One of the best burgeoning rivalries could continue with a fascinating new instalment at the upcoming IBJJF 2022 world Championships. 

Tye Ruotolo and Mica Galvao are two of the best-known teenagers in the sport of jiu-jitsu. No strangers to each other, they have competed against each other since the juvenile ranks, but most recently in the final of the WNO championship in September 2021, when Tye emerged victorious via decision to capture the 185lb title belt. 

That, of course, was a no-gi match. But now there is a chance we may see them face off in a completely different ruleset – and in the iconic venue of the Walter Pyramid in Long Beach, California. 

Tye and Mica are both signed up to compete in the black belt lightweight division – this is the first time either of them will compete in the World Championships as a black belt. While many observers would classify them as “young veterans “, they are both in their rookie years, having been promoted in 2021. Mica already made a splash by winning the Brazilian National Championship last month while Tye has yet to compete in gi as a black belt – the last time we saw him in an IBJJF tournament was when he won Worlds as a brown belt in December of last year.

Mica with his father/coach Melqui Galvao at the 2022 IBJJF Brasileiros

It is fitting that they should meet once again in an IBJJF tournament, as this is where the rivalry was born. They first encountered each other at tournaments such as Kids Pans while young adolescents.

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2019 IBJJF Euros, when Tye and Mica met in the finals of the blue belt juvenile division (match starts 9:45)

Since then they have grown to become two of the most popular stars in the sport today, and every few years the stellar orbits of their careers bring them together and deliver another potential classic matchup.

As if the black belt lightweight division wasn’t enticing enough it became unmissable when Mica joined the party. He originally registered to compete in the medium heavyweight division but he switched his weight class at the last minute dropping two divisions to slide in at lightweight. He joins competitors such as Alves, Matheus Gabriel, Levi Jones-Leary, and the aforementioned Tye Ruotolo. 

It’s no exaggeration to say that both Tye and Mica are entirely capable of winning the division even when matched against any of the heavy hitters alongside them in the bracket. And the bracket is what’s really going to determine how this division plays out.

Alves and Gabriel, respectively the 2021 Pan champ and 2021 World silver medalist, will no doubt be seeded highest in the division. Galvao, with his Brazilian national title, will also enjoy a favorable place in the brackets, but Tye Ruotolo has zero points to his name and will likely enter as one of the lowest-seeded competitors in the entire division. This could theoretically match him up with somebody like Alves in the very first round.

Ruotolo himself is well aware of this and has publicly called out both potential opponents, asking for Alves first round and Mica immediately after. There is no love lost between Ruotolo and Galvao, but the callout of Alves is interesting because it points to a larger grievance. Ruotolo got into an online war of words with Alves‘s coach, Gui Mendes of Art of Jiu-Jitsu, and disputed the origins of certain techniques being taught at the famous Costa Mesa gym. Ruotolo claims to have invented a certain style of guard passing which has been taught to AOJ students and it seems that a match with Alves would act as a proxy war in the greater feud with Mendes.

 

Honestly, the motivations and history don’t even matter in this case. I could watch Tye go against Mica a thousand times over just to appreciate the jiu-jitsu – it’s well-known what both competitors are capable of and it is anybody’s guess how a match between these two in the gi will play out now that they are black belts. It’s just one of many reasons why this year’s IBJJF World Championships is one of the most exciting and watchable in recent memory.