Last time I went over the +60kg women's division, but this time let's talk about the smaller ladies. This division is packed with talent and most of these ladies are finishers. This division should have a lot of interesting action and there are a variety of styles which I think makes this division very interesting. There are multiple gi world champions. 3 WNO champions and 2 former ADCC champions. This division is stacked with talent and there is little chance of their ladies gassing out. Now let's get into the ladies that will be competing in the -60kg division.
Divisional breakdowns
If you haven't read them already, check out the breakdowns for the other divisions below. Just click on the links below for each division.
Competitors
Now let's take a look at who is in this division. Keep in mind things might change before the tournament.
Bianca Basilio
Bianca is the current champion of this division and has continued her success since her 2019 performance although it has mostly been in the gi. Recently she became an IBJJF world champion, so she will definitely be in shape for this competition. This might be her first nogi match since the last ADCC and I'm sure she's ready to get back in there and defend her title.
Bianca seems equally comfortable on top and bottom and has a good takedown game. Another feature of her game that sets her apart from other in this division is her focus on leg locks. In particular she focuses on the straight ankle lock and toe hold. These 2 submissions comprise 38% of her total submissions are her top 2 highest finishing moves.
Bianca is a very explosive grappler that isn't afraid to try flying techniques or fall back for a leg lock. That by itself would make her dangerous, but she also has a strong traditional game that allows her to pressure pass when necessary. She is dangerous in all positions and has the cardio to keep going for the whole match.
If Bianca has any weakness it might be her recklessness. She jumps on subs and positions which sometimes leaves her open to counter attack. Another problem she might run into is Bea Mesquita. They have fought a number of times under a number of rule sets and Bea has beaten her every time I believe. Bianca will have to find a strategy to beat Bea or hope someone else takes her out.
Bianca should be one of the most exciting competitors in this division so don't blink during her matches.
Beatriz Mesquita
Her nick name is "The Lady GOAT" and that should tell you everything you need to know. Bea is a former ADCC champion who is looking to come back and reclaim her spot. She's won almost everything this is to win and is now looking to double back and win ADCC again.
She does have experience wrestling and uses that in conjunction with her top game to keep her opponents stuck and unable to get their games going. She also has a strong bottom game that she isn't afraid to use.
One of her greatest strengths is her mental fortitude and patience. If I were to compare her to someone it would JT Torres. She rarely makes mistakes and does the right thing at the right time. Her skill level is so high it will be hard for any of the other women to pressure her and when she decides to turn up the heat, many of the other girls will have problems with her pressure.
If she has a weakness I'd say its the fact that she sometimes starts slowly and doesn't always use her athletic gifts. Her relaxed nature can sometimes get her in trouble as we saw last ADCC when she faced Ffion Davies. The girls in this division aren't playing around and almost all of them have split second submission ability. A slow start could get her into the type of trouble she can't get out of.
Despite not being the champion she might be the favorite.
Ffion Davies
Ffion is the 2019 silver medalist and earned her place in ADCC history with her amazing rear triangle armbar on Bia Mesquita. This time she'll be looking for gold and to do that she's recently started training in America with JT Torres. She is also coming in with a lot of momentum now that she has become an IBJJF world champion in the gi.
Ffion has a Judo background and isn't afraid to mix things up on the feet. She might be the best standing grappler in this division, but she isn't impossible to take down. The is a top pressure player with a very good Kneecut pass. She doesn't mind grinding and making her opponents miserable. Training under JT Torres will likely only increase her ability to do this.
Ffion has heavy top pressure and I'm sure it will only get heavier training under JT Torres. She has phenomenal passing that she uses to get into a top pinning positions and then finish. Ffion has a 71% percentage rate which should put some fear into any future opponents and she is particularly good at the armbar.
Elvira Karppinen
Elvira is a very game competitor and the current ADCC bronze medalist. She is a 10th planet black belt and as you'd expect she has quite a few tricky moves. She seemingly came out of no where and being based in Finland we can't often see her compete.
Elvira's style is a mix between classic 10th planet and a leglock heavy modern style. She is one of the only competitors that seems to hunt heelhooks in this division. This could be a great asset to her if she leverages it currently. She is equally adept at top and bottom, but she isn't the strongest wrestler. However her physicality can help her and she isn't afraid to stand with people.
Elvira is very persistent and her athleticism as well as technique will help her against a lot of these women. She should be one of the larger women and should have a height advantage over many of her opponents. Couple that with her strength and cardio and she becomes a real terror on the mats. Her heelhook knowledge also makes her quite dangerous as there are very few female heelhook specialists.
In the past Elvira has had problems staying out of trouble and imposing her game on others. Having back and forth matches at this level often times leaves you on the loosing end of decisions or gets you subbed. She hasn't competed much, so its hard to tell if she has improved her game or become rusty since the last ADCC. Some of the newer women will present her with new challenges she hasn't faced yet and if she isn't "ON" because of in activity, she will be in for a world of hurt.
Brianna Ste-Marie
Brianna only recently received her black belt, but she's been on a tear since she was a purple belt. She conquered the ADCC North American(both east & west coast) trials as well as being the WNO 135lbs champion, IBJJF brown belt nogi world champion, Medusa 135lb champion, and 125lbs Combat JJ champion. She has done a lot in a short time and is on a streak. She has won more than 11 matches in a row with 6 of them coming by submission.
