Grappling fans would have found UFC 258 hard to watch as two of jiu-jitsu's top representatives in the Octagon fell to their opponents. We look at what went wrong.

The biggest party in grappling will kick off a three-week visit to Dallas on Saturday, February 13 with Fight To Win 163, featuring three high-profile matches, including a gi featherweight title fight. Diego “Pato” Oliveira will try to take Kennedy Maciel’s title in the main event. Before that, brown belt submission hunter Pedro Marinho will face Matheus Luna, and Aaron Tex Johnson will take on Max Gimenis.

With all the buzz around heel hooks and the focus on no-gi oriented leglocks, it’s easy to forget how powerful the straight ankle lock can be. The footlock is more than a way to earn the favor of the judges or score an advantage in a close match. When applied correctly, it’s a powerful submission responsible for some of the most brutal-looking breaks in jiu-jitsu.

The opening day of the 2020 IBJJF American Nationals was filled with upsets, blowouts, and close, gritty matches. Here were some of the best matches from the first day of Nationals:

The brackets and schedule for the 2020 IBJJF American Nationals, to go down on Dec 5-6 in Dallas, are out now. 

The IBJJF returns Dec 5-6 for the 2020 American Nationals, a two-day event which will include gi and no-gi tournaments.