2018 Abu Dhabi Grand Slam Rio De Janeiro

Did you know?

• ▸ Across 179 recorded matchups at the 2018 Abu Dhabi Grand Slam Rio De Janeiro, points were the most common way to win with 84 decisions on record, ahead of 63 submissions. That tells you a lot about how AJP matches tend to play out at this level.
• ▸ The submission rate at the event landed at 35 percent, so roughly a third of finishes came by tap. If you train mostly for points, that is a reminder that plenty of these matches still ended before the clock did.
• ▸ Isaque Paiva, Isaque Bahiense, and Hugo Marques all finished with 6 wins each, but their paths differed. Paiva submitted 3 opponents, Bahiense 2, and Marques 1, so the same win total came through very different games.
• ▸ Adam Wardzinski and Gabriel Henrique Oliveira each recorded 3 submission wins at the event. Wardzinski did it across 5 wins and Oliveira across 4, meaning both were finishing rather than grinding out decisions.
• ▸ Erberth Santos took the 110kgs bracket the hard way, edging Igor Schneider by advantage in the semi-finals before submitting Fernando Reis in the final. One razor-thin win, then a clean finish to close it out.