PGF8 Opening Day Fantasy Results

Opening Day amazed!!! Phenomenal matches. Big surprises. 30 matches in just about 5.5 hours. Now we get to do a little Fantasy Jiu Jitsu recap, looking at the top athletes and the top Fantasy Squads. Le’ts begin!

PGF8 Week 1 Athlete Fantasy Leaderboard

Egghead had Mike John as one of his picks to be a top scorer in Week 1. While his reasoning wasn’t quite on point – he’ll take the win. Instead of getting two kills, Mike got just one break. But his one takedown and three mounts made up for the lack of submissions. Mike was so close on those guillotines. He’ll tweak some things and keep putting up those points for managers.

Mike John’s student, Dominic Lobo, didn’t fall from the tree. Lobo got most of his points from his Kill against Brady Hylton, supplementing those six points with four points from two back takes. Often rubber guard players can stall out in the PGF, getting stalling calls. So far, Lobo has had an urgency to his game, forcing his opponents to get called for stalling. BTW, his mom’s guava cheesecake bites are insanely good – Dom’s mom said the commentators looked hungry so Dom dropped some off for us. Check out Giovanna’s Flan & Bake Shop.

Matt Masch put on a great display on opening day. He definitely didn’t disappoint fans. He augmented his score through positional dominance – adding six points from a mount and two back takes to his three points for his submission.

Talk about not disappointing, Raphael Ferreira was just as non-stop as we expected. He’s excelling everywhere in the game, including on the microphone. Ferreira got two breaks, getting him six points. Rafa also had a mount for two points and a takedown for one additional point (which also got him $500 when PGF co-owner Zoltan Bathory threw his first money bag out for the IPPON!). Everyone is looking forward to all Rafa’s matches this season.

Christos Papadelos got two subs for his managers and he added a back take to earn eight fantasy points for his managers. Egghead really thought Papadelos would’ve gotten at least one kill, but putting points on the board on Opening Day is a win however you do it.

For Fantasy Managers who had Anthony Molina Valdes on their rosters, they were somewhat victims of his success. In his quick two break finishes, he spent less than 56 seconds on the mats total. That got Molina Valdes eight points (two breaks for three a piece with two Elbow Genie points). Molina Valdes might be a sub or no points type of fantasy play this season.

Zach Schneider took full advantage of a stalling call during his rematch with Jordan Wirth. As soon as the penalty restart occurred, Scheider deftly took Wirth’s back, immediately getting the body triangle and sunk in a RNC for six points. If you thought Schneider was the 8th ranked fantasy competitor, he was for a while. He was missing the back points. Egghead has contacted the PGF Fantasy webmaster and he quickly fixed it (THANKS J.C!).

As it turns out, a fantasy manager could have put all top seven fantasy scoring competitors on their squad and still been $50 under budget! The hypothetical perfect fantasy lineup would have netted their manager 62 fantasy points. Let’s look at the top fantasy squads and see if any fantasy managers shot the moon.

PGF8 Week 1 Fantasy Squad Leaderboard. It’s a long season, don’t worry. Egghead will prevail!

While no one shot the moon, the Smithawicks is your winner of PGF Fantasy for Opening Day. He scored 56 points, just edging out Paseaustin who had 55. Let’s check out his squad.

Smithawicks week 1 roster

Smithawicks got very close to perfect. He had six of the top seven scorers on his squad. He just subbed in JJ Bowers instead of Zack Schneider. Since Egghead told everyone on the broadcast that if they didn’t have Christos and JJ on their rosters that they were wrong, we’ll have to forgive Smithawicks for taking Egghead’s advice.

Well, there you have it – a quick recap of the top fantasy athletes and the top squad that was fielded for Opening Day. We still have four weeks left in the regular season. Can Smithawicks keep their place on top of the leaderboard? Can Egghead climb the list and finally achieve complete fantasy victory (Don’t call it a comeback, Egghead’s been here for years!)? Can you beat Egghead and Smithawicks with the best Week 2 fantasy squad lineup?

Well, you can’t win if you don’t play. Head over to fantasy.pgf.world, register and set your lineups. For those fantasy managers who played on Opening Day, remember – you have to set your lineups every week. You can’t just set it and forget it like the guy from Ronco told you about his rotisserie chicken product from those infomercials (kids, google it or ask chatgpt if that reference went over your heads).

Be sure to check out Week 2 of the PGF live and free on the PGF World Youtube Channel this upcoming Wednesday, 30 July 2025, at 4 p.m. Pacific time (7 p.m. Eastern). And check back on this blog for Egghead’s fantasy predictions for week 2 (forthcoming this weekend). Also, tune into the PGF World Youtube Channel this Sunday at 4p.m. Pacific to hear from the PGF Insiders as they discuss the PGF and talk to guests. The Insiders always have a lot of fun and love interacting with fans through the chat. Egghead out.

PGF8: Opening Day Fantasy Predictions!!!

FANTASY JIU JITSU IS BACK!!!!! PGF Season 8 opening day is upon us. 23 July 2025, the season will start. Better go to fantasy.pgf.world quickly and set your fantasy rosters before the action starts – teams are locked once the first match begins. PGF Fantasy jiu jitsu is free to sign up and play. The question is do you think you have what it takes to assemble the best fantasy jiu jitsu roster? Can you beat fantasy jiu jitsu guru Egghead and his 20 lb brain? You’ll only know if you sign up and play.

Just like fantasy football, every PGF fan will have a chance to compete against other fans to see who can pick the best fantasy PGF roster. Each week, PGF Fantasy managers will have a $7,000 budget to form a seven-competitor roster. Every squad must have seven players (you can’t just pick four premium players). Each week the player prices will change, so PGF fantasy jiu jitsu managers will need to set their lineups weekly. Every week, this blog will provide fantasy analysis to help fantasy managers pick their teams. Every time a PGF competitor on a fantasy roster hits a submission, that fantasy manager gets points for his fantasy jiu jitsu squad. However, in PGF fantasy jiu jitsu, fantasy managers will also get points when their players hit takedowns (1 pt), secure the mount position (2pts), or take their opponent’s back (2pts.). So a roster member might not have any points on the board for their standings in the regular PGF, but they might put tons of points on the board for a fantasy team if they have the right type of jiu jitsu style. For a breakdown of how the PGF Fantasy Jiu Jitsu website works, you can check out this video on setting your roster HERE or this video discussing the scoring HERE.

But let’s get to the fantasy analysis. Here’s the estimations of how the competitors will fare on OPENING DAY!!!

SUPER PREMIUMS (you’re going to have to offset the expense with budget players)

Jett Thompson (New Hope Kings) – $1300 faces Landon Elmore (Dollamur) – BREAK, John Chandler (Tropic Thunders) – KILL, and Matt Masch (Alabama Twisters) – DRAW – 9 points. Right off the bat, Jett will have a chance to show whether he’s worth the most ever paid for a PGF competitor. Newly minted KingsWave purple belt Landon Elmore will definitely be looking to steal some of Jett’s shine, but Jett will have the last laugh. Chandler’s likely going to try to put a pace on Jett, hoping Jett’s tired from cutting weight. Chandler’s aggression might open him up for a kill. Jett vs Matt Masch should be a great match and could go either way, so we’ll call it a draw.

Kris Olivo (Alabama Twisters) – $1200 faces Robert Blackledge (Tropic Thunders) – KILL, Armin Mirzakhanlou (Dollamur) – DRAW, Anthony Molina Valdes (New Hope Kings) – DRAW. – 6 Points. Olivo will be looking to set the tone for his season with his first match. Doubtless, Olivo thinks Blackledge is his best shot to secure points on opening day and he’s going for that kill. In his second match, he faces student and training partner Armin Bruni – they had a draw in the PGF team duel. They won’t pull any punches so to say, but they know each other so well it will likely be hard to get a sub in six minutes. Molina Valdes can be a leg lock sniper, but he can also have draws. Olivo has a leg game as well so there’s a real chance he gets caught in a leg lock battle and Olivo and Molina Valdes cancel each other out.

Mike John (Dollamur) – $1100 faces Juan Martinez V (New Hope Kings) – KILL, Jordan Wirth (Alabama Twisters) – KILL, Zack Schneider (Tropic Thunders) – DRAW – 12 points. PGF 6 veteran, Mike John’s going to have a big opening day. It might not be in this configuration, but he’s going to have a good day. He came into Season 6 not respecting the gauntlet that is the PGF and he’s back to prove he belongs in the PGF. Being a 10th Planet coach, Mike John doubtlessly deals with flexible, lanky, unorthodox training partners all the time. These are going to be some great matches, but Mike’s going to find a home for his guillotine on more than one competitor today.

Zack Schneider (Tropic Thunders) – $1100 faces Jordan Wirth (Alabama Twisters) – KILL, Juan Martinez V (New Hope Kings) – LOSS, Michael John (Dollamur) – DRAW – 6 points. In their previous match, Schneider found his way to Wirth’s back for the rear naked choke. He’s going to be trying to do the same thing on opening day – and with the previous win, you have to think he has the psychological advantage. Juan finds a way to get a break on Schneider; Juan’s a little off the radar and Schneider probably hasn’t been focusing his preparations on this match. Zack and Mike are seasoned veterans, both being on big stages for years. The battle of the veterans will be exciting, but is probably a toss up.

Average – (the players who fill your roster almost exactly on budget)

JJ Bowers (Tropic Thunders) – $1025 faces Brady Hylton (Alabama Twisters) – KILL, Dominic Lobo (New Hope Kings) – KILL , Christos Papadelos (Dollamur) – DRAW – 12 points. Coach Mica saw something in JJ to make him the second highest paid competitor in the draft. JJ has to be targeting Hylton and Lobo (two of the lower drafted competitors) for serious submissions. At the same time, a win over Papadelos would be a big statement for JJ. It would say he has serious plans on winning this season. But can he make that statement on opening day?

Raphael Ferreira (Alabama Twisters) – $1000 faces CJ Murdock (Tropic Thunders) – BREAK, Brady Branscum (Dollamur) – BREAK, Anthony Gojani (New Hope Kings) – BREAK – 9 points. Ferreira has been talking a lot of trash in the player group chat. He’s definitely going to have a target on his back. But Ferreira can capitalize on his motor which will be even better compared to his opponents who had to cut weight for opening day. Raphael (or Rafa) will just keep transitioning from position to position and submission attempt to submission attempt until he sinks one his opponents.

Christos Papadelos (Dollamur) – $1000 faces Dominic Lobo (New Hope Kings) – KILL, Brady Hylton (Alabama Twisters) – KILL, Joseph Bowers (Tropic Thunders) – DRAW – 12 points . Christos is a steal for $1000 and should be on everyone’s roster. He knows this game; he knows the strategy. He knows he is facing competitors on opening day who are submittable. Christos will definitely try to capitalize on his matchups and he likely will.

Juan Martinez (New Hope Kings) – $975 faces Michael John (Dollamur) – LOSS, Zack Schneider (Tropic Thunders) – BREAK, Jordan Wirth (Alabama Twisters) – DRAW – 3 points. PGF Season 4 veteran Juan has looked great in two qualifiers this season. Juan has some seriously hard matches on opening day. Out of the three, he’s going to find a way to get a submission in one of them, but it won’t be easy.

