Gianni Grippo talks about his duel with Keenan Cornelius
Brown belt Gianni Grippo hooked gold at lightweight in the Boston Open, but came short in the absolute, being stopped by a Keenan Cornelius’ choke.
“I felt misplaced and could not neutralize it, which resulted in the guard pass,” acknowledged the protégé of Renzo Gracie, who already sees another duel with heavyweight Cornelius. “Also, I let him get too comfortable. I should have worked harder to get to locations that I prefer.
“Next time, I’ll need to have a faster onset and be more aggressive. I can not let him get comfortable and unthreatened. Someone with as much talent as Cornelius can not be left at peace ever during a match.”
Also in preparation for the Pan in late March, Grippo goes back in action at the Chicago Open this weekend.
“It will be fun. I love competing, I like to prove my worth. The competition will be very difficult, but my goal is to win weight and absolute, “said the fighter, who has the perfect plan to conquer the Windy City. “I have already studied all my opponents, so I did not change my game for them. I know where their strong points are and will not let them get where they want. I’ll keep my game.”
