Match Time Limits:

Kids: 3 minutes
Youths: 3 minutes
Adults: 4 minutes

Format:

Our tournaments are round robin format, with the opportunity to get up to 5 matches each in gi and no-gi (not including the absolute divisions!). In divisions with over 7 competitors, the division will be split into 2 pools, where the best grapplers from each pool will compete in a single-elimination play-off format to decide first, second and third. 

In the case of divisions with only 2 competitors, the bracket will be held as a 'best of three'. Absolute divisions are single elimination format. We will merge divisions if we have to in order for all competitors to have matches (you will be notified by email), providing we deem it safe to do so.

Match points:

Winning a match by submission will award 5 points, wins by decision will award 2 points, and wins by disqualification or walkover will only award 1 point. The scoring heavily favours the submission, which is what our circuit prioritises.

If there are multiple athletes with the same number of points, Smoothcomp will determine the placings by the following tiebreaker criteria, in this order:

1. Result if the competitors went head to head, E.g. Athlete A and B both have 10 points (2 submission wins), but Athlete A submitted Athlete B in their match, so Athlete A ranks higher.
2. Fastest submission, E.g. Athlete A and B both have 10 points, but didn’t face each other, whoever had the fastest sub out of them wins
3. Shortest total time in won matches, E.g. Athlete A and B both have 10 points, didn't face each other, and both have a fastest sub of 15 seconds, but Athlete A's total time in their won matches was 40 seconds versus Athlete B's 49 seconds, then Athlete A wins

Decision criteria:

If there is no submission at the end of the match, the referee will choose the winner by decision based on submission attempts.

The referees will consider both the quantity and quality (how close to finishing the submission it was) of submission attempts. We have set it up like this for 2 reasons:

1. Provides a more accurate result than just counting submission attempts, without considering how good they were
2. Makes the scoring subjective, and therefore more difficult to try to game the ruleset 

Please do not harass our referees over their decisions, they are only human and have to make split second calls. The clue is in the word ‘decision’ – it is subjective, and therefore cannot be wrong. The onus is on you to go out and submit your opponent, to take winning or losing out of the referee's hands.

Competing against teammates:

Because of the round robin format, teammates might end up being matched against one another. We've configured Smoothcomp to avoid this when possible, but depending on the number of competitors or teammates in a division, there might be no way to prevent it. 

Closeouts are not permitted (rigging a match with a teammate), regardless of whether the goal is to game the bracket scoring or not. If a closeout occurs, the referee will call a double DQ. 

Resets:

If the action goes out of bounds and the athletes were in a scramble, they will be reset in the middle of the mat from standing.

If the action goes out of bounds and the athletes were in a stable position, they will be reset in that same position (to the best of the referee's ability)

If the action goes out of bounds and the athletes were in a submission, they will be reset in the same position (to the best of the referee's ability), with the following restrictions:

• No bites on heel hooks are to be given
• If athlete was in an armbar, he may start with a 10 finger or palm to palm defensive grip

The above rule applies when an athlete goes out of bounds as a result of defending the submission. If they purposely move off of the mat while in a submission with the sole purpose of getting a reset (e.g. walking off the mat while in a triangle), then they are to be considered submitted and lose the match.