BUDGET PLAYERS (possible bargains that can help you save money for those premium players)

Matt Masch (Alabama Twisters) – $950 faces John Chandler (Tropic Thunders) – BREAK, Landon Elmore (Dollamur) – BREAK, Jett Thompson (New Hope Kings) – DRAW – 6 points. The last Combat Jiu Jitsu Worlds champion who competed on the PGF was Ryan Aitken, our PGF 7 champion. Masch will definitely be looking to follow in Aitken’s footsteps. Masch’s experience will help him take out Chandler and Elmore, but Jett Thompson’s another story. That match will be fire and either of them could win (which likely means a draw).

CJ Murdock (Tropic Thunders) – $925 faces Raphael Ferreira (Alabama Twisters) – LOSS, Anthony Gojani (New Hope Kings) – KILL, Brady Branscum (Dollamur) – DRAW – 6 points. CJ knows he needs to shift his game from the points/positional-based competitions he’s done so many times to the submission or nothing PGF. He’s going to find a way to get a Kill on Gojani, but that’s likely it for opening day. As Murdock gets into the rhythm of the PGF competition style, he definitely has a chance to get more submissions in his remaining 12 matches.

Jordan Wirth (Alabama Twisters) – $925 faces Zack Schneider (Tropic Thunders) – LOSS, Michael John (Dollamur) – LOSS, Juan Martinez  (New Hope Kings) – DRAW. The editorial board at Eggheadwarrior.com are huge fans of Wirth and his jiu jitsu style. Wirth will make a lot of new fans with his gameplay this season. But opening day will be tough for him. Likely no points for Wirth on day 1.

Anthony Gojani (New Hope Kings) – $900 faces Brady Branscum (Dollamur) – LOSS, CJ Murdock (Tropic Thunders) – LOSS, Raphael Ferreira (Alabama Twisters) – LOSS – 0 points. Gojani has been bringing the Elijah Carlton Bad Guy energy to the microphones, the player chat, and his social media. Everyone will be targeting Gojani this season and they’re likely to hit their mark on opening day. Gojani’s has a unique style that will be great to watch, but he’s likely not making it out of Day 1 with any points.

Anthony Molina Valdes – $900 (New Hope Kings) faces Armin Mirzakhanlou (Dollamur) – BREAK,  Robert Blackledge (Tropic Thunders) – BREAK,  Kristian Olivo (Alabama Twisters) – DRAW – 6 points. PGF Season 4 veteran, Molina Valdes’ leg locks are too good for Armin and Blackledge – he’s going to find a way to get those breaks. With his break-heavy style, Molina Valdes is going to have to keep racking up breaks since they’re worth half as many points as kills.

Armin Bruni (Dollamur) – $900 faces Anthony Molina Valdes (New Hope Kings) – LOSS, Kristian Olivo (Alabama Twisters) – DRAW, Robert Blackledge (Tropic Thunders) – BREAK – 3 points. Armin was a high draft pick in the PGF team duel. He’s a tough competitor, but doesn’t have the best draw this week. He’ll be working hard to make sure he leaves with some points, so he’ll make the most of his match against Blackledge.

Dom Lobo (New Hope Kings) – $900 faces Christos Papadelos (Dollamur) – LOSS, Joseph Bowers (Tropic Thunders) – LOSS, Brady Hylton (Alabama Twisters) – KILL. As the only player to get intentionally walked in the draft, Lobo has to be coming into the season with a chip on his shoulder. Motivation or no, he has a tough first two matches. After two likely losses to top-5 draft picks Papadelos and Bowers, Lobo’s going to find a way to work his rubber guard game against Hylton. Look for that gogo play that made him go viral previously.

SUPER BUDGET/PENNY STOCKS (NOT LIKELY TO MAKE YOU MUCH, BUT IF YOU HAVE MONEY LEFT IN YOUR POCKET…)

As a little disclaimer, this season has the most parity of any PGF season to date. These prices make these competitors super budget. Many of these competitors have real chances to put points on the board on opening day. If you think they are going for too little, put them on your roster and say thank you.

Landon Elmore (Dollamur) – $885 faces Jett Thompson (New Hope Kings) – LOSS, Matthew Masch (Alabama Twisters) – LOSS, John Chandler (Tropic Thunders) – BREAK – 3 points. Elmore faces two of the toughest competitors from the roster in the first two blocks. He’ll likely find a way to get one of his leg locks on Chandler, but he’s going to have to work for it. Don’t get it twisted, there’s a very real possibility Elmore makes the playoffs. He just has a hard draw for opening day.

Robert Blackledge (Tropic Thunders) – $850 faces Kristian Olivo (Alabama Twisters) – LOSS, Anthony Molina Valdes (New Hope Kings) – LOSS, Armin Mirzakhanlou (Dollamur) – LOSS. Based on the limited film of Blackledge available online, he’s going to have a bad day. At the same time, since there is so little film, he might be able to sneak up on people like Jett Thompson in PGF Season 6. We’ll know a lot more which way this season will go for Blackledge once the dust has settled from Opening Day.

John Chandler (Tropic Thunders) – $850 faces Matthew Masch (Alabama Twisters) – LOSS, Jett Thompson (New Hope Kings) – LOSS, Landon Elmore (Dollamur) – LOSS – 0 points. The editorial board of Eggheadwarrior.com doesn’t like how these estimates worked out. Chandler was definitely a bright spot in the few matches he got in PGF Season 6. Chandler recently improved to 3-0 in his amateur mma record and is a VERY game competitor. But Chandler is facing three competitors that are likely to make the playoffs.

Brady Hylton (Alabama Twisters) – $800 faces JJ Bowers (Tropic Thunders) – LOSS, Christos Papadelos (Dollamur) – LOSS, Dominic Lobo (New Hope Kings) – LOSS – 0 points. This season will likely be a long one for Hylton. He’s going to get an amazing amount of high-level competition experience. He’s shown in the qualifiers he can be tough, but he’s taking a big step up in level of competition in PGF Season 8.

Brady Branscum (Dollamur) – $800 faces Anthony Gojani (New Hope Kings) – KILL, Raphael Ferreira (Alabama Twisters) – LOSS, CJ Murdock (Tropic Thunders) – LOSS – 6 points. Branscum should also be on everyone’s rosters. For this price, he’s a real value pick. His wrestle-heavy, passing style will likely force competitors to receive stalling penalties, giving him a look at taking their backs for KILLS. He’s going to be a competitor who has upside potential against almost every competitor. He’s going to have a tall order in Ferreira and Murdock, but should get at least one submission on opening day.

As mentioned above, there’s more parity this season than ever before in the PGF. Just like the opening week of football season, we’ll have a lot more information about all the players once the Opening Day matches have concluded. Who will be the stars no one expected? Which top draft pick will lay an egg and be playing catchup? Will one team start to pull away from the rest? Opening Day will give us 30 matches of excitement, but also knowledge. To be honest, most fantasy managers and fans are on an even playing field currently. So sign up and pick a squad – you can’t win if you don’t play!

PGF Season 8 is LIVE and FREE on YouTube. Starting on 23 July and for the next five weeks, every Wednesday, fans can watch amazing PGF action starting at 7pm Eastern/4pm Pacific. Tune in and watch four teams and 20 grapplers take their respective shots at becoming Professional Grappling Federation Champions! But remember, with Fantasy PGF, you can have a shot at being a PGF Champion as well!!!




PGF8 DRAFT GRADES

GAME ON!!!! Opening Day is only a few weeks away, but the PGF recently set their team lineups during the PGF Season 8 DRAFT!!! Some teams knocked it out of the park, stealing some highly regarded competitors. Some teams might have reached on players, paying too much, leaving them in the back seat for much of the draft. Let’s look at the rules of the draft and the team draft grades.

In an auction style format, each of the four teams had $15,000 actual dollars to assemble their five-competitor teams. The rules required that each bid increase by at least $100 and every team had to save at least $1,000 for each of their players (e.g. a team for their first pick could go up to $11,000, leaving $1,000 each for their remaining players). Players had every incentive to motivate higher bids because these auction prices are their actual base salaries for the season (we’ll talk about all the other ways they can add to these salaries later). With a $15,000 and five slots, the average salary should have been $3,000. While many consider the parity this season to be at an all-time high, most bids varied greatly off that $3,000 average. But how did each team perform in the draft? To be consistent, the Editorial Board at Eggheadwarrior.com will evaluate the draft performances based on the teams assembled compared to the Eggheadwarrior.com Draft Rankings published before the draft. In those rankings, we established general tiers of competitors – so the more top-tier talent on a team, the better the draft performance. So who “won the draft”?

Team Canuto, coached by Renato Canuto. Photo by Michael Plaster.

TEAM CANUTO – GRADE A: PGF veteran Renato Canuto really set his draft up with his first draft pick. Somehow Canuto snagged Combat Jiu Jitsu Winner Matt Masch for only $2500. The last Combat Jiu Jitsu World Champion to grace the PGF stage was last season’s champion Ryan Aitken. Again, since the hypothetical average player should go for $3,000, Canuto snagged a Tier 2 talent at a $500 discount of the average (stashing that money for later picks). Canuto followed up that pick by drafting Jake Shields black belt and long-time 10th Planet standout Jordan Wirth for only $1100! At least a Tier 3 talent with the most unorthodox or just plain funky jiu jitsu around, Wirth will find ways to get some buggy chokes and gogos (gogoplatas and likely gogo clinches) this season – all of which are KILLS and will rack up six points a piece for his team. Getting Wirth for $1100, meant Canuto had essentially put $2400 in his war chest to pounce on a favorite draft pick later. Next Canuto drafted fellow PGF veteran Kris Olivo. Olivo competed in Season 7 as an alternate but got plenty of mat time in that 215 weight class season. Olivo walks around in the 180s naturally, so he should be one of the largest competitors. Combine that with his attacking mentality and he’s going to be great this season. The Editorial Board had Olivo as a Tier 1 talent – meaning Canuto at $3500, only had to pay a $500 premium to get one of the top competitors. These strategic moves left Canuto with $7900 for his last two picks, meaning he had $6900 if he wanted to go “all-in” for a competitor. An all-in he went for PGF Season 8 Las Vegas Qualifier winner Raphael Ferreira. In that qualifier, the Tier 1 ranked 17 year old finished at the top with 9 out of 20 PGF8 competitors in the bracket. Ferreira beat four of those competitors himself (and he cribbed my notes from the player info sheet I shared with him – in his awesome callout speech while being auctioned off). Ferreira is something special, out-cyclng his opponents. Because of the way he positioned his team, Canuto was able to go just shy of all-in, landing Ferreira for $6400. With his last pick, Canuto drafted Brady Hylton for his remaining $1500, adding a very tough competitor who has upside despite his Tier 5 ranking. Canuto landed two Tier 1 competitors, one Tier 2 competitor, one Tier 3 competitor, and one Tier 5 competitor – that’s a great team!

Team Varela, led by PGF Season 6 Champion Andy Varela. Photo by Michael Plaster.

