The finals of the heavyweight division at the 2020 IBJJF No-Gi Pan American Championship came down to a match between multiple-time No-Gi World Champion Lucas Barbosa and Giancarlo Bodoni, who won Pans in the gi just a few weeks ago.
Barbosa pulled guard quickly, and Bodoni attacked his foot for a moment before Barbosa came on top to earn two points and worked fast to try to pass Bodoni’s guard. Bodoni kept his opponent in butterfly guard as Barbosa kept his posture down. Barbosa then broke away from Bodoni momentarily before again ending up in his butterfly guard. Though Bodoni couldn’t do much against Barbosa from the guard, Barbosa also had his hands full trying to pass even as he returned to his feet. Bodoni managed to secure Barbosa in his closed guard, and while he tried to angle himself for a sweep, Barbosa’s heavy pressure kept him from getting the leverage he needed to achieve it.
As the match inched toward the final minute, Bodoni tried to go for an omoplata, and Barbosa used the opportunity to extend his opponent’s knee and then nearly pass his guard as they tumbled out of bounds. After they were reset, Bodoni tried to come up from guard to take Barbosa down, but Barbosa stopped him with a sprawl. Though Bodoni tried to look for more opportunities to make up lost points, he ran out of time to do so, and Barbosa was declared the winner of the match and the heavyweight division at this year’s Pan American Championship.
You can watch this match and many more as this year’s No-Gi Pans stream live on FloGrappling.
