The 2023 Orange County Open took place on Saturday October 21st and Sunday October 22nd at the OC Fair Hangar in Costa Mesa, California. Art of Jiu Jitsu was the standout team, taking first overall in their home city, fueled by excellent individual performances from 2023 World Champion Johnatha Alves and 2022 Brasileiro Champion Pablo Lavaselli. Additionally, 2X World Champion Melissa Striker and 2023 Pan Champion Adam Wardzinski also stood out, winning double gold in the black belt adult divisions.

Melissa Stricker, who won her second World title in 2023, competed in the heavyweight and open class categories, where she won two gold medals. The Alliance athlete had one match at heavyweight and two in the open class, putting together a perfect 3-0 record for the weekend. Melissa’s next challenge will be at The Crown on Sunday, November 19th in Long Beach, California where she’ll compete in the super heavyweight division.

2023 Pan Champion Adam Wardzinski returned to competition for the first time since the 2023 Pan No-Gi, where he reached the final with his teammate Elder Cruz. Adam had this to say about his experience at the OC Open.

"I signed up for Orange County Open because I thought it would be nice to compete in my neighborhood but I did not expect it to be such a stacked tournament. To secure double gold I had to go through five demanding matches, each one against really crafty opponents. I started my campaign by winning two matches in the super heavy category, the first one by choke from the back and the final by points. In the open class I had three fights where I was able to win two matches by submission. It was a good day for me. I was happy to perform well and show some of my classic butterfly guard moves but also be able to hit a couple new moves I was working on. Before I go back to Europe I’m going to show up at another open tournament and Worlds No-Gi after that.”

AOJ blacks belts Johnatha Alves and Pablo Lavaselli won middleweight and lightweight gold, respectively. Johnatha has had the best year of his career thus far, winning his first World Championship gold medal. He had two matches in Orange County, where he finished both of his opponents via submissions. Pablo Lavaselli also had two matches and had two victories. It was Pablo’s first tournament since the 2023 World Championships back in June.

2023 Orange County Open team results:

1. Art of Jiu Jitsu

2. Gracie Barra

3. CheckMat