Craig Jones has made it clear: CJI 3 is happening, and he wants it to feel like the first one did.
Speaking on the BJJ Balance podcast, Jones was candid about the challenges that have slowed the event’s return while laying out his vision for what he wants it to become.
“We for sure need to do a CJI 3,” Jones said. “I want to bring it back to that CJI 1 fever dream type of energy where it was like it’s going to be hard to beat.”
The road back has not been smooth. Jones pointed to athlete contracts as one of the primary obstacles, noting that some competitors are locked into exclusive deals with other promotions while others are too cautious to compete elsewhere even when their contracts technically allow it.
He described athletes who are technically free to compete but still reluctant to upset the promotions they work with, creating a kind of informal exclusivity even where none officially exists.
Jones designed CJI as neutral ground, free on YouTube, where athletes from any promotion could participate. The concept was modeled on something close to an off-year ADCC, a world-level event that sat outside the promotional landscape.
“We were just trying genuinely just trying to do this middle of the ground thing, free on YouTube,” he said. “But again, some promoters are scared because obviously if your athlete loses it sort of devalues what they have there.”
CJI 2 offered its own lessons. Jones drew a comparison to Quintet, noting that as the athlete pool got more elite, competitors began gaming the format rather than going for finishes. Day two was rescued when an investor pushed for $50,000 submission bonuses.
“Thank god he saved the day for day two,” Jones said. “They were just gaming the system.”
The quality of officiating came up as another key factor in what made CJI 1 work. Jones credited Joel Herzog, a black belt out of Southern California, with setting the right tone for the first event, though scheduling conflicts kept him off the CJI 2 card.
“Herszog did us for CJI 1. We couldn’t have him for CGI 2 because of UFC BJJ, but I think Herszog is really really good at what he does,” Jones said.
For him, good reffing matters as much as the rule set itself.
“A confident ref that understands the game, like understands what is a genuine fleeing of an exchange and punishes it fast, I think is truly truly important.”
Jones is currently based in Tulum, Mexico, working on a resort project, and has said hosting events there is part of the long-term plan.
Wherever CJI 3 ends up, he is building toward it.
