Craig Jones Invitational

Lore & Background

Craig Jones, a two-time ADCC silver medalist from B-Team Jiu-Jitsu, organized the Craig Jones Invitational after being disappointed with athlete pay at ADCC. The 2024 tournament featured two men's divisions (under 80kg and over 80kg) with 16 competitors each, a $1 million prize for each division winner, and a $10,001 minimum payout per participant. Jones brought $1 million in cash to promote the tournament on Joe Rogan's podcast. The event also included a best submission bonus of $50,000 and an intergender superfight where Jones defeated Gabi Garcia.

Reader's Guide

The Craig Jones Invitational established itself as a major alternative to ADCC, offering significantly higher prize money and free streaming. The 2024 event raised $500,000 for Tap Cancer Out and drew over 100,000 concurrent viewers on YouTube. It won Promotion of the Year and Fight Card of the Year at the 2024 Jits Magazine BJJ Awards. The 2025 tournament adopted a team format inspired by Quintet, with eight teams of five grapplers competing for $1 million. The B-Team won the team tournament after a controversial decision over Team New Wave, with both teams initially set to receive $1 million but Team New Wave ultimately not given the prize money. CJI 2 also featured a women's tournament won by Helena Crevar and a superfight where Jones defeated Chael Sonnen. The event won Fight Card of the Year at the 2025 Jits Magazine BJJ Awards.

Did You Know?

• The 2024 tournament was scheduled to overlap with ADCC 2024, held August 17–18 in Las Vegas.
• Craig Jones defeated Gabi Garcia in an intergender superfight at the 2024 event.
• The B-Team won the $1 million team tournament at CJI 2 after a controversial decision over Team New Wave.
• Gable Steveson claimed he withdrew from CJI 2 because Jones asked him to throw their superfight; Jones denied this.

Origins & the Pay Revolution

Craig Jones, a two-time ADCC silver medalist competing out of B-Team Jiu-Jitsu, grew disillusioned with how little major grappling events paid their athletes. At ADCC, the male division champion takes home just $10,000, and Jones felt that figure was an insult to the sport's competitors. His response was to build a rival event from the ground up, guaranteeing every invited participant a minimum payout of $10,001—deliberately one dollar more than the ADCC winner's check. The 2024 inaugural tournament featured two men's brackets of sixteen competitors each (under 80kg and over 80kg), with the bracket winner in each division collecting a $1 million prize. A $50,000 best-submission bonus added further incentive. To generate maximum attention, Jones appeared on episode 157 of Joe Rogan's podcast carrying a million dollars in physical cash. He also scheduled the event to overlap directly with ADCC 2024, both landing in Las Vegas in mid-August, making his challenge to the sport's flagship competition impossible to ignore.

The 2024 Inaugural Event

The first Craig Jones Invitational unfolded on August 16–17, 2024, at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, streamed live and free on YouTube. Both competition days drew more than 100,000 concurrent viewers. Nick Rodriguez captured the over 80kg division title, while Kade Ruotolo took the under 80kg bracket. In the marquee intergender superfight, Jones himself submitted Gabi Garcia. Ffion Davies delivered another striking result by defeating Mackenzie Dern in the women's superfight. The event also raised $500,000 for the Tap Cancer Out charity. Critical acclaim followed swiftly: the tournament swept both the Promotion of the Year and Fight Card of the Year categories at the 2024 Jits Magazine BJJ Awards, and the Kade Ruotolo versus Andrew Tackett bout from the under 80kg bracket was named Match of the Year. A planned superfight involving Mikey Musumeci fell through over a contractual disagreement, and Mason Fowler withdrew from the over 80kg bracket due to injury.

CJI 2 and the Team-Format Experiment

Announced on December 8, 2024, the second Craig Jones Invitational pivoted to a Quintet-inspired team structure. Held August 30–31, 2025, again at the Thomas & Mack Center, CJI 2 fielded eight squads of five grapplers each, with every team covering a different weight class, all competing for a $1 million team prize. The eight participating organizations included The B-Team, Team New Wave, Team 10th Planet, Team Atos, Team Europe, Team Pedigo, Team Americas, and Team Australasia, each helmed by a prominent coach such as John Danaher, Eddie Bravo, André Galvão, and Nicky Ryan. A separate $100,000 openweight women's tournament featured Helena Crevar, Adele Fornarino, Ana Vieira, and Sarah Galvão, with Crevar ultimately taking the title. The superfight card saw Jones defeat Chael Sonnen after Gable Steveson's withdrawal. The B-Team and Team New Wave tied in the final before The B-Team were declared winners by decision, a ruling that ignited significant controversy.

Controversy, Criticism, and Lasting Footprint

CJI 2's conclusion was clouded by dispute. After The B-Team and Team New Wave drew in the team final, The B-Team were awarded the $1 million prize by decision. Although both squads were initially set to share the money in the wake of the controversy, Team New Wave ultimately did not receive their portion. Gable Steveson publicly stated he withdrew from his superfight not because of injury but because Jones asked him to throw the match; Jones denied this, claiming the UFC orchestrated Steveson's exit to undermine the event. On the competitive side, UFC BJJ athlete Mikey Musumeci criticized Night 1 for a lack of action, labeling the team format "boring." Despite the mixed reception, CJI 2 still earned the Fight Card of the Year award at the 2025 Jits Magazine BJJ Awards, and the Sarah Galvão versus Ana Vieira women's bout was named Match of the Year. The free-streaming model on FloGrappling's YouTube channel and the charitable fundraising from the inaugural event underscored Jones's commitment to accessibility and community support within the grappling world.