Craig Jones has teased the next chapter in his invitational series and the numbers attached to it are unlike anything competitive grappling has seen before. Here is everything confirmed so far about CJI 2.5.
Seventeen days ago Craig Jones, posting under his verified Reddit handle, began dropping hints across several threads in the r grappling community. While replying to a thread titled Craig asks for CJI3 suggestions, Jones kept his message characteristically brief:
“8 people that will have a proper go and can talk on a microphone.”
In a separate thread debating whether ADCC is in decline, Craig Jones also weighed in on the broader state of athlete pay in the sport, suggesting that underpaying athletes is a structural problem worth competing against, a comment that reads differently knowing a $10 million purse was already in the works.
CJI 2.5 is set to take place in July 2026 with the entire event unfolding over the course of a single day. Craig Jones confirmed in his announcement post comments that the event will once again be free to watch on YouTube, continuing the accessible broadcast model that made earlier editions so widely followed.
Perhaps the most eye catching detail to emerge so far is the prize pool. CJI 2.5 is set to come with a $10 million purse, making it the most lucrative grappling competition ever staged by a significant margin. How exactly that money will be divided among competitors has not yet been confirmed but the figures being discussed represent a historic leap forward for athlete earnings in the sport.
No confirmed names have been announced. Craig Jones own comments on Reddit suggest an eight competitor format with the emphasis placed squarely on selecting athletes who will truly compete and who can hold their own on the microphone. Whether that means a weight class bracket or an open weight absolute remains an open question and one that will likely drive significant speculation in the weeks ahead.
The return of CJI arrives at a moment when the competitive jiu jitsu scene has felt somewhat flat. With Gordon Ryan no longer an active competitor, star power that once drove major events fan engagement has noticeably dipped. CJI 2.5 represents a genuine opportunity to reinject energy into the sport, both for fans who want something to care about and for athletes who stand to benefit financially in ways the sport has never offered before.
Craig Jones has shown with previous editions that he understands what makes a competition worth watching, matchmaking, narrative and accessibility. A $10 million purse raises the stakes dramatically. The question now is whether the roster can match the ambition of the prize money.
The naming of this event as CJI 2.5 raises an obvious and question, does the fractional numbering imply that CJI 3 is still on the horizon for later in 2026? Craig Jones has not addressed this directly but the implication feels deliberate. Calling it 2.5 rather than simply CJI 3 suggests a roadmap and perhaps that the biggest event in the series is still to come.