TEAM VARELA – Grade A- (B+): The grade was going to be A-, but there was a deduction for math issues. Varela made a bit of a miss step out of the gate, showing a bias for his student Brady Branscum. While the Branscum’s Tier 5 ranking might be a bit low, Varela tipped his hand when he came out hot with his first bid. As other coaches moved to bid up Branscum, Varela jumped the bid in $500 or more increments. Branscum could be a surprise this season, finding ways to use his wrestling to cause shot clock violations, possibly resulting in taking his opponent’s back and getting rear-naked chokes, Varela overpaid for Branscum. The Draft Commentary team pointed out it’s great to take care of a homie by getting them paid, but it could backfire later on when a team needed that money. Varela immediately made up for this overbid, this time using his big splash bidding to get PGF Season 6 veteran Mike John for only $3200. Mike John is a solid Tier 2 talent who is poised to give his team a number of kills for the season. Mike John was a great pick up and a great value at $3200. Unfortunately, Varela was targeting Raphael Ferreira (like every other coach), but the $6700 he had spent for his first two picks meant Varela couldn’t match Canuto’s bid. That didn’t stop Varela from trying, bidding up to $7000 before the auditors got the attention of the PGF staff. Varela was smart to target Ferreira, but he just didn’t have enough money left to match Canuto. Varela made another nice draft pick in Armin Bruni. Bruni is tough, durable, rugged. At $1400, this Tier 4 competitor is a solid value for a team’s stopper (e.g. the player on a team you can use to ensure your opponents don’t put points on the board). In perhaps the steal of the draft, Varela snagged Landon Elmore, a solid Tier 2 player and recent Enigma Invitational 155lb champion for ONLY $1600. Sure, Elmore is a blue belt and a teenager, but he’s the PGF 8 Austin qualifier winner and trains at one of the best gyms in the world in Kingswave Jiu Jitsu in Austin. Elmore is putting up points this season and has a great shot at making the playoffs. Finally, Varela scored the biggest name in the second half of the draft in Christos Papadelos. Also out of Kingswave, Papadelos was the runner up in the PGF 7 Austin Qualifier (215 lb season) and made a mark during his time on the mats during PGF 7. More importantly, he’s the promoter of Enigma Jiu Jitsu and has spent more time with the PGF ruleset (he adopted it for his promotion) than any other competitor on the roster. Papadelos appreciated me calling him wicked smart (pointing out the Massachusetts pronunciation of smaht), but it’s just solidly true. Varela found the quarterback of his team in Papadelos. Team Varela will easily be in the running for PGF 8 Champions this season.

The New Hope Kings Team led by Coach Robert Drysdale. Photo by Michael Plaster.

NEW HOPE KINGS – GRADE B: The first franchise in Jiu Jitsu history, the New Hope Kings went big early. While the rest of the draft order was random, the first pick of the draft was auctioned off, allowing the winning team to pick whomever they wanted first. Going for $7700, Jett “the Kid” Thompson, your PGF Season 6 runner-up, became the player to received the highest bid in PGF history. Representing 51.3% of the New Hope Kings’ budget, Thompson will a large responsibility to lead his team, and the league in points, and he very well might succeed. Jett Thompson was very much the consensus number one pick amongst everyone who weighed in on the matter. This strategy of spending big on the anchor of their team helped the New Hope Kings win PGF Season 7. Last season, the New Hope Kings bided their time, saving their budget for Ryan Aitken who was last in the randonmly-ordered auction. Spending 52% of their budget on Aitken paid off, with him scoring more points than the top two members of any other team. This season, they made their big splash up front. However, this big splash forced them to relinquish the driver’s seat as they had to conserve funds for the rest of their team. The Kings weren’t able to lock down any other competitors until they grabbed the 15th player up for auction: Anthony Gojani. Gojani who has been the biggest talker on the roster has some very funky jiu jitsu and should be a fan favorite, but comes in as a Tier 4 competitor in the draft rankings. The Kings got Gojani for the league minimum, $1000, helping them smooth out their budget issues a bit. The Kings made a great move snagging Anthony Molina Valdes with their next pick for only $1500. At that price the Tier 2 ranked Molina Valdes was a steal. Molina Valdes won qualifiers both in PGF Season 4 and this season and he has the experience from competing in PGF Season 4. Since then, he’s moved to the B Team for training and should have a great showing this season. The New Hope Kings targeted Juan Martinez V, another PGF Season 4 veteran next. They almost lost Juan due to some creative financing on another team’s part, but the Kings leadership appealed the ruling to the Commish, ultimately getting their guy for $3800. As a tier 3 talent, $3800 is a solid price for Juan. He’s definitely improved his game since PGF Season 4 and should be exciting to watch this season. Finally, they rounded out their roster with Dominic Lobo at $1000. Lobo had one of the most viral clips in jiu jitsu in the last year and is currently a special project of Eddie Bravo’s. While the Editorial Board had Lobo as a Tier 5 talent, he’s young and sure to want to make even more of a name for himself. Again, we’ll see if the go big or go home approach to the draft can work again for the New Hope Kings. The late pickups of Anthony Molina Valdes and Juan Martinez V certainly help provide a cast of supporting characters who can help Jett Thompson put up points this season. But as noted above, with the increased parity this season, it will be hard to pull off a Ryan Aitken-like performance.

Team Mica, Coached by Mica Cipili. Photo by Michael Plaster.

TEAM MICA- GRADE C+: As a disclaimer, Coach Mica Cipili has coached a PGF Season Championship team (Team New Hope with Pedro Sauer in PGF Season 7), so the Editorial Board could be very wrong about the following analysis. Still, the grades reflect the rosters compared to the EggheadWarrior.com Draft Rankings. Coach Mica started off the draft very well. His first pick of Zach Schneider for only $2300 was outstanding. While Schneider was in the middle of the ranking pack as a Tier 3 competitor, he has lots of experience on big stages at both Submission Underground and Combat Jiu Jitsu Worlds. He comes in maybe a little undersized, but with great jiu jitsu with a bent towards kills. JJ Bowers wasted no time hyping up the coaches to draft him. By putting Keith Krikorian to sleep with an anaconda at Combat Jiu Jitsu Worlds, JJ made an indelible mark in the minds of everyone. Training and competing in jiu jitsu since he was a young child, JJ has around a decade and a half of experience. He’s certainly shown he can take on the best, but was only a Tier 3 player in the rankings due to his smaller body of work at the adult level. With that ranking, $6,600 was a bit of a reach for JJ. But PGF 8 could be JJ’s true coming out party, giving him 15 matches to show everyone he’s ready to make waves in jiu jitsu. If that happens, this draft grade would definitely go up. With his third pick, Mica was able to select his real-life student in Robert Blackledge. While Blackledge was a Tier 5 ranked competitor, Mica slyly played it cool and was able to get his student for only $1200 – a solid pickup for that price. Many believed CJ Murdock at $1,100 was a great bargain. The very experienced competitor out of Daisy Fresh/Pedigo has a wrestling heavy style that can grind away at opponents. While only ranked as a Tier 4 competitor based on his body of work, CJ informed the Editorial Board that he’s been doing nothing but PGF format training for months and knowing he has to shift from his strategies under other rulesets. After picking up CJ, Team Mica only had $3800 left in their budget, putting players like Christos Papadelos and Juan Martinez V out of reach fairly quickly once bidding began. Mica rounded out his roster, spending his remaining budget on John Chandler, a Tier 4 ranked competitor. The PGF Season 6 alternate made the most out of his time on the mats that season, showing a serious motor. Recently, Chandler improved to 3-0 in MMA. One has to think his MMA cardio will help him wear down opponents in a season with a more appropriate weight class. Team Mica might be seen as the underdogs to win this season, but that status might just make them gel together and overperform their rankings.

The PGF 8 Draft is complete. Now you know your teams. Soon, the PGF 8 schedule will be announced and give the teams a few weeks to start game planning for their Opening Day matchups. Beginning on Opening Day, July 23, the PGF 8 Regular Season will take place once a week on Wednesdays for five weeks. Each night, 30 matches will occur for a total of 150 matches in the season. Every competitor will face all 15 opponents from the other teams. The top scoring team of the season will become your PGF 8 Team Champions. The top eight scoring players from the entire league, regardless of team, will face off against each other in the PGF 8 Playoffs Finale in a single-elimination bracket to crown your PGF 8 Overall Champion. The stage is set folks. It’s the most exciting time of the year for jiu jitsu – PGF Season. GET EXCITED!!!

PGF 8: Egghead’s Draft Rankings

The clock is near midnight on the eve of the Professional Grappling Federation (PGF) draft. The Editorial board at Eggheadwarrior.com has been frantically scouring the interwebs to find all the film and compile stats on the competitors. Don’t worry, by the time you have to set your fantasy lineups, you’ll have some glorious stats on these competitors. Nevertheless, the traditional PGF Insider mock draft is upon us. In only a handful of hours, the PGF Insiders will gather to conduct our mock draft which might inform everyone of the competitors this season and their prospects. As originally a PGF fantasy news site, Eggheadwarrior.com has followed the best practices of fantasy drafts – putting competitors into tiers. These tiers roughly follow the rounds in which competitors would be drafted if it were a traditional draft. Of course, the PGF draft is an auction draft, which is more akin to poker – you play the opponent, not the cards. Regardless, this evaluation might provide the fans, coaches, and fantasy managers with some value. Enjoy.

Tier 1: The Bedrock of a team. Coaches and Fantasy managers can’t afford to miss on their top pick. They need to make points happen…period.

  • Jett Thompson – PGF Season 6 runner-up with a very stacked roster at a higher weight class. The secret is out that Jett’s a killer. While he’s not going to surprise anyone this season, he’s still going to submit many of his opponents. And he loves that grind – he’s excited for 15 matches. He’s a no-brainer top pick. Nothing else is needed, re-watch PGF Season 6 if you need to know more.
  • Christos Papadelos – The first man invited to PGF Season 8. Papadelos went into the PGF7 Austin Qualifier (the 205lb season) and submitted everyone besides his roommate that greatly outweighed him. Papadelos is not only a competitor, but he’s a promoter. The founder and head of Enigma Jiu Jitsu, he’s wicked smart (read that as *smaht* if you’re familiar with the Massachusetts area from where Papadelos hails). Papadelos usually gives up lots of weight against his opponents and still excels. Now that Christos is in his weight class, he’s going to rise to the top – if there’s someone who has researched everyone on this list more than our Editorial board, it’s Christos. Christos will have an answer, a gameplan, for everyone.
  • Raphael Ferreira – Your PGF 8 Las Vegas Qualifier winner! He goes “a Brazilian miles an hour” as one fan put it in the stream’s comments. Ferreira truly weaponizes cardio (tip of the cap to PGF Veteran Caleb McAlister). Raphael just out cycled all his opponents at the qualifier. More importantly, the PGF 8 Las Vegas qualifier included nine out of the 20 (or 45%) of the competitors who will be vying for the PGF 8 title. Raphael personally defeated four of those nine competitors. Any fan who sees an interview with Raphael will see a true baby face. He’s a very nice, calm young man who wants to pursue a law degree in the future. But stand by, when he steps onto the mats and the referee tells them to start. At that point, Raphael turns into the Tazmanian Devil, relentlessly attacking his opponent until he can secure a submission. His mild-mannered appearance and demeanor might just be setting him up to repeat or exceed Jett “the Kid” Thompson’s success from PGF Season 6.
  • Kris Olivo – founder of Potential Jiu Jitsu, a Zenith Jiu Jitsu affiliate, promoted to black belt by Robert Drysdale.  “The Most Interesting Man in the PGF!” Olivo was in the Air Force. Then he decided he wanted to do jiu jitsu and train under Drysdale because Drysdale beat Marcelo Garcia. When no one in the Air Force wanted to support his decisions, Olivo willed his way to Nellis AFB in Las Vegas area. On a whim, became a magician and sold magic tricks online for Penguin Magic. Olivo has co-written a book. He’s started a marketing company for franchises. Olivo has started a platform for individual service providers to build their reputation online(endorsemii). Olivo started his own gym, affiliate of Zenith bjj, where he decided to be the only jiu jitsu gym with a sauna and a cold plunge in Las Vegas. Olivo decided he needed some big wins in his jiu jitsu journey so he won a no-gi masters world championship at Brown belt. Olivo is coming in to this season, weighing normally at 180 or more; instead of giving up weight to his opponents like he did in PGF Season 7, in Season 8, Kris will be one of the bigger boys. As a marketing guy, Olivo knows to be himself, but turned up to 11. His entrepreneurial spirit has led him to set big, hairy, audacious, goals…and Olivo accomplishes them. I wouldn’t bet against this man who’s consistently beat the odds. This PGF Season 7 alternate and most stylish competitor to grace the PGF stage (tip of the cap to Cam Hurd and Kyle Chambers) will be both a fan favorite and an odds favorite to finish in the top 8, if not on top, period!

