Claudia Gadelha wants a Cassia Moura vs. Adele Fornarino rematch: “The right thing to do is to run this one back”
The UFC BJJ president called it a “very, very tight match,” said she understands the Australian’s frustration and explained how the organization reviews its judges’ work every week
UFC BJJ president Claudia Gadelha wants to see Cassia Moura and Adele Fornarino face each other again. At the press conference after UFC BJJ 12, on Thursday, October 8, in Las Vegas, she was asked about the future of the two-division champion and pointed to a rematch as the fair next step after the split decision.
“Who doesn’t want to watch Cassia Moura, right? We all do. So we’ll have to go back to the matchmaking room on Tuesday and think about what we’ll do next. But I think the right thing to do is to run this one back and have a rematch between her and Adele,” she said.
“Very, very tight match”
Gadelha opened the press conference by talking about the main event. “Cassia and Adele created a historical moment here for us. Very, very tight match between the two,” she said.
She praised the Australian’s guard, the position where an athlete fights from the bottom, and the way the Brazilian dealt with it. “It’s very hard to pass that guard. I haven’t seen anyone passing her guard yet. So, I think Cassia was doing the right thing, trying to disengage and go around instead of going through. And she was able to pass a couple times. She was able to take Adele’s back in one of the rounds,” she said.
About the heel hook Fornarino locked in at the end of the first round, Gadelha admitted it was dangerous. She said the submission “was very, very tight” and that she thought Moura got hurt there. “It was right in the end of the first round and she was able to survive and she got back in the second round right into action,” she said. Moura herself said at the press conference that she felt her foot at that moment.
For Gadelha, the judges made the right call. “If you look at how much Cassia was engaging and how much the two of them were trying to progress, I think they just got it right,” she said.
“I understand her frustration”
Fornarino left the competition area frustrated, and Gadelha said she had not talked to her yet. “I understand her frustration. I’ve been there. I lost split decisions before,” said Gadelha, a former UFC fighter.
How UFC BJJ reviews its decisions
She used the question to explain what the organization does after every event. “Every Wednesday we spend an hour, an hour and a half watching every match that happens at UFC BJJ, and we study it as athletes, and we really spend a lot of time understanding if we judged things right or wrong and fixing the mistakes we did,” she said.
She said she is part of those meetings but tries not to interfere. “I’m on the calls with the judges and refs every Wednesday. Try to stay out of it as much as I can. I’m a promoter. I’m here to promote the sport and grow the sport of jiu-jitsu,” she said.
Gadelha also defended the people who score the matches. “Athletes put a lot of work into their performances, and here at UFC BJJ you get judged and reffed by your peers,” she said. “It’s very hard to disagree with their decisions.”
What Moura said
Moura said she expected the result when the decision was announced. In her view, Fornarino won the first round and the other two were hers, because she pushed the pace the whole time. Now holding the flyweight and bantamweight belts, the 20-year-old Brazilian said she wants to be back soon.
The result split fans and reopened the debate about the format of title matches, the subject of Are three rounds enough to decide a title? Both athletes also won performance bonuses.
Should a rematch with Adele Fornarino be Cassia Moura’s next match? Leave your opinion in the comments.
