In the 1980's the Copa Compania was the major Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu tournament held in Rio de Janeiro.in Brazil. All of the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu greats of the time came to show their stuff and put it on the line. Unfortunately, 3 months before its fifth anniversary, the Copa Compania lost its funding.
What were the members of the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu community to do? Where would they go to compete, to hone their skills, to participate in the sport they so loved? That is when Claudio Franca and friends stepped in to give the sport a competition outlet. Thus, in 1988 the Copa Atlantica Sul was born!
From 1988 - 1994 Claudio Franca, Marcus Vinicius, and Joe Moreira organized and promoted the Copa Atlantica Sul, providing and arena for such athletes as Gordo, Renzo, Ralph, Ryan, & Royler Gracie, Jean-Jacques Machado, Ze Mario Sperry, Macaco, and Walid Ismael to go head-to-head in some of the most exciting competition of the era.
In 1995 Claudio Franca moved to the United States and opened his first school in Santa Cruz, California. He saw a need for Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu sport tournaments in the United States, because most people to whom he talked about Jiu-Jitsu, assumed it was all about No-Holds Barred fighting, due to the immense success and popularity of the Ultimate Fighting Championships. He wanted to show the American public that anyone could practice Jiu-Jitsu as a hobby, a sport, or a self-defense art; it was not just for professional fighters!
So in the fall of 1995, the first ever U.S. Open Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Tournament commenced at the Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium. The turn-out was small (compared to other sports and martial arts) but the competitors, coaches and crowds participated enthusiastically, realizing that here was something special. And to be sure, athletes who did eventually go on to have success in Mixed Martial Arts competition got their start at tournaments like the U.S. Open--BJ Penn, Javier Vasquez, Genki Sudo, and Nick Diaz, to name a few.
Over the nine years of its history, the U.S. Open has gone from garnering about 150 competitors to over 500, and has featured fights with such greats as Carlos Machado, Marcus Vinicius, Fabio Santos, Marcio Corleta, Mauricio Behring, Marcio Corleta, Megaton Diaz, Sapao, Rodrigo Madeiros, Eduardo Telles, Fabricio Werdun, Cleber Luciano, Frajinha Miller, Cassio Werneck, Paulo Gilobel, David Meyer, Garth Taylor, Chris Hauter, Wander Braga, Saulo Ribeiro, Xandre Ribeiro, Rafael Lovato Jr., and many others.
In 1990, Claudio Franca hosted the first Team Tournament at the Barra Mares in Río. Sixteen years later, he was, to the best of our knowledge, host of the first Brown and Black Belt Team Tournament in the United States, featuring the 2005 Champions Team Saulo Ribeiro and second place Team Boulder BJJ, along with Team Werneck-Sauer. The event proved very popular to the public as a spectator sport and we are proud to present the Brown and Black Belt Team Challenge 3 this year!
Who I'd like to meet: Athletes of all levels interested in competing; Brown and Black Belt Teams; Brown and Black Belt Females interested in superfights; businesses interested in sponsoring the tournament; Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu afficionados of all kinds; and People who have photos of past U.S. Open events to share with us. Go ahead and post them in the comments area!
The Organizers of the U.S. Open's Friend Space (Top 18)
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Thank You so much for the invite (and adding me) wish I could make this one but I"m not going to be able to.. (please let me know for the next one or is there a web address I can check?
Thanks for the Add. I am leaving soon to train in Brazil for three months, so I cant make it in October, but Ill be ready for the next one. Thanks Again!
