Open class before the weight division: Mica Galvão’s suggestion for the IBJJF weigh-in
The world champion tells VF Comunica why lighter athletes avoid the open class and proposes holding it after the weight divisions, the way ADCC does
Mica Galvão wants to fight the open class at the Worlds. He said so plainly to VF Comunica in June, after winning his weight and the open class at the New Jersey Open, and he used the conversation to offer the IBJJF an idea about the order of the brackets. His proposal is simple: open class after the weight divisions.
Mica made a point of starting with appreciation. “They always treat me very well,” he said, before explaining why, in his view, many lighter athletes stay out of the open class.
The problem for athletes on a diet
Mica’s point is the schedule of those who have to make weight. He used himself as the example. “I remember in 2024, I was making lightweight and I had to fight the open class and then weigh in at lightweight,” he said.
The result, according to him, is an uneven matchup before the match even starts. On one side, someone who spent the week restricting food and water. On the other, athletes from the heavier divisions, who don’t have to make the same sacrifice. “Guys who are ultra heavy, who aren’t dieting, go in and fight the open class against lighter people who are dieting,” he said.
The idea: do it like ADCC
The suggestion came next. “Here’s a piece of advice, something to take a good look at, to give everybody an equal chance. Do it like ADCC. Once the main divisions are done, run the open class, then let people in, let people sign up,” he proposed.
For Mica, the change would improve the show. “People want to see a show,” he said. An athlete weakened by a weight cut, in his reasoning, can’t deliver his best in the open class or in his own division.
He also praised those who take the risk anyway, especially the lightest ones. “I congratulate the athletes who entered the open class,” he said, naming the light featherweights and featherweights. For him, featherweight is the toughest division in Jiu-Jitsu today. “Every division has three or four favorites. Featherweight, at least eight.”
“It’s much harder, but it’s not impossible”
Mica’s interest in the subject is personal. He said he plans to move up to middleweight for the next Worlds and that his main goal is something else. “The main thing I want isn’t the weight class, the main thing I want is the open class,” he said. “It’s a title I’ve dreamed of since I was little.”
He knows what people who think that way usually hear. “Many times I’ve been told that from middleweight down you have no chance of winning. I’m sure we do have a chance. It’s much harder, but it’s not impossible,” he said.
Full video on YouTube
The interview with Mica Galvão is in the New Jersey Open vlog on the VF Comunica YouTube channel (in Portuguese).
Should the open class be held after the weight divisions? Leave your opinion in the comments.
