The Hudson Valley Grappling Invitational pulled off its first event this weekend with a plethora of submissions and exciting matches. The contest, which was the labor of Black Hole BJJ’s Mike Wacker and Johnny Ventosa, was both well attended and stacked with local talent despite cumbersome regulations newly added by New York State’s Athletic Commission.
The law, which was originally intended for mixed martial arts events, requires that all participants get blood testing done five days prior to competition. In addition, the difficulty of getting said blood work done in New York State forces most competitors to go outside of the state in order to get the tests completed in time. Already the IBJJF has removed their events from the state. In the future, promotions like NAGA and Grappling Industries will be forced to do the same.
While the Athletic Commission’s strict laws certainly made things harder for Wacker and his competitors, the submission-only event came together beautifully at Revel 32 in Poughkeepsie, with only one fight ending in a decision. The event featured fourteen super fights and a professional, round-robin tournament, the tournament ending in a much-anticipated showdown between longtime friends, Aaron Harris and Nick Ronan. The event was the first of its kind to come to the Hudson Valley, and according to Wacker, it will not be the last.
Hudson Valley Invitational super-fight Results
- (No-gi) Bruno Braga def. James Colombo by outside heel-hook
- (Gi) Nicole Shattuck def. Teddy Drelles by bow and arrow
- (Gi) Kirk Brennenman def. Justin Doughit by Omoplata
- (No-gi) Ibrahim Simreen def. Zach Johnson by RNC
- (No-gi) Fabian Ramirez def. John Vena by arm triangle
- (No-gi) Cheryl Rock def. Kim Kinch by inside heel-hook
- (No-gi) Johnny Miranda def. Rasheed Perez by outside heel-hook
- (No-gi) David Tramonte def. Ricardo Jimenez outside heel-hook
- (No-gi) Erin Cuirkshank def. Nicole Mathew by armbar
- (No-gi) Fatima Kline def. Jasmine Carchi by triangle choke
- (No-gi) Joe Guidice def. Corey Stockton by decision
- (No-gi) Jeff Haddad def. Nick Gullo by inside heel-hook
- (No-gi) Matt Marchese def. Matt Ferran by vertical kneebar
- (Gi) Jacob Propst def. Dan Simmler by triangle choke
Pro division round robin
- Aaron Harris def. Brett Pastore by guillotine choke
- Nick Ronan def. Jeff Pelton by armbar
- Stojan Kevereski def. Brett Pastore by armbar
- Chas Canas def. Jeff Pelton by triangle choke
- Aaron Harris def. Stojan Kevereski by outside heel-hook
- Nick Ronan def. Chas Canas by straight ankle-lock
- Nick Ronan def. Aaron Harris by Aoki lock