Here style is more of a traditional old school style of BJJ. On top she uses lots of knee slice and pressure passes. On bottom she plays closed guard and has a very dangerous armbar. She reminds me of a female Xande Ribeiro. She is familiar with more modern techniques however and we have seen her play the leg game at times.
I think Brianna might be a bit undersized for this division and that could hurt her considering her style. She uses a lot of pressure and closed guard, which may not work if she can't get on top and stay there. I think many of the girls will be ready for this and although she is very good, her game isn't particularly "tricky". Her performance will depend on her execution instead of her strategy.
Brianna is fearless and aggressive which will help her if things go to a decision. Although I don't think she will be the biggest or strongest woman in the division she is a pro MMA fighter and competes in wrestling. She should have a standing advantage over most of the girls.
Mayssa Bastos
Mayssa is a 3 time gi world champion and a 2 time nogi world champion. On top of that she is the current WNO 115 lbs champ This is her 1st ADCC appearance, but she is one of the most decorated competitors in this division. She won the South American trials and is coming off of her win at the IBJJF world championship now. She has tons of momentum and a unique style for this division.
Mayssa is primarily a bottom player whose bread & butter is the berimbolo. I don't think any of the other girls play this style and she'll have a distinct advantage there and her smaller size might actually help her invert under towards her opponent's back. She also has very good leg lock defense and I imagine any attempt will end with her taking her opponent's back. She rarely loses and has never lost by submission at the black belt level.
Two things that might cause her problems are her lack of stand up and her size. I've never seen her even attempt to wrestle and I wouldn't be surprised if she lost in overtime after being taken down. She is also one of the smaller if not the smallest competitor. This will be a big disadvantage in the standing position. Another cause for concern is her finishing ability. She sometimes has problems finishing her opponents and doesn't seem to have that lightning fast killer instinct some other women do. I'm not sure if longer drawn out matches favor her or not.
If she sticks to her game she can definitely win the whole thing. It would be smart of her to learn from her teammate Junny Ocasio and perfect her leg attacks. Having the ability to finish quickly will help her and many of the other women in this division aren't particularly proficient in that area.
Julia Maele
Julia is one of the European trials winners and comes from Norway. She isn't a big name and I wasn't familiar with here before she won the trials. This is her shot to make a name for herself so I'm sure she's going to come out guns blazing. She is a bit of a wildcard because she doesn't have a ton of matches against high level competitors in a no-gi setting.
She seems to prefer the top position, but I think she might actually be better from the bottom. Her game is fairly well rounded and she doesn't seem afraid to attack leg locks. She is also has lots of heart and isn't afraid to make the match gritty. She might fair better against some of the more established names if she takes them into deep water.
Unfortunately she has holes in her game. She doesn't seem to be a particularly great finisher and during the trials she had trouble submitting her opponents even when there were clear openings. She'll need to correct this before ADCC if she wants to compete at the world level. She also doesn't have world class ability in any one area. She is versatile, but unlike other competitors she doesn't have a clear path to victory which might lead her to playing other people's game.
Adele Fornarino
Adele is the Asian trails winner and a brown belt from Australia. She's still young in her career and this trials win is her first big step in professional grappling. She's hoping that she can use this as a launch pad to propel her to greater heights with an ADCC victory.
Adele is comfortable on top and bottom, but seems to prefer to play from guard. She seems adept at sweeping and keeping her opponents off balance. She has a dangerous guard and likes to hit armbars and triangles from there. Her fight IQ also seems to be fairly high and she doesn't often make careless mistakes.
Adele doesn't have a particulary strong wrestling game however and that could hurt her in ADCC. On top of that I don't think she'll be able to match the athleticism of some of the other girls. This is on top of the fact that she will most likely be at a disadvantage technically to many others in this division. All that said you can never count her out. Adele has a chance to show she belongs with the big names in this division and with the right game plan she might be able to shock the world.
Breakdown
This is a very hard division to predict and I believe there are 3 women who have an equal chance of winning. Bea Mesquita, Bianca Basillio and Ffion Davies have to be the front runners, but the match ups will ultimately determine who will win. Ffion hasn't been able to beat Bianca, but has beaten Bea. Bianca hasn't been able to beat Bea, but has been able to beat Ffion multiple times. There are also quite a few wild cards such as Mayssa Bastos who wins almost everything and has a completely different style from the rest of the girls. Brianna Ste- Marie is also red hot right now.
I expect this division will be dominated by RNCs from the back, arm locks and perhaps ankle locks or toeholds. The female divisions historically haven't had many heel hooks and I doubt many of these women will even attempt them. I think this division will look more like the old school BJJ we saw from ADCC competitors in the 2000s. Most of these women aren't afraid to stand up and wrestle and on the ground I believe many of them will use closed guard.
Overall
I'm expecting this to be a fun division and I imagine there will be quite a few upsets. Many of these women are evenly matched and I think it's going to be hard for anyone to blow the others out of the water. While I'm expecting action, I don't think there will be many quick finishes. Very few girls have that quick submission ability and most prefer to play a positional game with subs being the icing on the cake instead of the main dish. All the women, except for Julia Maele, are well established with styles that the other women should be somewhat familiar with. I don't think there will be too many tricks or secret moves. I'm predicting it will come down to physical attributes and heart in this division. Anyone can win here and I think this will be a enjoyable division to watch.
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