Berkut Jiu-Jitsu

Bad Blood & Underdogs: Expert Analysis & Breakdown of Berkut BJJ Event

Bad Blood & Underdogs: Expert Analysis & Breakdown of Berkut BJJ Event

With such a mammoth card on the horizon at Berkut, we broke down the best match-ups from tomorrow's event. BJJ Heroes editor Andre Borges and FloGrappling s

Nov 20, 2015 by FloGrappling
Bad Blood & Underdogs: Expert Analysis & Breakdown of Berkut BJJ Event
With such a mammoth card on the horizon at Berkut, we broke down the best match-ups from tomorrow's event. BJJ Heroes editor Andre Borges and FloGrappling senior editor Hywel Teague put their heads together to predict who's going home with the 'W' tomorrow! 

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Andre Galvao vs Romulo Barral – no gi 


Andre Borges: What an awesome matchup. I believe this is their first no-gi match, with two out of three for Galvao so far in the gi. Andre tends to pull guard against Romulo, but considering this is a no gi match, I don’t see that happening. These guys know each other’s games so well I find it hard to believe we will see a submission, but in the points rounds I see Galvao taking this by either takedown or back take.

Hywel Teague: While they're far too professional to admit it, there's a little bit of friction between the two here, and I think that's going to spice things up. They both recently competed no gi in August’s ADCC, so I think they’ll be equally prepared for this match, and I see this being hotly a contested match. Based on their performances though, my gut is telling me that Andre’s counter wrestling and overall strategy will be the key to victory here. Romulo is super talented but can be inconsistent at times, whereas we rarely see Galvao have a bad day. I agree with you, I think Andre will win via points in the overtime round. 

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Felipe Pena vs Yuri Simoes – no gi 


HT: This is probably the most difficult match to call on the whole card. Both guys have looked incredible these last 12 months. I’m so excited for this match! It’s actually hard to believe they’ve never fought before. I have no idea what could happen here. Pena is a magician at getting the back, and he’s so slippery and hard to get hold of, his defense is incredible. Yuri’s no gi game has been on fire these last 12 months, his wrestling has gone through the roof. I honestly can’t call this match. 

AB: One thing is for sure, these guys will bring it – it’s probably the most exciting match of the day. I can honestly see positive scenarios from which both can capitalize, but considering Yuri is coming from an injury I will give a slight edge to Felipe here. 

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Alex Cabanes vs Arbi Muradov – no gi 


AB: Cabanes is more of a gi guy, plus I don’t see him taking an experienced wrestler like Arbi down. To top it up, sweeps are not accounted for by these rules. The odds are against the Spaniard, I see Muradov taking the win, possibly even by submission.

HT: Cabanes is solid though, he’s definitely had more success in the gi but he’s a product of and training partner of Claudio Calasans so it’s not like he’s going to be out of his depth. Arbi’s got great base and his wrestling will make him hard to catch, but Cabanes could pull this off if he’s sharp enough on the day. 

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Augusto ‘Tanquinho’ Mendes vs AJ Agazarm – gi 


AB: In my eyes this is a perfect match-up for this ruleset, rules that favor the scrambler and the risk taker. AJ is both, but Tanquinho is as high level as it gets. Will be hard to see a submission here, the stand-up will decide the victor. Very tough call.

HT: Yeah this match is going to be crazy! You’d think AJ would have the edge in the stand-up here but I think it’s actually pretty even, Tanquinho showed in his matches with JT Torres that he’s good on his feet and he’s spent a lot of time focussing on that recently thanks to his MMA training. If Tanquinho gets the back in one of those scrambles though, I think he could get AJ in a choke – and of course, there’s no way AJ would tap! 

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Paulo Miyao vs Samir Chantre – gi 


AB: If neither sweeps or guard passes count for points in regulation time, these two will have a hard time opening the scoreboard. Paulo has defeated Samir twice before so it’s hard to vote against him, but these crazy rules stir things up a bit.

HT: I think Paulo’s size advantage will give him an advantage here, I expect him to play more of a top game than we might expect and even though Samir’s tricky guard will slow him down I think Paulo could secure top position or the back. If he can’t get a finish in the 15-min round, I can’t say who will win via points as sweeps don’t count in the overtime. Most likely this will go to a decision. 

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Claudio Calasans vs Lucas Rocha – gi 


AB: Lucas Rocha has a tendency to push his opponents to the max and bring the best in them, let’s hope he can do it to Claudio Calasans. Calasans is known as an ultra-conservative strategist, and the gi seems to fortify this aspect of Junior’s game. Wouldn’t be surprised if we saw a draw in this one. 

HT: Calasans is one of my favorite guys to watch, but I agree, I wish he’d open his game up a bit more. He’s often content to hang out in positions like 50-50 sintead of going on the attack. When he does, amazing things happen as he’s such a versatile grappler. But I agree, I think the gi is going to slow this down too much and I’m not getting my hopes up that either guy will find a finis here. 

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Caio Terra vs Milton Bastos – gi 


HT: Well this one’s definitely going to be fun! Caio’s promised to put a show on here, and I expect nothing less than some very slick technique from both guys. That they’ve trained with each other makes it kind of weird, but at the same time means they’ll probably open up their games – at least, until an opportunity to finish comes into view! 

AB: Milton is a very entertaining grappler, but Caio knows his game too well. I’m picking Caio by submission. 

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Osvaldo ‘Queixinho’ Moizinho vs Joao Miyao – gi 


AB: The same rule as Paulo vs Samir applies here. Both have in the sweeping game their strongest asset. Unless someone pulls a back take out of their hat, it will be hard to see points on this scoreboard. I see either a draw or Osvaldo inching this one away.

HT: Queixinho has beaten both of the Miyao brothers this year, which is pretty amazing if you come ot think of it. Gi or no gi, he knows their games well enough to shut them down, but he’s never gotten close to a solid submission attempt and I don’t think he’ll find his chance here. I expect a very technical, even match with plenty of reversals and crazy positions going on – and that’s goodf enough for me! This is going to be a lesson in modern jiu-jitsu. 

Berkut goes down on Nov 21, click here to get access to the livestream here on FloGrappling!!!