It has been a waiting game for the F2W heavyweight champ, Gutemberg Pereira. 

After initially earning the title in F2W 70 in a match against Tim Spriggs the champ defended it at F2W 103, and was scheduled to make an appearance for his second title defense last month, but the match was cancelled. 

The GF Team rep hasn’t been twiddling his thumbs though. 

Gutemberg Pereira

He is both entrepreneur and elite jiu-jitsu competitor, running his academy in Toledo, Ohio, and keeping his sight focused on his goal to be a World Champion, a feat he accomplished at the colored belts, but will now strive to attain at the black belt level. Since his last appearance on the F2W stage the medal chaser has stayed busy at Pans, various IBJJF Opens, all while preparing for Worlds. 

He has been a standout athlete any time he has taken the mats this year, climbing the FloGrappling super heavyweight ranks to number 4. Pereira is setting himself up to make this year, his year. This second title defense will serve as an excellent challenge in preparation for Worlds as he takes on a slightly larger opponent in the no.4 ranked ultra heavyweight contender, Erberth Santos. 

Erberth Santos

Which Erberth Santos will show up this Saturday? He is one of the most brutal competitors, with ruthless attacks, sending his opponents plummeting to the mat with his abrasive judo. And when he is “on” he has some of the most lethal attacks in the game, like when he subbed Rudson Mateus in under two minutes at the 2018 King of Mats on his way to becoming the champ. 

But, he is also one of the most bizarre athletes from his infamous brawl during his match against Felipe Pena, or dominating his bronze medal match at World Pro last week until he pulled side control and tapped to… nothing? Granted, the controversial competitor did undergo a substantial weight cut to make the 94kg division, so maybe that contributed to his performance. 

Batista vs Diniz 

We already know which Gustavo Batista will show up Saturday night: the dependable one. The Atos all-star, ranked no.2 at medium-heavy, has had one of the best competitive seasons so far. 

Gustavo Batista 

We are two major IBJJF tournaments into the year and Batista has appeared on the division and open weight podiums at both closing out with teammate Kaynan Duarte in the division, and taking gold in the absolute with victory over lightweight GOAT Lucas Lepri at Europeans, followed by a gold medal run in his division and a bronze medal in the absolute at Pans. 

On the rare occasion he doesn’t get the “W” Batista is still one of the most consistent players in the game. Always showing up with his best. Any who can best him is probably having their best day ever.

Matheus Diniz on the attack

That’s what Matheus Diniz is planning for as he takes on Gustavo Batista in the co-main event. The Marcelo Garcia blackbelt is known for his no-gi game as the KASAI Champion, but he likes the gi just as much as trains in both an equal 50-50. 

Diniz will be making back-to-back F2W appearances against World Champions: this week against 2018 champ Batista, and next week against 2017 champ Gabriel Arges. 

Diniz is possibly one of the most underrated blackbelts, ranked no.9 in the medium heavyweight division, but recently putting on stellar performances from his No-Gi Worlds run to his Pan bronze medal campaign. Diniz makes it to nearly every major podium but we have not seen him in that gold medal position, but that doesn’t take away from his prestige– it’s a work in progress. 

The matches he wins are typically dominant, or with slick submissions. And the matches he comes up short are always a war. It’s just a matter of time for Diniz to make his mark.

Also on the card... 

We have a female title match on the card as Kristin Mikkelson (Brazil 021) takes on Catherine Perret (Checkmat). The winner will become the new F2W Bantamweight champion as the title was previously held by Mackenzie Dern, who vacated the spot. 

Originally, Luiza Monteiro was on the docket, but has pulled out due to injury, so Mikkelson has stepped up with just a couple of weeks’ notice. Kristin Mikkelson trains under the legendary Hannette Staack in Chicago and comes to the stage the hometown favorite in hopes of becoming the new F2W bantamweight champion.

Other Notable Matches:

• Returning to the stage is Unity’s Devhonte Johnson taking on Tac Team’s Matt Leighton in a 195lb black belt gi match.
• Dania Seaver (Brasa) meets Samantha Garcia (Tac Team) in a 140lb purple belt women’s gi match. 

The card hosts a total of 18 black belt matches in addition to equally as many colored belt match ups. Watch it LIVE or On Demand ONLY on FloGrappling.