Victor Hugo delivered a remarkable performance at the 2026 ADCC World Championships, winning the over 99 kilogram division with four submission victories.
Hugo opened the tournament with a heel hook variation against veteran Heikki Jussila from 50/50. In my favorite match of the tournament, he used our underhook de la riva to setup a back take before finishing with a shoulder-lock over Ruslan Abdulaev in the quarterfinals,. Ruslan is a very tough opponent who has beaten ADCC champions Luke Griffith and Kaynan Duarte. A lot of people were trying to pass to the off-side and he was able to spin under the far followed by a kneebar victory against the very strong Mark Macqueen in the semifinals. Mark had a great tournament beating Big Dan in the match before.
In the championship match, Hugo faced Josh Saunders. Saunders had come out ahead over Felipe Pena. VH came out strong in the hand fight, but got hit with a passivity penalty just before a takedown by Saunders. Down by a penalty, he almost got the the back after arm drag from half guard that Saunders fought off. Saunders was trying to pressure VH’s half guard, but victor was able to secure a choi-bar like grip. I thought he was going to pry it out, but when he leg got stepped over he ended up in a triangle from the back where he ended finishing with another shoulder lock.Â
Every one of Hugo’s matches ended by submission, the first time in tournament history anyone has done this at his weight dividion. His ability to combine leg attacks, back control, and upper body submissions made him a difficult opponent throughout the event especially at that weight.
To be a coaching him through that tournament, running portions of his camp is super special for me and I was proud to be a part of it. He retired from competing in tournaments and what a way to finish out his tournament career. Below is every match of Victor Hugo’s from the tournament.