Tier 2: Your Scottie Pippens to your Michael Jordans. These competitors should add serious points and help pick up the slack when your top pick has a bad day of matchups.

  • Anthony Molina – Here’s the first athlete ranking that’s going to get the Editorial Board at Egghead.com in trouble. Anthony has won two PGF qualifiers (season 4 and season 8). But in his PGF 8 Decatur qualifier win, Anthony had three matches that went to decision. Anthony can be a leg lock sniper and has the ability to put points on the board quickly, but he can also be taken to a draw (or submitted). He’s a talent that will greatly help a team, but not the bedrock of one.
  • Matt Masch – Matt Masch has already found serious success at the ripe old age of 20. After coming in second place out of nowhere at the CJJ Worlds 2024 Featherweights (March), Masch returned eight months later in December and took home the CJJ Worlds 2024 Lightweights title (a higher weight division). To gain these accomplishments, Masch had to take out PGF alumni Max Hanson and Ben Eddy as well as fellow Young Gun (see below) JJ Bowers. Until the Combat Jiu Jitsu runs, Masch has mostly competed in regional events in the Northeast. He has serious wrestling and leg locks. In the Combat Jiu Jitsu Worlds, Masch was able to add devastating palm strikes to soften up his opponents, making them change their position. The last CJJ Worlds Champion to compete in the PGF just happened to lead his team to the championship and then won the individual championship. CJJ Worlds Champion and PGF Season 7 Ryan Aitken has some literally big shoes to fill, but you have to think Masch is hoping to reproduce his fellow CJJ Worlds champion’s success.
  • Landon Elmore – For its first five seasons, the PGF always had a blue belt who rose above their ranks. This blue belt would inevitably make the playoffs as one of the top eight. Landon trains at arguably the best gym in the world with Kingswave (formely New Wave) Jiu Jitsu with Gordon Ryan, John Danaher, et al. Landon has also been grappling since his tender years. He proves the proposition that blue belts can have black belt techniques: Landon is constantly looking for a foot to lock, whether heel hook or an ankle lock variation. And he has entries from all over. Landon went to two qualifiers, winning the PGF 8 Austin Qualifier – also arguably one of the cities most chock full of bjj talent in the United States. Will Landon prove once again that #bluebeltsarepeopletoo (that’s also a PGF fantasy reference)? One has to believe Landon has a true chance to show a blue belt can once again have real success and become a fan favorite.
  • Mike John – Black Belt Instructor at 10th Planet Orange – recently had a big Combat Jiu Jitsu TKO win at Subversiv Fight Club. Mike’s had big wins in many of the bigger promotions in jiu jitsu. Mike John was the only person in PGF Season 6 who actually earned his way onto the show: Mike sunk in six submissions at the PGF Season 6 Las Vegas qualifier to earn his PGF6 spot. Mike’s PGF Season 6 ended early, but he showed off his killing ability before he left. Now, Mike’s competing in the PGF Season 8, 155lb season, which is his true weigh class. In PGF Season 6, Mike John became one of the many PGF competitors to fight up a weight class or two. Now, he’s excited to get a shot at the PGF title when his opponents are not outweighing him by 20 or more pounds. Mike has tons of experience and has served as an instructor or coach for multiple other competitors. Mike has a well-deserved reputation for grit and skill. Mike John is one of my pics to end up in the top five this season – he’s a really chill guy if you get to talk to him, but there’s a killer hiding just beneath the surface. I guarantee it.

Tier 3: The value picks. Here’s where true championships are made. Will the coaches and fantasy managers know which of these competitors are undervalued? If they pick the right one, they might just be holding the big check at the end of the season.

  • Juan Martinez V – Head Coach at Childress BJJ (Pueblo, Colorado) and owner of Ukes Grappling Club. The Uke, according to his “gram,” Juan Martinez V earned a lot of fans during his PGF Season 4 (155lb) run. Even in that season’s quintet format, Juan found a way to earn spot in the top eight, getting a spot in the playoffs. Since Season 4, Juan earned a gold medal in the ADCC Phoenix open in 2024. He showed some great jiu jitsu in both the Austin and Las Vegas PGF qualifiers, including a slick triangle with a little gag reflex against fellow PGF8 contender JJ Bowers. After PGF Season 4, Juan has earned three more years of experience, going from 21/22 to the ripe old age of 24. He went from a game competitor to a dangerous competitor, showing great improvement in his guard game. Juan is now just hitting his stride. He still comes from a smaller, regional school but his dedication to the game is serious. Juan knows he has a great opportunity with the PGF this season. One has to believe, he will do everything in his power to capitalize on this opportunity.
  • JJ Bowers – Not only his JJ looking to reproduce Jett’s epic run from PGF Season 6; JJ and Jett both took their last chance and competed in the under 18 divisions in 2024. Both JJ and Jett won the ADCC World Championship in their respective weight division, with Jett being in the weight class directly above JJ. JJ has trained Jiu Jitsu since he was five already earning state and national acclaim when he was just 11. He started working on MMA and Pankration at an early age as well. JJ’s stock skyrocketed when he hit a very quick finish of world-class competitor Keith Krikorian at CJJW 2024: The Lightweights (2024). JJ had hit another anaconda in his previous match in that tournament. He ran into Masch (see above) and Masch caught him while JJ was looking to pass. JJ is very aggressive. He has a very exciting combination of wrestling, passing, and kills (in the PGF sense). With PGF 8, JJ has the opportunity to show he’s can fulfill the promise of his youth wins and continue that success in the adult ranks. JJ has a chip on his shoulder naturally which gives him the aggression and motor. JJ has won everywhere so far, and he believes he can do take these winning ways to PGF Season 8.
  • Jordan Wirth – The epitome of crazy 10th Planet Jiu Jitsu. He put a competitor to sleep with a gogo clinch at the PGF 8 Las Vegas Qualifier. He’s known for his buggy chokes as well. Wirth has tons of experience competing. He has wins over multiple competitors in this division. More importantly, he might get subbed a few times, but he’s always going for the submission. Jordan has a real home field advantage and he does some of his best work in Las Vegas. As one of the older gentlemen in this season, Jordan has that force behind him telling him he needs to make his move onto the mainstream scene now – and that makes him even more dangerous.
  • Zack Schneider – A veteran of Submission Underground and multiple Combat Jiu Jitsu events. He’s dangerous. But he’s also undersized for this weight class. This ranking isn’t a valuation of his skill, but more of a “what have you done for me lately” calculation. Schneider is in Tier 3 because he could easily go either way (standout or letdown) depending on how his season unfolds.

Tier 4: The Sleeper picks – those competitors who might fly under the radar but could provide real value. Like Tier 3, this tier could really make a team breakout if they do it right.

  • Armin Bruni – Armin’s a good guy and the Editorial Board of Eggheadwarrior.com enjoyed meeting him at the PGF Media day, but one has to wonder if he’s in the witness protection program. He’s changed his name (if you try to find him on flow, good luck looking for Bruni) and he’s changed his look (full head of hair and a full goatee to a close buzz cut and only stubble). Armin under his old name has some nice submissions in Flograppling, but at the Team Duel during the PGF 8 Las Vegas Qualifier Bruni only had draws in three matches. He has a lot of potential, but he might struggle to get submissions in the six-minute sprint that is the PGF.
  • Anthony Gojani – Gojani styles himself as an early Elijah Carlton of the Northeast. He’s done serious, but regional shows. As more footage of him submitting opponents gets out, his upcoming opponents find ways to back out of matches. He’s lanky and insanely flexible. He has an awesome back-take from full guard with a body lock…you’ll see it this season. With his attitude and crazy, unorthodox jiu jitsu, he has a lot of upside, but he’s also lost matches against competitors ranked above him, hence his tier level.
  • John Chandler – the PGF Season 6 alternate from Orange County Regional Training Center (RTC) was drastically underweight for Season 6. He weighed in with all his clothes on and then some for Season 6 and still made weight. Chandler had an exhilarating match against his frequent training partner AJ Agazarm and another exciting match against Matt Elkins. At just 22, he’s still a very young, up-and-coming talent in BJJ and MMA. Chandler recently won an amateur MMA match via rear naked choke in the first round to bring his MMA record to 3-0 as an amateur. This young man is pure Americana. Coming from a football and wrestling background in high school, like so many other combat sports athletes, he had a dream to fight MMA at the UFC. He’s built upon a wrestling background where he still sharpens his tools both training at and teaching at Orange County RTC, but added serious jiu jitsu, training with 10th Planet Fullerton and even 10P HQ. Chandler has the drive and motor to match anyone at PGF Season 8. Win or lose, he’s going to put on a good show in every match!
  • CJ Murdock – He has great wrestling, passing, pinning, and overall positional control. These characteristics make him very dangerous at ADCC or IBJJF, but are only part of the equation for the PGF ruleset. In the PGF 8 Las Vegas qualifier, CJ was the runner up, but of his five matches, four of them ended with decisions (which would be draws/losses in the PGF regular season). CJ is going to be fun to watch. He’s definitely dangerous. But he seems like he can be neutralized by taking him to a draw. CJ comes from a great gym and it’s likely they may tweak his game to emphasize a quicker submission – if that’s the case, CJ could be a huge value pick in this tier.

Tier 5: In Fantasy terms, this tier is usually called your penny stocks. Just like the stock market, this group could make a team’s fortunes or go to zero. For a historical perspective, Jett Thompson went to Team 1st Phorm for 1200 in the fifth round of PGF Season 6 – and he became the overall runner-up and had the third most points of any competitor in the regular season. These competitors could be the diamonds in the rough.

