In a surprising revelation, grappling star Craig Jones has disclosed that the inaugural Craig Jones Invitational (CJI) lost all revenue from its first day of competition due to music copyright issues.
“We lost day 1 due to copyrighted music and only made money off day 2,” Jones explained in a social media response. “I wanted every dollar to stay on our channel.”
The admission comes as Jones defended his approach to content management, emphasizing that the financial considerations were directly tied to the future of the event.
“The more views we get on our channel better for sponsors to build CJI 2,” he noted.
Despite this setback, the event made a significant charitable impact. Jones announced from Rio de Janeiro that the inaugural tournament raised $500,000 for cancer research. This impressive sum will benefit Tap Cancer Out, an organization mobilizing the martial arts community against cancer. All in all, Jones made claims that CJI donated roughly $750,000 to charity.
“These gifts help accelerate our lofty goals and plans to give the global BJJ community the opportunity to fight for those in the fight of their lives,” said Jon Thomas, founder of Tap Cancer Out.
The fundraising success represented a collaborative effort, with equal contributions of approximately $166,667 from three major sources: CJI/Fair Fight Foundation, Rich Byrne of Kasai Grappling, and an anonymous donor.
Looking ahead to CJI 2, promoter Seth Belisle revealed that Las Vegas was always going to be the setting for CJI 2.
“Vegas is just ideal for the second one and to alleviate stress and challenges and unknowns. It’s plug and play like I literally would not change anything about the production,” Belisle stated on the Simple Men podcast.
The financial revelation from Jones comes amid ongoing discussions about athlete compensation in professional grappling. The CJI made headlines for offering an unprecedented $1 million prize purse, setting a new benchmark in the sport.
The event has received praise from industry veterans, including John Danaher, who commended the tournament’s execution despite its rapid development timeline.
“That was a fantastic show. They did an incredible job against all the odds,” Danaher stated on Jake Shields‘ podcast.
As Jones prepares for CJI 2, which will feature eight teams competing for a $1 million prize in a quintet-style format, the financial lessons from the first event will likely inform the organization’s approach moving forward.
