Danis Gets Mauled by Covington, Immediately Signs Up for More

Dillon Danis got tech-falled 14-4 by Colby Covington at RAF 7 on Saturday night. The wrestling mismatch was exactly as lopsided as everyone predicted. Credit where it's due -- Danis tied it 4-4 after the first period and earned legitimate respect from Kurt Angle and Chael Sonnen on commentary. But two-time NCAA champion energy hit different in periods two and three.

So naturally, hours after the loss, Hype FC announced Danis vs. Arman Tsarukyan in a 10-minute submission-only title fight in Sao Paulo on April 8. Tsarukyan already holds that belt after rear-naked choking Muhammad Mokaev. Danis called it "free money." Jorge Masvidal told Arman to break his face. The man lost a wrestling match and decided the natural next step was fighting a UFC top-5 lightweight in a grappling match. In Brazil. Eleven days later.

Meanwhile, Covington grabbed the mic post-match and called out former UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman. Weidman accepted. Then deleted the post. Covington claims the match is a done deal for RAF 9 on May 30 in Dallas -- same card as Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson's RAF debut. Steveson tried the NFL, tried WWE, tried MMA, and now he's just... wrestling again. Full circle.

Sarah Galvao: A Teenager Just Did Something Absurd at Pans

Sarah Galvao won double gold at Pans -- lightweight AND absolute. The absolute final is the story. She beat super heavyweight Gabi Pessanha 6-0. That's a teenager in her first year at black belt single-legging a woman who outweighs her by sixty-plus pounds, taking the back in the final minute, and winning on points. Pessanha is an IBJJF double Grand Slam winner. Sarah Galvao didn't care.

This avenges her January Euros loss to Pessanha. Four golds at major IBJJF events (Crown, Euros, Pans weight and absolute) before she's old enough to rent a car in most states. The 2025 Breakthrough Grappler of the Year award is looking less like a prediction and more like an understatement.

Elsewhere at Pans: Lillian Marchand was seeded 17th at middleweight and won gold in her first black belt season, with multiple submission wins. From a small town in British Columbia. Seif-Eddine Houmine submitted Anderson Kauan with a north-south choke at ultra-heavyweight. Joao Miyao won his third consecutive Pans title at Master 1 -- still grinding, still winning, still out here proving longevity matters.

Meregali Criticizes the Rules, Takes the Money, Refuses Everyone Else

Nicholas Meregali gave a lengthy interview ahead of UFC BJJ 7, and the highlights are a masterclass in having it all ways at once. He told BJJEE that the UFC BJJ ruleset "doesn't fit jiu-jitsu" -- five-minute rounds hinder submissions, the 10-9 MMA scoring makes no sense for grappling, and the format prioritizes entertainment over technical development. Quote: "The purpose of the event is not to potentialize grappling in a technical way, but in a financial way."

Then he confirmed his contract isn't exclusive -- one year or four matches. He'd go exclusive if they offered more money and more events. He's already said Poland is "the end of the world" and he won't compete at ADCC 2026. He called CJI "dividing the industry." So he's criticizing the rules of the promotion paying him, refusing the biggest open tournament, dismissing the richest invitational, and keeping the door open for whoever writes the biggest check. Honestly? Respect the transparency.

Gordon Ryan and Craig Jones Are Now Arguing About Women

After Craig Jones pulled his $48K ADCC equal pay pledge (citing ADCC allowing Izaak Michell to compete despite arrest warrants), Gordon Ryan fired back. Ryan pointed out that CJI 1 had no women's division at all, and CJI 2 didn't pay women equally. "ADCC has done more for women than Craig Jones Invitational," he said.

There's a certain poetry to two men publicly arguing about which of them has done more for women's grappling while the women are right there, competing, winning medals, and largely staying out of it. Pessanha, Galvao, Marchand, Bastos -- they were all actually on the mats this week. The men were on Instagram.

UFC BJJ vs. ADCC: The Sport Is Actually Splitting

It's official now. Claudia Gadelha confirmed that UFC BJJ athletes with exclusive contracts will be banned from competing at ADCC starting 2027. Mikey Musumeci backed the decision. Tom DeBlass called it "terrible" -- "Grappling is not MMA." Some athletes got ADCC exceptions for 2026, but after September, the door closes.

This is the combat sports playbook. Build a roster, wall it off, control the market. It worked for the UFC in MMA. Whether it works for grappling -- where the fanbase is smaller, the money is thinner, and the athletes have options (CJI, WNO, IBJJF, PGF) -- is the open question. ADCC 2026 in Krakow this September might be the last time you see everyone on the same mats. Gabi Garcia accepted her invite, chasing a historic fifth title. Mateusz Gamrot, the Polish UFC lightweight, will compete at -77kg in his home country. Meanwhile, Meregali said no. The stakes keep climbing.

Technique of the Week: Tainan's Boundary Control

The most satisfying clip from Pans was Tainan Dalpra dragging opponents back to center every time they tried to flee the mat. Over and over. Like a cat bringing a mouse back to play with. The IBJJF actually cracked down on out-of-bounds fleeing at this Pans -- handing out 2-point penalties and positional resets for athletes who ran to the edge while defending. About time. The community has been begging for this.

Looking Ahead

WNO 32 is tomorrow (March 31) in Austin -- four-man lightweight grand prix with Deandre Corbe, Julian Espinosa, Max Hanson, and Dorian Olivarez competing for the 155lb title. Plus a youth grand prix and several featured matches.

UFC BJJ 7 drops Wednesday (April 2) at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas. Championship tripleheader: Tackett vs. Rocha (welterweight), Henrique vs. Valente (lightweight), Le Vern vs. Lima (women's featherweight). Meregali vs. Moody on the undercard. Free on YouTube at 8pm ET.

Hype Brazil on April 8 -- Tsarukyan vs. Danis for the submission grappling title. Submission-only, 10 minutes, in Sao Paulo. If you've been following the Danis trajectory this month, you already know how this probably goes. But you'll watch anyway.

AI-generated content by BJJ Problems. Sources linked throughout.

Sources

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