While penciling in the ten competitors to compete in the December Heavyweight Grand Prix, the promoters of the Copa Pódio Jiu-Jitsu tournament are drumming up some parallel match-ups.
The latest news, announced yesterday over the event’s Facebook page (here), is a double match-up pitting Jiu-Jitsu-fighter couples against each other.
The Couples Showdown involves two matches, each lasting six minutes. The first will be between men, and the second will be between women, and the women’s match picks up with the score carried over from the men’s match.
Should the men’s match end in a submission, the women will square off for a draw, should the girlfriend of the athlete who tapped out get comeuppance on her female counterpart.
One of the couples has already been picked. Lightweight world runner-up of 2011 Augusto Tanquinho and brown belt world champion Mackenzie Dern were invited to take part in the contest. The Copa Pódio organization will be announcing the second couple for this unprecedented match-up in the coming days.
Now GRACIEMAG.com readers can held out, by weighing in with their picks in the comments field below. Who do you feel should toe the line against Tanquinho and Mackenzie?
“These ideas add a more expansive dynamic to tournaments,” remarked Jeferson Maycá, the founder of Copa Pódio. “The Battle of the Cities, between fighters from different regions, and this Double Match-up between couples lets there be fighters from other weight groups, not just the heavyweights in the GP. It’s worth keeping in mind that Guto Campos will be defending his Superchallenge title, and there will also be the superfight showdown between Leandro Lo and Felipe Preguiça. These are matched fights that guarantee excitement during the breaks between phases in the GP (the group, semifinal and final phase), holding us over till we find out who’s the big winner of the night among heavyweights.”