  • Brady Branscum – Coming from a wrestling background, he’s going to be fun on the feet, but he only has six minutes for PGF matches. His coach won PGF 6 so hopefully, he learned that from Varela. But his top game could lead to his opponents getting stalling calls which would put them in bottom referee position which Brady should win. His EBI matches showed he could be stalled out, but if he gets on your back, there’s a good chance for a RNC Kill. Competes at 145 lb so might be a little light (but as a wrestler, there’s a fair chance he’s been cutting to 145 lb. Another storyline, he’s won 6 ADCC Opens altogether at Intermediate, this season might be his time to show he’s ready to be a player at the higher levels. But until he proves he’s at this level, he’s probably a lower tier draft pick.
  • Brady Hylton – Hylton is very technically sound. He loves playing the guard. He has great guard recovery. He uses his guard and leg attacks to find headlocks and the back. But he doesn’t have any wins over anyone in the competition. He will put in solid matches and his draw against CJ Murdock shows he might be a good stopper for a team. But he’s not a reliable source of prospective points for a team.
  • Dominic Lobo – The future is bright for this 20 year old 10th Planet product. With Eddie Bravo and Mike John as his coaches, Lobo will have the path shown for him. While Lobo has had one of the biggest highlights of the year by putting a guy out in CJJ with a gogoplata, his opponent was an MMA fighter out of Ecuador, training at the FPI in Mexico. Lobo’s win at the PGF 8 Decatur qualifier was impressive but it was against a white belt. He’s also a little undersized, competing at 145 lbs. Don’t get me wrong, Lobo has great upside potential, but he’s probably going for the league minimum.
  • Robert Blackledge – Training out of Gracie Humaita Las Vegas, Blackledge will definitely have homefield advantage and will have his actual coach, Mica Cipili, at the PGF with him. He’s an acrobat, owning an acrobatics gym in Las Vegas. But he’s bottom tier because of the limited footage of him out there. Of the 12 videos, the researchers could find, Blackledge only wins two of the matches (one by points; one by advantage). Best guess is his real-life coach picks him up for the league minimum.

There you have it. Here’s the traditional Eggheadwarrior.com pre-draft rankings. The Mock PGF Draft will commence at 10pm Easter TONIGHT (20 June) on the PGF YouTube Channel. The REAL PGF Season 8 Draft will start on Wednesday, 25 June HERE. It’s the most fun jiu jitsu event ever – and you won’t see any jiu jitsu. Seriously, it’s a blast. Check it out and see which competitors who might be nemeses in real life become teammates (e.g. Elijah Carlton and Davis Asare in PGF Season 6) or just see who your favorite grappler will be facing this season. Remember, this season is now five weeks, meaning 15 matches for every competitor. This setup means every competitor will face very other competitor on other teams (they will not face their teammates). If you’re a PGF fan you just might start hearing the old Christmas song in your head “It’s the most wonderful time of the year” because it is. It’s PGF time folks – the MOST wonderful time of the year.

Keep following PGF World and Brandon Mccaghren on Instagram and keep tuning in to the PGF Insiders on PGF World’s YouTube page. We normally go live at 7pm Eastern on Sundays. PGF Season 8 kicks off June 25th with the PGF DRAFT! It’s one of the most fun events in the PGF, be sure to check it out.

BTW, if you’re looking to get some new jiu jitsu gear, PGF World Season 6 Team Champions XMARTIAL has some great gear. I wrote a review of my XMartial shorts and rash guard HERE. If you use the coupon code “EGGHEAD,” you will get 15% off your order (and you’ll help me out a bit). XMARTIAL has some really fun rash guards and everyone I know loves their shorts. So check them out.

PGF 8 Roster: The Young Guns

While these athletes cannot legally place a legal wager at a casino, these four young men are betting on themselves. Jett “the Kid” Thompson showed fans in PGF Season 6 a relatively unknown teenager could end up seconds away from winning the entire PGF Season. Matt Masch, JJ Bowers, Raphael Ferreira, and Landon Elmore will all have 15 matches this season to prove they should be the PGF Season 8 Champion.

Matt Masch (age 20, Brown Belt, Black Hole JJ, NY)

The Grand Old Man of the Young Guns, Matt Masch has already found serious success at the ripe old age of 20. After coming in second place out of nowhere at the CJJ Worlds 2024 Featherweights (March), Masch returned eight months later in December and took home the CJJ Worlds 2024 Lightweights title (a higher weight division). To gain these accomplishments, Masch had to take out PGF alumni Max Hanson and Ben Eddy as well as fellow Young Gun (see below) JJ Bowers. Until the Combat Jiu Jitsu runs, Masch has mostly competed in regional events in the Northeast. He has serious wrestling and leg locks. In the Combat Jiu Jitsu Worlds, Masch was able to add devastating palm strikes to soften up his opponents, making them change their position. The last CJJ Worlds Champion to compete in the PGF just happened to lead his team to the championship and then won the individual championship. CJJ Worlds Champion and PGF Season 7 Ryan Aitken has some literally big shoes to fill, but you have to think Masch is hoping to reproduce his fellow CJJ Worlds champion’s success.

JJ Bowers (age 18, Brown Belt, Jay Pages Jiu Jitsu Academy, AZ)

Not only his JJ looking to reproduce Jett’s epic run from PGF Season 6; JJ and Jett both took their last chance and competed in the under 18 divisions in 2024. Both JJ and Jett won the ADCC World Championship in their respective weight division, with Jett being in the weight class directly above JJ. JJ has trained Jiu Jitsu since he was five already earning state and national acclaim when he was just 11. He started working on MMA and Pankration at an early age as well. JJ’s stock skyrocketed when he hit a very quick finish of world-class competitor Keith Krikorian at CJJW 2024: The Lightweights (2024). JJ had hit another anaconda in his previous match in that tournament. He ran into Masch (see above) and Masch caught him while JJ was looking to pass. JJ is very aggressive. He has a very exciting combination of wrestling, passing, and kills (in the PGF sense). With PGF 8, JJ has the opportunity to show he’s can fulfill the promise of his youth wins and continue that success in the adult ranks. JJ has a chip on his shoulder naturally which gives him the aggression and motor. JJ has won everywhere so far, and he believes he can do take these winning ways to PGF Season 8.

Raphael Ferreira (age 17, Purple Belt, Unified Jiu-Jitsu Academy, UT)

Your PGF 8 Las Vegas Qualifier winner! He goes “a Brazilian miles an hour” as one fan put it in the stream’s comments. Ferreira truly weaponizes cardio (tip of the cap to PGF Veteran Caleb McAlister). Raphael just out cycled all his opponents at the qualifier. More importantly, the PGF 8 Las Vegas qualifier included nine out of the 20 (or 45%) of the competitors who will be vying for the PGF 8 title. Raphael personally defeated four of those nine competitors. Any fan who sees an interview with Raphael will see a true baby face. He’s a very nice, calm young man who wants to pursue a law degree in the future. But stand by, when he steps onto the mats and the referee tells them to start. At that point, Raphael turns into the Tazmanian Devil, relentlessly attacking his opponent until he can secure a submission. His mild-mannered appearance and demeanor might just be setting him up to repeat or exceed Jett “the Kid” Thompson’s success from PGF Season 6.

Landon Elmore (age 18, Blue Belt, Kingswave Jiu Jitsu, TX)

For its first five seasons, the PGF always had a blue belt who rose above their ranks. This blue belt would inevitably make the playoffs as one of the top eight. Landon trains at arguably the best gym in the world with Kingswave (formely New Wave) Jiu Jitsu with Gordon Ryan, John Danaher, et al. Landon has also been grappling since his tender years. He proves the proposition that blue belts can have black belt techniques: Landon is constantly looking for a foot to lock, whether heel hook or an ankle lock variation. And he has entries from all over. Landon went to two qualifiers, winning the PGF 8 Austin Qualifier – also arguably one of the cities most chock full of bjj talent in the United States. Will Landon prove once again that #bluebeltsarepeopletoo (that’s also a PGF fantasy reference)? One has to believe Landon has a true chance to show a blue belt can once again have real success and become a fan favorite.

With these four gentlemen, the jiu jitsu world is truly seeing the beginning of youth jiu jitsu in the United States come to fruition. Just as youth soccer in the United States eventually gave us Major League Soccer (the MLS), youth jiu jitsu has the promise of building the foundation for solidifying jiu jitsu as a true professional sport in this country.

Alternate ending for comic book fans: With these four gentlemen, the jiu jitsu world is truly seeing the beginning of youth jiu jitsu in the United States come to fruition. Not to get too corny, but this entire situation reminds the Editorial Board of Eggheadwarrior.com of the scene from The Dark Knight Rises. These Young Guns have every right to echo, or at least paraphrase the words of Bane: “You merely adopted [jiu jitsu]; I was born in it, molded by it.” Sure, the other PGF 8 competitors might like the idea of being Batman in that scene. But at the same time, these Young Guns all have the ability to break the backs of their opponents this season.

Keep following PGF World and Brandon Mccaghren on Instagram and keep tuning in to the PGF Insiders on PGF World’s YouTube page. We normally go live at 7pm Eastern on Sundays. As #PGF8 starts in earnest, we’ll have a lot to discuss about the season.

After all, it’s everything you love about sports, plus jiu jitsu!

BTW, if you’re looking to get some new jiu jitsu gear, PGF World Season 6 Team Champions XMARTIAL has some great gear. I wrote a review of my XMartial shorts and rash guard HERE. If you use the coupon code “EGGHEAD,” you will get 15% off your order (and you’ll help me out a bit). XMARTIAL has some really fun rash guards and everyone I know loves their shorts. So check them out.

PGF Season 8 Roster: The Veterans

Been there, done that, got the t-shirt…these Professional Grappling Federation (PGF) Season 8 competitors should have a leg up over the competition. Just over 1/3 of the roster has some level of PGF experience, some from the early years, some just as alternates in the modern era…regardless, these gentlemen have an insight into what’s to come this season. Arguably, most of these competitors should be near the top of the coaches’ draft boards. Let’s take a look at the competitors who have been a part of the PGF previously:

Jett Thompson faces off against PGF Season 6 winner and PGF Season 8 coach Andy Varela in the PGF Season 6 Championship match! Photo Courtesy of Walo Jay.

Jett Thompson – Watkins Wrecking Crew – Before PGF Season 6, very few people knew of Jett Thompson. The former voice of the PGF, 10th Planet Decatur Black Belt Matt Skaff told the Commissioner, Brandon Mccaghren, to look into Jett. Other than a bunch of kids’ titles and a Gold at the ADCC Austin Open, Jett hadn’t really made a big enough splash on the jiut jitsu scene to gain the attention of the other competitors or the coaches. Well, every competitor, coach, and fan that watched PGF Season 6 was in the splash zone for sure. Jett faced every top-ranked competitor in PGF Season 6 – and didn’t lose a match until the PGF Season 6 finale championship match – and even that match he lost by EBI overtime in a buzzer beater scenario. Jett’s insane ankle locks/Aoki locks sent home multiple highly-touted black belt competitors during PGF Season 6. After PGF Season 6, Jett has only gone on to gold medal at multiple more ADCC Opens including at the Absolute (any weight) class. He’s the Main Character Jiu Jitsu Champ at 185 lbs (reminder this season of the PGF is 155 lbs). He’s won a couple of IBJJF opens as well. Jett has some serious momentum coming into this PGF Season. He’s survived and THRIVED in the gauntlet that is the PGF Shark Week of Jiu Jitsu. And he’s only 18! Jett is the favorite to be top draft pick/highest paid player this season, and for good reason. Jett’s going to be smiling at his opponents as he rips off their limbs in PGF Season 8.

