CNMI grapplers compete in Guam’s Submit 8

CNMI grapplers laid it all out on the mats of Submit 8, a submission-only grappling tournament featuring 16 bouts at Dusit Thani in Guam on Friday, Sept. 11.

Three Saipan Submissions Academy athletes competed on the card—professor and black belt Bryan Deleon Guerrero faced off against Vida Pro Hata’s Trev Jones, with the match ending in a draw. Ciana Demapan also went the distance with Carlson Gracie’s Rally Walker, ending in another draw.

Meanwhile, Leighton Palacios lost to Purebred HQ’s Robbie Lujan via bow-and-arrow choke.

Another CNMI fighter now based in Guam, Kelvin Fitial, also competed and fought Biba JJ’s Wu to a draw.

Deleon Guerrero, a black belt and co-owner of Saipan Submissions, said competing at Submit 8 was a good opportunity for the young gym, which has been open for just over two years, to show the progress its athletes have made.

“Having the students on stage will display the hard work and skill level that we’ve been developing for just a short amount of time, so for me as the instructor and gym owner, we’re very privileged to have this opportunity,” said Deleon Guerrero.

As for the competitors the gym brought over, he said they are among the hardest workers in the gym and have put in the training needed to compete. Deleon Guerrero then thanked the Saipan community for supporting the team and said they were proud to represent the CNMI.

For Demapan and Palacios, who are both blue belts, the event was an opportunity to represent their team and island while gaining more competition experience.

The 16-year-old Demapan said that she was “grateful” and “proud” to represent the CNMI. “We  just come from such a small island and also the jiu-jitsu population isn’t that big. So I’m really honored that we get to come out and show our talents.”

For 18-year-old Palacios, he said, “Representing the team here means everything to me. I dedicate most of my time in the day just getting better in this sport that I love, so coming out here is just an honor.”

Trench Tech Purebred Saipan’s Justis “Cuki” Alvarez was also in attendance to support the CNMI competitors. He said of the opportunity for CNMI athletes competing, “What a great opportunity for the combatants of the CNMI to be able to have a platform to showcase their skills. We’ve been doing grappling and mixed martial arts for a long time in the CNMI—back to the PXC days and even the Submit events in the past, we’ve had several of our Trench Tech guys compete, so it’s good to see the Saipan Submissions guys now, the newer gym on the island come and showcase their skills.”

Submit and Brawl founder Malcolm Manibusan said the event came from his desire to give jiu-jitsu athletes a more professional and high-end platform to compete on. He said his experience watching major grappling and martial arts events in the late 1990s and 2000s inspired the vision for Submit. “One of the things I want to push is elevating jiu-jitsu, elevating grappling—in my way in terms of giving it a nice environment, and giving the athletes a high end stage to compete,” he said.

Manibusan said Submit has been running for 11 years and has now held eight major shows, along with smaller events and Brawl competitions.