Third Coast Grappling returns on September 12 for another installment of the Kumite series!

Kumite VI will feature several previous Kumite champs and runners-up in an open-weight gi tournament. With so many competitors returning for the Kumite, this bracket is stacked with potential grudge matches.

Watch: Third Coast Grappling Kumite VI LIVE on FloGrappling on Saturday, September 12

Kumite II champion Victor Hugo has not lost a match all year, and he has two quick submission victories over Fellipe Andrew. He’s among the favorites to win this bracket, but he’ll first have to get through 2018 World No-Gi Champ Arnoldo Maidana, and is likely to have a third showdown with Fellipe Andrew, who will be eager to break Hugo’s win streak.

Watch: Victor Hugo vs Fellipe Andrew at Third Coast Grappling: Kumite II

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Andrew’s opening-round opponent is Gracie Barra brown belt Arian De Melo. He’ll be a major wildcard in this one, as he’s one of the two competitors in the bracket yet to compete in a Third Coast Grappling Kumite. He’ll have a huge task ahead of him.

We expect Andrew to put on another show in his third Kumite performance. He made it to the finals in each of his previous two appearances, losing to Hugo at Kumite II and submitting both Gabriel Almeida and Barbosa before falling to Roberto “Cyborg” Abreu in the no-gi Kumite IV. Andrew has the potential to finish anybody, so keep your eyes peeled for his savage foot lock and his precise triangle-armbar.

Another frequent finalist in the Kumite series, Roberto Jimenez has been on a tear all year. He’s won by submission in nearly 70 percent of his victories, and took home the grand prize in previous gi and no-gi iterations of the Third Coast Grappling Kumite.

Roberto Jimenez

He has a score to settle with Gabriel Almeida, who could be his semifinal opponent if both men advance.

First, he’ll first have to get through veteran black belt Guilherme Augusto, who will largely outweigh Jimenez. Augusto will want to get through Jimenez for his own rematch against Almeida, who defeated him at Kumite IV via decision after Augusto nearly passed his guard several times in the golden score overtime.

Gabriel Almeida

While Almeida has victories over each of his two would-be semifinal opponents, he also has a recent victory over his first-round opponent Fellipe Trovo. Trovo had an impressive performance at Subversiv 3 recently, submitting Devhonte Johnson and helping his team win the tournament. His sole loss in the event was to Almeida, so there’s revenge on the line in this opening round as well.

Johnny Tama vs Osvaldo 'Queixinho' Moizinho

One exciting match that’s guaranteed to happen: a lightweight showdown between Johnny Tama and Queixinho. This gi superfight between two No-Gi World champions may not go the distance. Tama is unrelenting in his attack game, particularly looking for footlocks. But that could play to Queixinho’s favor as he usually sets up his high-caliber omoplata game off of counter-attacks.

This will be the second match of Queixinho’s double-header weekend, as he will first challenge Kennedy Maciel at Fight to Win 151 on Friday.

Johnny Tama

The unusual ruleset of Third Coast Grappling is sure to make many of these matches and re-matches interesting. Each match consists of a five-minute round. Outside of submission, the only way to win in the first five minutes is to score 11 points. If neither competitor scores 11 or wins by submission, there is a five-minute “golden score” overtime during which the first person to score wins. If neither person scores in that period, the decision is left to the referees.

Because the athletes must accumulate points to win, these matches tend to be fast-paced. And with so many rematches on the line, you won’t want to miss the action.