Christos Papadelos speaks with PGF Announcer Stephen Eakin after a PGF Season 7 Match. Photo Courtesy of Walo Jay.

Christos Papadelos – Purple Belt, New Wave Jiu Jitsu – Christos first drew the attention of PGF fans at the PGF Season 7 Austin Qualifier, he subbed all his opponents (except his roommate who won the qualifier) even though he weighed at least 25 lbs less than them. As a PGF Season 7 alternate, Christos found himself sitting on the sidelines until the last day of the season, then he gave us three great matches (again despite being very undersided). As a result of his obvious skill and desire, the Commissioner made Christos the first invitee to PGF Season 8. Christos hails from Peabody, Massachusetts originally. Motivated to try MMA, he sought out jiu jitsu after training in Tae Kwon Do as a child. After earning a blue belt from a local gym, Christos found Placido Santos, famous for being John Danaher’s uke in so many BJJ Fanatics instructionals, but also a great practitioner himself. Placido introduced Christos to the Danaher squad and Christos knew that’s where he wanted to train. Now after more than four years training with Danaher, Gordon Ryan, etc., Christos is really killing it. Christos is also a business man, serving as a promoter for Enigma Jiu Jitsu fights which has an awesome online site (super searchable, thank you Christos!). Christos, with his Enigma promotion, headed up two of the qualifiers for this year. He’s always keeping, just double golding at the ADCC Macedonia open. Christos is smart, has the PGF experience, and trains at one of the best gyms in the world. Surely Christos should be a top five pick (and I’ll stop calling you shirley – that’s an Airplane reference/joke for you youngsters…google it or ask chatgpt).

Kris Olivo talks with PGF sideline reporter Alex Wendling after his selection at the PGF Season 7 Draft. Photo Courtesy of Walo Jay.

Kris Olivo – founder of Potential Jiu Jitsu, a Zenith Jiu Jitsu affiliate, promoted to black belt by Robert Drysdale.  “The Most Interesting Man in the PGF!” Olivo was in the Air Force. Then he decided he wanted to do jiu jitsu and train under Drysdale because Drysdale beat Marcelo Garcia. When no one in the Air Force wanted to support his decisions, Olivo willed his way to Nellis AFB in Las Vegas area. On a whim, became a magician and sold magic tricks online for Penguin Magic. Olivo has co-written a book. He’s started a marketing company for franchises. Olivo has started a platform for individual service providers to build their reputation online(endorsemii). Olivo started his own gym, affiliate of Zenith bjj, where he decided to be the only jiu jitsu gym with a sauna and a cold plunge in Las Vegas. Olivo decided he needed some big wins in his jiu jitsu journey so he won a no-gi masters world championship at Brown belt. Olivo is coming in to this season, weighing normally at 180 or more; instead of giving up weight to his opponents like he did in PGF Season 7, in Season 8, Kris will be one of the bigger boys. As a marketing guy, Olivo knows to be himself, but turned up to 11. His entrepreneurial spirit has led him to set big, hairy, audacious, goals…and Olivo accomplishes them. I wouldn’t bet against this man who’s consistently beat the odds. This PGF Season 7 alternate and most stylish competitor to grace the PGF stage (tip of the cap to Cam Hurd and Kyle Chambers) will be both a fan favorite and an odds favorite to finish in the top 8, if not on top, period!

A victorious Juan Martinez V, photo courtesy of Juan Martinez V.

Juan Martinez V – Black Belt – Head Coach at Childress BJJ (Pueblo, Colorado) and owner of Ukes Grappling Club. The Uke, according to his “gram,” Juan Martinez V earned a lot of fans during his PGF Season 4 (155lb) run. Even in that season’s quintet format, Juan found a way to earn spot in the top eight, getting a spot in the playoffs. Since Season 4, Juan earned a gold medal in the ADCC Phoenix open in 2024. He showed some great jiu jitsu in both the Austin and Las Vegas PGF qualifiers, including a slick triangle with a little gag reflex against fellow PGF8 contender JJ Bowers. After PGF Season 4, Juan has earned three more years of experience, going from 21/22 to the ripe old age of 24. He went from a game competitor to a dangerous competitor, showing great improvement in his guard game. Juan is now just hitting his stride. He still comes from a smaller, regional school but his dedication to the game is serious. Juan knows he has a great opportunity with the PGF this season. One has to believe, he will do everything in his power to capitalize on this opportunity.

Anthony Molina after winning the PGF Season 4 Fort Myers Qualifier. As the “Mouth of the South” Matt Elkins said, “he was a sniper!”

Anthony Molina – Black Belt – B Team (formerly 10th Planet Miami) – Molina moved so smoothly on his feet during the Fort Myers Qualifier for PGF Season 4, most of the fans thought he had to be a boxer on the side. Molina came into PGF Season 4 with a lot of promise but had trouble adjusting to the PGF style and he was just weighing in around 145 naturally at the time. To be fair, PGF Season 4 was the one and only PGF Quintet-style season, resulting in Anthony only getting five (5) matches as to the guaranteed 15 matches this season. Moreover, since Molina was so highly regarded that season, an opponent taking him to a draw was a win for his opponent’s team. Regardless, Molina still has the PGF-rules competition experience. He knows competitors need to seek out the submission with a quickness. Since PGF Season 4, then, Molina has moved from his comfort zone at 10th Planet Miami and sought the challenge of the training room at the B Team. Now representing the B Team, Molina has been facing tougher opponents and competing often.

Mike John sinks in one of his patented guillotines at PGF Season 6. Photo Courtesy of Walo Jay.

Mike John – Black Belt Instructor at 10th Planet Orange – recently had a big Combat Jiu Jitsu TKO win at Subversiv Fight Club. Mike’s had big wins in many of the bigger promotions in jiu jitsu. Mike John was the only person in PGF Season 6 who actually earned his way onto the show: Mike sunk in six submissions at the PGF Season 6 Las Vegas qualifier to earn his PGF6 spot. Mike’s PGF Season 6 ended early, but he showed off his killing ability before he left. Now, Mike’s competing in the PGF Season 8, 155lb season, which is his true weigh class. In PGF Season 6, Mike John became one of the many PGF competitors to fight up a weight class or two. Now, he’s excited to get a shot at the PGF title when his opponents are not outweighing him by 20 or more pounds. Mike has tons of experience and has served as an instructor or coach for multiple other competitors. Mike has a well-deserved reputation for grit and skill. Mike John is one of my pics to end up in the top five this season – he’s a really chill guy if you get to talk to him, but there’s a killer hiding just beneath the surface. I guarantee it.

John Chandler speaks to PGF Announcer Stephen Eakin after his match against AJ Agazarm. Photo Courtesy of Walo Jay.

John Chandler – the PGF Season 6 alternate from Orange County Regional Training Center (RTC) was drastically underweight for Season 6. He weighed in with all his clothes on and then some for Season 6 and still made weight. Chandler had an exhilarating match against his frequent training partner AJ Agazarm and another exciting match against Matt Elkins. At just 22, he’s still a very young, up-and-coming talent in BJJ and MMA. Chandler recently won an amateur MMA match via rear naked choke in the first round to bring his MMA record to 3-0 as an amateur. This young man is pure Americana. Coming from a football and wrestling background in high school, like so many other combat sports athletes, he had a dream to fight MMA at the UFC. He’s built upon a wrestling background where he still sharpens his tools both training at and teaching at Orange County RTC, but added serious jiu jitsu, training with 10th Planet Fullerton and even 10P HQ. Chandler has the drive and motor to match anyone at PGF Season 8. Win or lose, he’s going to put on a good show in every match!

Well, that’s some of what you should know about our PGF Veterans. Don’t get it twisted, the other 13 competitors all have the same ambitions and desire to win that PGF Season 8 belt. While these competitors have many things going for them, the rest of the pack will have something to say about who wins this season. Still, PGF experience means something. Every competitor who has ever been on the PGF Insiders show pre-season has talked about how the PGF wouldn’t be a big deal because they roll so many rounds a day…only to come back after their PGF experience to admit it was a completely different situation. These competitors are not only exceptional grapplers, they have been baptized in the PGF experience. They know the violence of action once has to maintain to score points in the PGF. Moreover, in all their previous situations, they were undersized, underexperienced, or under age(d?), but now they have an outstanding opportunity to make an indelible mark upon the submission grappling and PGF world. These PGF Veterans will make serious runs at the title this year.

Keep following PGF World and Brandon Mccaghren on Instagram and keep tuning in to the PGF Insiders on PGF World’s YouTube page. We normally go live at 7pm Eastern on Sundays. PGF Season 8 kicks off June 25th with the PGF DRAFT! It’s one of the most fun events in the PGF, be sure to check it out.

BTW, if you’re looking to get some new jiu jitsu gear, PGF World Season 6 Team Champions XMARTIAL has some great gear. I wrote a review of my XMartial shorts and rash guard HERE. If you use the coupon code “EGGHEAD,” you will get 15% off your order (and you’ll help me out a bit). XMARTIAL has some really fun rash guards and everyone I know loves their shorts. So check them out.

PGF Season 8: World’s First Weekly Jiu Jitsu League!!!

THE FIRST JIU JITSU LEAGUE IS HERE!!! Starting June 25th, the Professional Grappling Federation will have a draft, five weeks of regular season matches, and a playoff tournament. Fans will get to know the athletes, following them through their three month journey in their hopes of winning the PGF Season 8 Championship belt. This article will cover the basics of how this season’s schedule will work, including the Draft, the Season, and the Finale/Playoffs. Now, more than ever before, the PGF is proving they are “everything you love about sports, plus jiu jitsu!”

THE DRAFT: On June 25th, the Coaches of the four teams will meet at an undisclosed location and select their teams. The PGF draft follows an auction draft format many will be familiar with from fantasy sports. The roster will be randomly ordered and one-by-one, each competitor will come to the front of the stage. Phenomenal PGF Announcer Stephen Eakin will run the auction where each of the coaches will try to win their favorite competitors by outbidding their opponent coaches. This season, each team has a salary cap/allotment and the winning bid for each competitor will represent their base pay for the season (more about bonuses later). If all four coaches/teams decide they do not want to bid on a competitor (reserving cash for competitors coming up later in the draft), it’s called an “intentional walk” and the competitor up for auction will move to the back of the draft line (“no soup for them!” – please tell me you got the Seinfeld reference). At the end of the Draft on June 25th, we will all know which players are on which teams, including their bench players.

THE SEASON: PGF officials will announce the regular season schedule shortly after the teams are picked on June 25th. Starting almost exactly one month after the PGF Draft, he PGF Season will include FIVE weeks of matches (matches occurring every Wednesday night). Every competitor will have three matches a night. By the end of the season, every competitor will have faced every member of the opposing teams. Players will only have the potential to face their teammates if the Playoff Finale Tournament. Players will fight for submissions to earn points towards their individual playoff standings and towards their team’s total score, hoping to win the PGF Season 8 Team Championship. The members of the Season Championship Team will share in the Team prize money. The top eight individual scorers from the season (regardless of team affiliation) will move on to the PGF Season 8 Finale/Playoffs.

