One of the biggest tournaments in the midwest, the Chicago Open, returned to the windy city for its spring edition this past weekend. JT Torres of Atos, who’s won important titles at the Europeans and Pans, returned to gi competition in Chicago. The last time JT competed with the gi on was all the way back in 2019 at the World Jiu-Jitsu Championships in Long Beach, California.

“I had two matches. My first match I was able to pull and sweep and get ahead on the scoreboard. I was working some pressure passing on top trying to wear down my opponent. He was able to get into a “411” or the “clover leaf” position where he was ultimately DQ’ed. It was not the way I wanted the match to end. I was looking forward to continue playing my game but it happens sometimes. Then my second match, which was the final, my opponent pulled first. I immediately started working my pressure passing. I forced the half guard smash and then I passed straight to knee on belly and took the full mount which led to my opponent turning away, and I secured the back and finished with a collar choke,” explained JT.

“I felt great to be back out there against formidable opponents , where I was able to apply my game and secure the victory. My students also did very well. It was great to see what we have been working on in the training room is paying off, but this weekend also lets us see what adjustments we need to make for the Worlds in June.”

2023 Pans super heavy silver medalist Felipe Costa and 2021 World Champion Melissa Stricker were the open class champions in the gi. Felipe was seeded first in the super heavy and open class divisions, where he won a total of five fights. Melissa didn’t have any opponents at medium-heavy, but won both of her matches in the open to take gold.

In his IBJJF black belt debut, Pedigo Submission Fighting standout Jacob Couch competed in both the heavyweight and absolute no-gi divisions, going 6-0 on the day in Chicago. He put his submission prowess on full display throughout his matches, finishing five of his six opponents with submissions. Jacob won the 2022 Worlds No-Gi as a brown belt in December and was promoted to black belt on the podium. His performance at the Chicago Spring Open showed why Jacob is such a highly regarded rookie black belt.

2023 Chicago Spring Open team results:

       1.   TAC Team BJJ

       2.   Carlson Gracie Team

       3.   Alliance

2023 Chicago Spring No-Gi Open team results:

1. TAC Team BJJ
2. Pedigo Submission Fighting
3. Carlson Gracie Team