Texas may not (yet) have the same reputation in the jiu-jitsu community as, say, California or New York, but the BJJ landscape is changing. Now, come August, Houston-based promotion 3rd Coast Grappling is going to be testing out Texas’ skills against California’s in a jiu-jitsu showdown led by two of the sport’s top coaches.
The effort, led by 3CG promotor Ryan McGuire, will see Vinicius “Draculino” Magalhaes taking charge of the Third Coast team, while 10th Planet’s own Eddie Bravo will be leading the battle on the West Coast team. This will be the second event in 3rd Coast’s planned “Versus” series.
The competitive side of things won’t just involve the athletes — the event will also test each respective promotion’s rulesets. Five matches (all no-gi) will take place under EBI rules, including EBI OT if necessary, with Bravo picking his athletes first. Five other matches (gi and no-gi) will take place under 3CG rules, including 3CG OT if necessary, with Draculino choosing his athletes first. The format will push competitors to see if they can defeat each other under rules that favor their opponent. 3rd Coast vs. East Coast will also feature a “big” main event and about fifteen matches as the undercard before the Versus matches take place.
McGuire told the Jiu-Jitsu Times about his inspiration for the idea: “When you think of rivalries that never had their chance to settle things on the mats, Draculino and Eddie Bravo come to mind. Two pioneers and innovators of the sport who have gone on to be considered two of the greatest coaches of all time will match wits and matchmaking prowess as they both represent for their coasts. Eddie is a California landmark and creator of 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu, while Draculino put Third Coast BJJ on the map the minute he landed in Texas and has numerous accolades and World Champions to his credit.”
Third Coast vs. West Coast will go down on August 29 of this year at the Fonda Theater in Los Angeles. Those who can’t attend in person can stream the event live on FloGrappling.