PGF Season 8 Finale/Playoffs: The top eight individual point leaders from the regular season will have three weeks to heal up and strategize for the PGF Season 8 Finale. The PGF Season 8 Finale has multiple components. The eight-competitor single-elimination tournament to crown the PGF 155lb Champion is the main event. However, the Commissioner, Brandon Mccaghren, has some other treats for viewers. In between the rounds of the PGF 155lb Championship bracket, there will also be a PGF Women’s Championship bracket (weight class unconfirmed at the moment) and a Super Fight between two Jiu Jitsu World Champions (I’m not spilling the beans and being put on double-secret probation again…no matter how many times you ask me their names).

Get buckled up folks, it’s going to be an amazing season. We have awesome grapplers with an unprecedented level of parity. PGF Fantasy is BACK!!! Now we’ll have a week break to analyze the next round of matches and pick our fantasy rosters. Of course, I’ll provide you my fantasy analysis every week in time for you to use it to pick your teams. We have a great roster of coaches, including returning championship coaches and two returning PGF veterans! There’s so much to talk about and we will cover it all. It’s going to be the best PGF Season ever! As a former colleague of mine loved to say, GET EXCITED!!!

After a hiatus during the offseason which included moving cross-country and starting a new job, the Editorial Board at Eggheadwarrior.com has a lot of catching up to do when it comes to informing you fans about all the latest PGF news. We promise to start pushing out all the news at a rapid pace, just as the PGF Season 8 Draft is rapidly approaching.

Keep following PGF World and Brandon Mccaghren on Instagram and keep tuning in to the PGF Insiders on PGF World’s YouTube page. We normally go live at 7pm Eastern on Sundays. We’ll definitely have a mock draft before the PGF Season 8 Draft on June 25th.

BTW, if you’re looking to get some new jiu jitsu gear, PGF World Season 6 Team Champion sponsors XMARTIAL has some great gear. I wrote a review of my XMartial shorts and rash guard HERE. If you use the coupon code “EGGHEAD,” you will get 15% off your order (and you’ll help me out a bit). XMARTIAL has some really fun rash guards and everyone I know loves their shorts. So check them out.

It’s a Wrap (or RNC): Ryan Aitken Secures the Victory for Team New Hope Regeneration

It’s a wrap (or RNC): Ryan Aitken secured the victory for Team New Hope Regeneration on the final night of the Professional Grappling Federation regular season. Top pre-season ranked competitors shined on the final night, ensuring their playoff hopes and fulfilling the promise of their reputations. Let’s look at what happened on Day 4 of #PGF7.

TEAM NEW HOPE REGENERATION WINS!

After the dust settled, Team New Hope Regeneration ended the season with 80 points, 29 points in front of their nearest competitor. Ryan Aitken turned in another ridiculous performance. Aitken sunk in rear-naked chokes against very tough competitors Fedor Nikolov and Caleb Crump (despite saying his RNC sucked). Aiken rounded out his hat trick of submissions for the night with a head and arm choke against Aaron Sheffield. Aitken finished the regular season with an almost perfect score, going three for three with all kills. While none of the other Team New Hope Regeneration competitors put up points on the final day of the PGF, they supported the effort on the first three days. Travis Thomas, Ernesto Rivera, and Brad Schneider all finished in the top 10 of competitors. Cam Hurd served as the stopper for the group, showing his toughness and grit. But Cam Hurd has grown so much as a competitor that he was comfortable navigating the leg game against competitors from the best leg-locking schools in the country. But coming back to Aitken, one cannot overstate his anchor status for Team New Hope Regeneration. Aitken amassed 45 points from his submissions alone. The second-place team amassed 51 points. Essentially, Aitken only needed one teammate to hit one kill and one break to win his team the championship. Team New Hope Regeneration Coach Pedro Sauer’s bet to save his money to ensure snagging Ryan Aitken definitely paid off.

The Editorial Board of Eggheadwarrior.com has no problem admitting we’re wrong. When the draft occurred, Egghead did say it was already over, saying the 1st Phorm Yankees/Dodgers would run away with the title. On paper, this assessment should have held. Team 1st Phorm fell prey to common themes in the PGF: their highly-touted competitors had some trouble adjusting to the PGF World ruleset, and they also faced a number of injuries. Just like other sports, there’s a PGF World premium for keeping your team healthy. When reserves come on the roster (minus Abe the Mountain La Mantagne), they usually give up points to the other teams. Out of the 60 matches Team New Hope Regeneration played, they only gave up seven (7) submissions. They just didn’t give up points to other teams. And now they’re sharing the $100,000 #PGF7 team championship prize.

Marcin getting one of his three submissions on the final night of the regular season. Photo Courtesy of Walo Jay.

TOP TEAM CONSTELLATION MEMBERS WOULDN’T BE DENIED

Marcin Maciulewicz has been consistent on two things. First, he has said continuously “You will know my name!” And Marcin has proven every fan of #PGF7 and submission grappling in general either know his name or will shortly. Second, Marcin has consistently hit submissions. Even though it was the final day of the season, even though his second place finish was assured, Marcin would not take any matches off. He finished the final day of the season with another three submissions. Marcin hit a kneebar against fellow top-8 finisher Travis Thomas. In block 2, Marcin chased down Caleb Crump (literally) and got him with a leg lock. Marcin put an exclamation on his #PGF7 performance and the PGF regular season as a whole when he hit an arm-in guillotine against Sam Schwartzapfel in the final match of the regular season. Marcin heads in the #PGF7 playoffs in the second spot and will face PGF standout Ernesto Rivera. Rivera forced the draw in the regular season, but now Marcin will have an extra four minutes to get a sub on the smaller man. Many fans expect Marcin to fight in the finale match against Ryan Aitken (a match we didn’t get to see in the regular season).

Chris Wojcik has his hand raised after defeating Cam Hurd. Photo Courtesy of Walo Jay.

Fellow Team Constellation competitor Chris Wojcik ensured his playoff hopes with multiple submissions on the final night of the playoffs. In the first block of the night, Wojcik got a kill against Cam Hurd. So, the renowned leg locker, Wojcik didn’t settle for a break – he got the kill. But not only did he get a kill, he got a kill against the multi-season veteran and PGF stalwart Cam Hurd. Wojcik would not be denied a spot in the playoffs. Wojcik catapulted himself even higher in the ranking sinking in a leg lock against Aaron Sheffield in the final block of the season. Now Wojcik will start his playoffs run against PGF7 surprise star Ernesto Rivera. Wojcik caught Rivera with a leg lock during the regular season, but he has to know Rivera will be wanting some payback.

Kyle Boehm submits Caleb Crump. Photo Courtesy of Walo Jay.

KYLE BOEHM FINISHES STRONG

Having faced, and in many cases, won matches against some of the biggest names in grappling, Kyle Boehm faced high expectations heading into the #PGF7. Like so many other highly-touted competitors, Boehm had a slow start, only having one submission to his name after half the season had elapsed. Boehm would not be deterred. After getting his one submission on the second day, Boehm assured fans he would be getting many more submissions . He said the first two days were his hardest in the season and he would start racking up points in the second half. Boehm proved himself right. Boehm scored two submissions on both of the final two days of the season. On the final day of the season, Boehm hit a heel hook against Caleb Crump in the first block. Then, even though his playoff hopes were assured, Boehn sank in a RNC against Drew Dyer to catapult himself to third place.

Kris Olivo submits Sebastian Attard. Photo Courtesy of Walo Jay.

RESERVES MAKE THE MOST OF THEIR SHOTS

As the #PGF7 competitors gripped and ripped their opponents throughout the season, the injuries continued to rack up. Every time a competitor got injured, a reserve player had to step up and take on regular roster competitors. While many of the competitors gave up points, many others put on great matches. Team Intrana reserve member Kris Olivo saw a lot of playing time this season. Team Intrana used the most amount of competitors in PGF history this season, having nine separate players take the mats to represent them. On the final day of the season, Olivo accentuated his time on the #PGF7, hitting an ankle lock against regular roster Team Constellation member Sebastian Attard. Olivo had been showing his aggressive, acrobatic style against so many competitors this season, never backing down from anyone. Olivo scored a sub for himself and every other reserve player on day 3, showing they all belonged in the PGF.

While the #PGF7 Draft and Regular season were free and live on YouTube, the #PGF7 Finale will only be available on UFC Fight Pass. Whether you watch through the app or through the website, you need to watch. #PGF7 will come to an end tonight with the playoffs. Team New Hope Regeneration member Ryan Aitken will take his shot at being the first PGF competitor to win $40,000. He’s already won $20,000 as the captain and anchor for PGF7 team champions New Hope Regeneration. Now, he has a chance to double that money if he can be the overall #PGF7 individual champion as well. But seven other competitors, including the Polish Punisher Marcin Maciulewicz will have something to say about Aitken’s aspirations. Marcin has a chance to make Aitken and everyone else know his name if he can stop Aitken and claim the #PGF7 title for himself.

Keep following PGF World and Brandon Mccaghren on Instagram and keep tuning in to the PGF Insiders on PGF World’s YouTube page. We normally go live at 7pm Eastern on Sundays. Even as #PGF7 concludes, we’ll have a lot to discuss about the season.

After all, it’s everything you love about sports, plus jiu jitsu!

BTW, if you’re looking to get some new jiu jitsu gear, PGF World Season 6 Team Champions XMARTIAL has some great gear. I wrote a review of my XMartial shorts and rash guard HERE. If you use the coupon code “EGGHEAD,” you will get 15% off your order (and you’ll help me out a bit). XMARTIAL has some really fun rash guards and everyone I know loves their shorts. So check them out.

#PGF7 Day 4 Fantasy Predictions

Team, the Eggs have been scrambled since the teams have started subbing folks all over the place. I’ve provided by best analysis based on the information available at the time I had. I’ll invoke the Rendulic rule – you can only hold me accountable for the info I had at the time. Good luck managers…you’ll need it as I’ll still win.

First, DORY AOUN and ADAM BRADLEY ARE OUT! Do not put them in your lineup. Andre Porfirio is most likely out.

Ryan Aitken – 14 points (1 kills, 2 breaks, 1 back take)

You can’t doubt Ryan Aitken. He just keeps putting up numbers. If you can afford him, you have to put him on your roster.

Fedor Nikolov 10th Planet Saint-Petersburg

Kyle Chambers 10th Planet Freaks

Caleb Crump Easton Training Center – Centennial

Kyle Boehm – 11 points (1 Kill, 1 break, 1 back take).

Boehm has been targeting his last two days of the PGF season from the start. He promised as such after Day 2. Boehm made good on that promise on day 2 and fantasy managers should bet on him to do so again, if not more so on day 3.  

Caleb Crump Easton Training Center – Centennial

Cameron Hurd Ascend/TDBJJ

Kemoy Anderson 10th Planet Austin

Davis Asare – 9 points (1 kill, 1 break).

Davis was almost run over by a PGF fan whose fantasy team suffered from his day 2 performance. With headlights near his face, Asare said he’d do better. Asare is facing three tough competitors today, but he could still put points on the board. He’ll make it happen.

