The ADCC World Championships is a tournament in which entrants are both invited and fight to qualify, meaning we get an interesting mix of characters not normally seen in traditional events. 

It's important to remember that ADCC considers its style of competition to be "submission fighting" and not jiu-jitsu. It may look the same, but the rules, techniques, and strategies are very different. 

So are the faces: MMA fighters and pedigree wrestlers compete alongside jiu-jitsu black belts and no-gi specialists. 

Take one look at the bracket of a major no-gi tournament and it's usually easy to plot out who's going to make it to the final and how. Doing so at ADCC is near-impossible, due to the number of athletes who have the serious ability to destroy even the best-laid plans. 

​Read on as we profile eight of the most potentially disruptive athletes who will compete at the ADCC 2017 World Championships on Sept. 23-24 in Espoo, Finland…

​Editor's note: names listed in alphabetical order.

1. James Brasco, -88kg

North American Trials (East Coast) winner
A two-time ADCC veteran, Brasco won the North American Trials in New Jersey in November 2016. He competed at the 2009 ADCC in Barcelona at -88kg and also at the 2011 ADCC in the UK but fought up a division at -99kg because his former coach Pablo Popovitch was in at -88kg. 

Now training at and representing Fight Sports under Roberto "Cyborg," Brasco brings a wealth of wrestling experience and black belt jiu-jitsu skills. He came up in the wrestling hotbed of Pennsylvania in the 1990s and has been competing with submissions for over 15 years. The -88kg division is stacked, and Brasco is one of the many obstacles some of the better-known athletes will have to contend with next weekend. 

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2. Rustam Chsiev, -88kg

Invited
Hailing from the wrestling-crazy region that is the Russian Caucasus Mountains, Chsiev is known as one of the most difficult opponents one can expect to face in ADCC. The former wrestler -- who grew up training freestyle but contrary to popular belief does not have any background in sambo -- is a super-tough and nearly-unstoppable force who thrives in this rule set. 

Training out of the K-Dojo in New Jersey, Chsiev holds wins over big names such as Romulo Barral, Rafael Lovato Jr., Davi Ramos, and more. Chsiev placed third at the 2015 ADCC. 

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3. Casey Hellenberg, +99kg

North American Trials (West Coast) winner
The man-mountain Hellenberg may be "only" a brown belt, but this Ribeiro Jiu-Jitsu rep steamrolled the West Coast Trials in Los Angeles to earn his place in the big show. 

A former infantryman in the U.S. Army, the 31-year-old Hellenberg now lives and trains full-time in San Diego with the Ribeiro brothers but wrestled freestyle back in Minnesota. His combination of wrestling and jiu-jitsu makes him a lesser-heralded competitor in the +99kg division but no less dangerous. The only thing holding him back is a lack of experience in ADCC rules, but that didn't slow him down at the Trials. We've also heard talk that he was a training partner of UFC and pro wrestling legend Brock Lesnar, so make of that what you will. 

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4. Justin Rader, -66kg

North American Trials (East Coast) winner
A veteran of ADCC, Rader is well known to followers of the no-gi scene. The powerful wrestler and guillotine specialist is a three-time ADCC veteran who took third place in 2013. 

Another Ribeiro Jiu-Jitsu rep, Rader trains with Lovato Jr. in Oklahoma. Much like Lovato, he's been making his way through an emerging MMA career while staying active in grappling events. He's fought three times on Fight To Win in the last year (with mixed results) but is exceptionally well made for the ADCC rule set. It's worth noting the only people he has lost to in ADCC are Rafael Mendes and Cobrinha, who both ultimately became ADCC champions in those events. That means it's going to take a high-level grappler to stop him. 

​​UPDATE: Justin Rader is out and has been replaced by Nicky Ryan

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5. John Salter, -88kg

North American Trials (West Coast) winner
Salter came out of nowhere to win the West Coast Trials, beating the extremely tough DJ Jackson in the final. An MMA fighter for Bellator and a jiu-jitsu black belt, Salter wrestled in Missouri and won an NAIA national title in 2007. 

He's probably just a fight or two away from a go at the Bellator middleweight title, but Salter will bring his grinding game to the 88kg division in Finland and is likely to cause some problems. His 36-second submission at the West Coast Trials aside, he took four points wins and a decision victory at the Trials, which spells a hard time for anybody facing him come Sept. 23. 

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6. Murilo Santana, -88kg

South American Trials (Sao Paulo) winner
It's testament to Santana's dislike of being in the spotlight that it's easy to forget this perennial dark horse is a two-time ADCC veteran, having competed in 2009 and 2011. Putting his shyness to one side, let's not forget this 88kg grappler is one of the toughest guys in the division. 

Judging Santana's credentials is as easy as looking at his record. Though the best result he managed was a fourth-place finish in the absolute in 2011, it took serious high-level competitors to take him out, namely Gregor Gracie in 2009 and Kron Gracie in 2011 in the weight classes and Andre Galvao (semifinal) and Xande Ribeiro (bronze medal match) in the 2011 absolute. Neither Kron nor Galvao could score on Santana, making him a huge disruptor in the so-called "group of death." 

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7. Tim Spriggs, +99kg

Invited
One of the last names to be announced for the division, Spriggs will arrive in ADCC as a newcomer to the event and after a lengthy layoff from competition. From what we know about Spriggs, though, you should never, ever underestimate him. 

The TLI black belt is explosive and always well prepared and knows exactly how to play to whichever rules he's competing under. The fact he's coming in fresh will most likely be a bonus for him, and it's unlikely he'll be rusty from the year-plus he's spent off the scene. Training alongside teammate Mahamed Aly (who's in at -99kg), Spriggs has great wrestling skills and the benefit of coming out of a solid camp. Anybody who faces him will be in for a tough ride. 

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8. Celso Vinicius, -77kg

Invited
This is hard to believe, but Brazilian stalwart Celso Vinicius -- who is an absolute terror on the mat -- is making his ADCC debut come next weekend. The black belt is as tough as they come whether he's competing gi or no-gi, with a heavy passing top game and a tricky half guard. 

"Celsinho" got invited to ADCC and was one of the last few 77kg names to be announced. It's not difficult to imagine some of the others in the bracket taking a deep sigh at the appearance of his name, given how he is notoriously hard to beat. He's a contender to make it through to the later rounds and will pose a serious challenge to anybody he faces in the bracket.

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