silva battling for 56kg gold.