A heated debate has erupted in the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu community after female grapplers launched a petition demanding equal qualification opportunities at the ADCC. While the initiative has gathered hundreds of signatures it has also drawn criticism from within the women’s grappling community itself.
The controversy centers on the current ADCC trials structure which offers men two chances to qualify across five weight divisions per region while women receive only one opportunity across three divisions. This disparity has left some athletes unable to advance despite winning the European trials since the first women’s trials are treated merely as preparation events rather than actual qualifiers.
“If I were a man, I would be going to ADCC Worlds right now. I won the first European trials on the 6th of September—but because I am a woman, the first trials don’t count for me”
the petition states.
Not all competitors agree with the campaign. Jasmine Rocha who has been competing in ADCC trials since age 15 raised questions about the motives and methods behind it.
“Here’s the reality: Inijana goodman asked me and a bunch of other top women to sign this petition to ‘support women’ but she herself doesn’t even follow me or any of these other athletes. That’s not real support. Don’t ask for support if you’re not willing to give it.”
Rocha pointed to the progress women’s grappling has already made during her career from ADCC offering just two divisions with minimal participation to now featuring three divisions packed trials and equal prize money.
“I’ve been competing in ADCC trials since I was 15 back when it was a gym with only 2 women’s divisions and barely any competitors. Now we have 3 divisions packed trials and equal prize money to the men. ADCC has been on a consistent upward climb and that growth should be appreciated while we keep pushing for more.”
She also questioned whether petitions are the right tool.
“But a petition isn’t the way to get there. What are you going to do, send it to the president of ADCC? How do you think that looks?”
Another point Rocha raised was the lack of support from within women’s grappling itself. She noted that most of her viewership and engagement comes from men.
“They’re the ones consistently watching sharing and backing women’s matches. If we want more opportunities we as women have to actually show up for each other too.”
This dispute follows Rocha’s recent criticism of the Craig Jones Invitational where she argued that women were excluded from submission bonuses despite producing some of the weekend’s most exciting moments.
“Don’t get me wrong I think it’s great that NW got paid the 1 Million but CJ said there wasn’t money for more women’s brackets… but when they messed up they dropped the $ on the men to save face. That’s 3 $300k women’s divisions right there. Then they threw out $50k sub bonuses but not for the women. The women had some of the MOST exciting moments this weekend!”
For Rocha the bigger picture extends beyond ADCC.
“The goal isn’t just ADCC—it’s the sport as a whole. More opportunities across all promotions = more visibility = more money = more seminars = more sponsorships = a better reality for the next generation of girls coming up.”
