It’s today! Brave Challenge II gets a late bracket change; start time and how to watch

Brave Challenge II takes place today, Saturday, October 10, in Gaithersburg, Maryland, with a live stream on the VF Comunica YouTube channel. The event, organized by Max Gimenis, has a women’s Grand Prix, a men’s Grand Prix and ten superfights. Before each match, a wheel is spun to decide if it will be in the gi or no-gi.

A few hours before the start, the organizers confirmed the last name in the men’s bracket and announced a change in the superfights. See the schedule, how to watch and the updated lineup below.

What time does Brave Challenge II start?

The event starts at 4 p.m. Eastern Time. The opening ceremony is set for 4:30 p.m., and the first matches come right after.

• 4:00 p.m.: event starts
• 4:30 p.m.: opening ceremony
• 4:40 p.m.: first match, a quarterfinal of the women’s GP
• 7:00 and 7:10 p.m.: women’s GP semifinals
• 7:30 and 7:40 p.m.: men’s GP semifinals
• 8:35 p.m.: women’s GP final
• 8:55 p.m.: men’s GP final

All times are Eastern Time and may change depending on how long the matches take.

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How to watch Brave Challenge II live

The event will be streamed live on the VF Comunica YouTube channel, starting at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time. Turn on notifications to know when the stream starts.

The wheel decides: gi or no-gi

The gi is the traditional kimono of jiu-jitsu. No-gi is jiu-jitsu without it. Before each match, a wheel is spun to decide which of the two it will be. The athletes only find out at that moment, so they have to be ready for both. The matches last six minutes.

In an exclusive interview with VF Comunica, Max Gimenis explained the idea. “There is nothing on the market like Brave Challenge. Before each match, the roulette is spun to decide if it will be gi or no-gi. I really believe an athlete has to be complete,” he said. See how the wheel works.

Women’s GP has Tayane Porfírio and Letícia Teixeira

The women’s GP is an open class, with no weight limit, and has eight purple, brown and black belts: Tayane Porfírio, Letícia Teixeira, Maia Matalon, Saidah Durkee, Juliana Conroy, Sara Mascone, Livia Afonso and Jonna Wood.

Porfírio comes in with seven world titles. Teixeira, a black belt from Atos, was a world, European and Brazilian champion at brown belt. They are on opposite sides of the bracket, so they can only meet in the final. Last Sunday, October 4, Maia Matalon and Saidah Durkee fought each other in the black belt heavyweight final of the IBJJF Pan No-Gi, and Matalon won.

Men’s GP: Corey Dorsey steps in at the last minute

The men’s GP has eight brown and black belts up to 185 pounds, and the champion also takes the event belt. On Friday, October 9, the organizers said there was still one open spot. Hours later, they completed the bracket with Corey Dorsey, from Team Lloyd Irvin. Rhenan Henrique, who was on the first list, is not in the final bracket.

These are the quarterfinals:

• Pedro Rubim (GF Team) vs. Miles da Silva (Rapadura)
• Dustin Wagner (Disciple-9) vs. Angelo Claiborne (Lloyd Irvin)
• Luiz Augusto (Culture of Jiu-Jitsu) vs. Corey Dorsey (Lloyd Irvin)
• Diallo Braithwaite (The Lab MMA/Big Brothers) vs. Carlos Heredia (Lloyd Irvin)

There was also a change in the superfights: Leo da Silva is out of his match against Oscar Bisneto, and Anthony Condor takes his place. See the superfights announced for the event.

The same prize for men and women

Each GP pays US$ 1,000 to the champion, and the amount is the same for men and women. “If they deliver the same thing, why would I pay them differently? That is my idea,” Gimenis told VF Comunica.

Will you watch Brave Challenge II live? Tell us in the comments who your picks are in the two Grand Prix brackets.