Last year, after winning his third black belt Pan title, Johnatha Alves participated in two super fights at IBJJF GP events. The first was at the IBJJF FloGrappling GP in October, where Johnatha faced Mathias Luna of CheckMat. Though he won the match via decision, Johnatha was unsatisfied with the performance. He’d return to the IBJJF Absolute GP in an open weight match against Roosevelt Souza of Fight Sports in November. Johnatha would lose the match on points, but showed his desire to take on new and exciting challenges to further propel his career. He commented on his participation in these events ahead of the IBJJF FloGrappling Men’s Lightweight GP this Friday.

“The IBJJF GP matches have helped me acquire more experience, just like any other matches. I’m slowly getting more comfortable on the IBJJF mats.”

At the IBJJF FloGrappling Men’s Lightweight GP, Johnatha will be joined by Andy Murasaki, Carlos Henrique, and Elijah Dorsey. Carlos and Elijah were promoted to black belt in 2022 after achieving great results at brown belt. Andy Murasaki, on the other hand, is a familiar opponent for Johnatha. The two have fought three times at black belt, with Johnatha getting the better of each of their matches by points.

“There are no easy opponents in this GP. They all have different games, and Carlos and Elijah don’t have a lot of time as black belts. We haven’t fought them yet, but I’m more familiar with Murasaki. I’ve fought Andy four times, but every match is a different match. He has always been an excellent lightweight and an opponent that brings me out of my comfort zone.”

With Johnatha and Andy having the most black belt matches and titles in the GP, we could potentially see them meet in the final. Andy’s recent results and momentum at black belt and Johnatha’s experience in 2022 may lead to a very different match that jiu-jitsu fans are eager to see. 

The Men’s Lightweight GP is part of Johnatha’s ultimate plan to become a black belt World Champion. “I’ll be competing at Pans and Worlds, and I’m hungrier than ever for Worlds.”

Watch Johnatha Alves take on the IBJJF FloGrappling Men’s Lightweight Grand Prix this Friday. You can watch the matches exclusively on flograppling.com.