Kyle Chambers 10th Planet Freaks

Kemoy Anderson 10th Planet Austin

Ernesto Rivera American Top Team – Atlanta

Travis Thomas – 6 points (Kill)

Travis had his coming out party on PGF Season 7 Day 3.  Now he faces some insanely dangerous opponents. Thomas has to think his best shot is against Haddad who has shown he’s susceptible to submissions.  

Marcin Maciulewicz Aligatores Fight Club

Paul Ardila American Top Team – Atlanta

Nathan Haddad Helio Soneca Association

Chris Wojcik – 6 Points.

Wojcik will get two breaks. It’s not a popular opinion, but Wojcik is such a great talent that he’ll find a way to get two subs today. He faces serious competition, but he has a plan.

Cameron Hurd Ascend/TDBJJ

Nathan Haddad Helio Soneca Association

Kyle Chambers 10th Planet Freaks

Ernesto Rivera – 6 points

Ernesto is tall but not a 205lber. But he’s on the inside of the playoff hunt. He’s a dawg…as my fellow insiders tell me (I’m very boring and wanted to autocorrect that spelling). Attard would hypothetically be a target, but he’s found a way to escape from everyone. The Dory replacement is likely the best chance for Ernesto to get a sub and he’s a “dawg” (right guys?) so he might just get that kill. Seriously, I don’t even listen to music in my car; I listen to podcasts and audiobooks – I’m that dad.

Sebastian Attard Grappling Education

Dory Aoun HUSTLE BRAZILIAN JIU-JITSU (IBJJFF) – REPLACEMENT

Davis Asare New Wave JiuJitsu

Elijah Carlton – 6 points

Elijah faces Ardila who is not a good spot. He’ll have much better shots against Nikolov (yeah, the season 5 match was boring) and Schneider. Elijah needs to make sure he makes the playoffs so he’ll make it happen.

Paul Ardila American Top Team – Atlanta

Fedor Nikolov 10th Planet Saint-Petersburg

Bradley Schneider Pedigo Submission Fighting

Marcin Maciulewicz – 6 points (2 breaks)

Marcin continues to show off that Polish Power. He has the Commissioner, Brandon Mccaghren, planning on a future with Marcin. We’ve seen Eddie Bravo talking to Marcin on the sidelines. Marcin has proven everyone will know his name, even if they keep flubbing the pronunciation. Marcin is the truth – watch for him to make a deep run in the playoffs. For today, he has a chance to strike early against another playoff hopeful in Thomas (likely a draw, but Thomas has been susceptible to leg attacks). Marcin will probably get two breaks, but might get a third if he can threaten Thomas right (no need to take a bad pop when he is already in the playoffs).

Travis Thomas 10th planet Decatur

Caleb Crump Easton Training Center – Centennial

Adam Bradley B Team JiuJitsu – REPLACEMENT

Andre Porfirio/Abe the Mountain La Montagne – 3 points (1 break).

Porfirio is likely still out, meaning the Mountain will take his place. He’s got a good shot against the new reserve player, but not the rest.

Adam Bradley B Team JiuJitsu – REPLACEMENT

Sebastian Attard Grappling Education

Cameron Hurd Ascend/TDBJJ

Paul Ardila – 3 points (1 Kill, 1 back take)

Paul has had a target on his back (you’re welcome). Well, Paul answered the call and got three subs on day 3 – the day that normally breaks folks. Paul was the instrument of that breaking. Paul faces PGF standouts Elijah Carlton and Travis Thomas – who will seek to make a name for themselves, proving they are the PGF stars. Paul will likely get draws in those matches. Paul has to be looking at Attard as a good chance for a submission – Attard has forced draws in all his matches, but Ardila might be able to break that streak.

Elijah Carlton 10th planet Atlanta

Travis Thomas 10th planet Decatur

Sebastian Attard Grappling Education

Kyle Chambers – 0 points

Chambers might be the biggest name who wasn’t eliminated by injury that doesn’t make the PGF playoffs. Chambers’s leglock game is phenomenal. But Chambers hasn’t found the same success in the PGF. He faces a murderer’s row in his last day of the regular season.

Davis Asare New Wave JiuJitsu

Ryan Aitken 10th planet Atlanta

Chris Wojcik B Team JiuJitsu

Adam Bradley (OUT) – 0 points.

Bradley is a warrior. He had his leg eviscerated and still wanted to get out there.

Andre Porfirio Alpha Miami Grappling

Bradley Schneider Pedigo Submission Fighting

Marcin Maciulewicz Aligatores Fight Club

Sebastian Attard – 0 points.

Okay, so I’m probably Sebastian Attard’s biggest fan. All the Insiders love him. He’s been very close to hitting his setups, but close only counts in hand grenades and thermonuclear war.  I want him to get a signature moment in the PGF, but my grandpa said you could want in one hand and take a poop in the other and see which gets the fullest the fastest. Maybe Sebastian needs to be in the next PGF in a lighter class, but he hasn’t been able to make things happen at 205.

Ernesto Rivera American Top Team – Atlanta

Andre Porfirio Alpha Miami Grappling

Paul Ardila American Top Team – Atlanta

Cam Hurd – 0 points

The Commissioner has said it. Cam was brought to the PGF in Season 5 to be a dunkable. Hurd’s drive and grit proved he would never be dunkable. Hurd went from a D1 wrestler with a decent front headlock to a guy who trades leg attacks with New Wave standouts. Cam isn’t a good fantasy play, but now you know him – you can’t help but cheer for Cam. He embodies the spirit of the PGF – Cam leaves it on the mat every time he competes!

Chris Wojcik B Team JiuJitsu

Kyle Boehm 10th Planet Freaks

Andre Porfirio Alpha Miami Grappling – REPLACEMENT

Kemoy Anderson – 0 points

Kemoy may still be suffering from back issues that made him miss some time earlier in the season. Early on, one might have circled the Scheider match as a very winnable match, but Schneider has shown he can really compete. After recommending rostering Kemoy for multiple days, we have to recommend avoiding him today.

Bradley Schneider Pedigo Submission Fighting
Davis Asare New Wave JiuJitsu

Kyle Boehm 10th Planet Freaks

Dory Aoun (OUT) – 0 points

Dory’s tough as can be, but he’s facing the best competitor of the three other teams. This day is his toughest challenge. He’ll attack, but he won’t submit.

Nathan Haddad Helio Soneca Association

Ernesto Rivera American Top Team – Atlanta

Fedor Nikolov 10th Planet Saint-Petersburg

REPLACEMENT Dory Aoun () – 0 points

Dory’s tough as can be, but he’s facing the best competitor of the three other teams. This day is his toughest challenge. He’ll attack, but he won’t submit.

Nathan Haddad Helio Soneca Association

Ernesto Rivera American Top Team – Atlanta

Fedor Nikolov 10th Planet Saint-Petersburg

Brad Schneider – 0 points.

Scheider went from zero to hero in PGF Season 7, day 2. He might find some things against Kemoy and Bradley’s replacement, but expecting a reduction to the mean is understandable.

Kemoy Anderson 10th Planet Austin

Adam Bradley B Team JiuJitsu – REPLACEMENT

Elijah Carlton 10th planet Atlanta

Caleb Crump – 0 points.

Caleb’s grit and scrambling has made so many fans. But even though he’s a fan favorite for showing his skills, you can’t bank on his fantasy points.

Kyle Boehm 10th Planet Freaks

Marcin Maciulewicz Aligatores Fight Club

Ryan Aitken 10th planet Atlanta

Fedor Nikolov – 0 points

Fedor is very dangerous, but he hasn’t shown the ability to hit a submission within the 6 minutes matches of PGF World this season. You shouldn’t roster him.

Ryan Aitken 10th planet Atlanta

Elijah Carlton 10th planet Atlanta

Dory Aoun HUSTLE BRAZILIAN JIU-JITSU (IBJJFF) – REPLACEMENT

Nathan Haddad – 0 points (but roster if active).

As of going to press (pressing “publish” on the web), we don’t know if Haddad is in or out. Haddad’s style has shown that even if he doesn’t get a submission, Haddad is a solid pickup for your fantasy team. If Haddad is active for the final day of the season, he’s probably worth a roster spot just for that Dory Aoun replacement player alone.

Dory Aoun HUSTLE BRAZILIAN JIU-JITSU (IBJJFF) REPLACEMENT

Chris Wojcik B Team JiuJitsu

Travis Thomas 10th planet Decatur

#PGF7 Day 3 Recap

One of the most exciting days of Professional Grappling Federation World history took place yesterday. The competitors hit 16 submissions! Even with a robust 30-match lineup, that’s a more than 50% submission rate for the night – and that’s with six-minute rounds. We saw signature submissions make their presence in PGF World. We saw the rich getting richer. We saw a PGF veteran prove he belongs with the best in this league. Let’s take a look at what happened on #PGF7 Day 3.

Paul Ardila works on his KILL against Kemoy Anderson. Photo Courtesy of Walo Jay.

THE RICH GET RICHER

Both current PGF leader Ryan Aitken and pre-season 1 or 2 Paul Ardila hit three submissions during PGF Season 7, day 3. Normally, Day 3 breaks competitors, but Aitken and Ardila have shown they are what breaks competitors. Ryan Aitken got three submissions: two kills and a break. Paul Ardila also got three submission, scoring two breaks and a kill with an Elbow Genie points. So the top competitors found a way to keep distancing themselves from the pack. They proved they were the best picks from Day 1.

Boehm secured two submission on day 3 to land him solidly in the playoffs. Photo Courtesy of Walo Jay.

A PGF VETERAN PROVES HE BELONGS

Travis Thomas works on a submission. Photo Courtesy of Walo Jay.

Travis Thomas entered the season as a prior standout from PGF Season 5, but that was the last season before the PGF really went national. So many competitors were discounting the professional mma fighter’s jiu jitsu. Travis proved to them and everyone else that he belongs in the PGF during PGF7 Day 3. Travis secured two kills, including the quickest kill of the season to put 13 points on the board. Travis’s performance on day 3 rocketed him to second place in PGF World 7.

So Famous, they’re INFAMOUS Submissions Presence Felt!

Chris Wojcik hits his signature submission. Photo Courtesy of Walo Jay.

Abe La Matagne hit his infamous Abe Lock against Kemoy Anderson. Chris Wojcik hit his Woj-lock/ankle lock multiple times as well. PGF Season 7 has featured a bunch of breakers and break, they have. Abe’s on the outside looking in, but Chris Wojcik has been on the come up, finding a way to hit those subs in his latest matches. As we enter the final day of competition, Wojcik is in 8th place, so he has to continue hitting submissions to make sure he retains a spot in the PGF Season 7 finale.

Whomever finds their way into the PGF Season 7 finale, will undoubtedly have to face Ryan Aitken at one point if they want to win it all. Aitken has prove he owns this ruleset and is situated to run the board and win PGF Season 7. Oh no, did I jinnx him? Ryan Aitken believes in anime, but not in jinxes. The smart money says Aitken finds a way to win it all.

Ryan Aitken sinks in the RNC on Sam Schwartzapfel. Photo Courtesy of Walo Jay.