Ruleset
ADCC
The most prestigious no-gi ruleset: negative points for stalling, points only in the second half, and every submission legal.
How the ruleset works
The Abu Dhabi Combat Club ruleset is built to force action. Matches split into halves: no points in the first half (submission attempts only), then takedowns, passes, and dominant positions score in the second. Guard pulling costs a negative point once scoring starts, and stalling is penalized directly.
Every submission is legal, including heel hooks and slams inside limits, which makes ADCC the proving ground for complete no-gi games. Overtime extends the match rather than switching format, and referee decisions weigh aggression heavily.
The World Championship runs every two years and is widely treated as the sport's most prestigious no-gi title.
At a glance
- Attire
- No-Gi
- Format
- No points first half, points second half
- Overtime
- Extra time, then decision
- Time limit
- 10-40 min by round/division
- Submissions
- Everything legal
What wins under ADCC rules
Most active under ADCC rules
Vagner Rocha
33 matches
Oliver Taza
29 matches
Keith Krikorian
24 matches
André Galvão
23 matches
Jonathan Satava
22 matches
Felipe Pena
21 matches
Marcelo Garcia
21 matches
Paul Ardila-Ibarra
20 matches
Paul Barch
20 matches
Roberto Jimenez
19 matches
Rankings across every ruleset live on the stats page and the BJJ Elo rankings.
Biggest ADCC events
2017 ADCC West Coast Trials
2018 ADCC North American Trials
2019 ADCC West Coast Trials
2022 ADCC 1st South American Trial
2007 ADCC World Championship
2024 ADCC World Championship
2011 ADCC World Championship
Match records
| Fighters | Result | Opponent | Method | Event | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Matthew Velez | def. | Nieko Malone | Submission | 2025 ADCC New Jersey Open | |
| Efrain Garcia | def. | Marco Miranda | Points | 2025 ADCC New Jersey Open | |
| Renan Quintanilla | def. | Andrew Than | Submission | 2025 ADCC New Jersey Open | |
| Efrain Garcia | def. | Diamond Armello | Submission | 2025 ADCC New Jersey Open | |
| James Comerford | def. | Dominic Blanco | Submission | 2025 ADCC New Jersey Open | |
| Matthew Velez | def. | Charley Jiang | Points | 2025 ADCC New Jersey Open | |
| Renan Quintanilla | def. | Efrain Garcia | Points | 2025 ADCC New Jersey Open | |
| Marco Miranda | def. | Efrain Garcia | Submission | 2025 ADCC New Jersey Open | |
| James Comerford | def. | Efrain Garcia | Decision | 2025 ADCC New Jersey Open | |
| Matthew Velez | def. | Renan Quintanilla | Points | 2025 ADCC New Jersey Open | |
| Emme Annie Bringeland | def. | Приліпко Анастасія | Submission | 2025 ADCC European, Middle-Eastern, A... | |
| Roman Sekereš | def. | Mohamed Moussa | Dq | 2025 ADCC European, Middle-Eastern, A... | |
| Amit Burshtein | def. | Joe Moreira | Points | 2025 ADCC European, Middle-Eastern, A... | |
| Veeti Miikki | def. | Roman Sekereš | Submission | 2025 ADCC European, Middle-Eastern, A... | |
| Jalol Mamadalibekov | def. | Dmytro Petrishchev | Points | 2025 ADCC European, Middle-Eastern, A... | |
| Artur Gherghilinic | def. | Wiktor Dulemba | Submission | 2025 ADCC European, Middle-Eastern, A... | |
| Guy Burshtein | def. | Konstantinos Katsampekis | Submission | 2025 ADCC European, Middle-Eastern, A... | |
| Jakub Pach | def. | Eduardo Rosario | Submission | 2025 ADCC European, Middle-Eastern, A... | |
| Tomas Votava | def. | Mateusz Raczkiewicz | Submission | 2025 ADCC European, Middle-Eastern, A... | |
| Paul Grönborg | def. | Olexiy Babenko | Submission | 2025 ADCC European, Middle-Eastern, A... |
