History

The Chewjitsu Open is the brainchild of Nick "Chewy" Albin and his desire to provide more local competitions to the Louisville, Kentucky, region. He wanted to make sure those attending didn't fall victim to the common "one and done" single elimination format that many large competitions have by creating a competition that provided lots of matches and experience for all participants. He also wanted to focus on the ultimate goal of jiu-jitsu: neutralizing opponents with submissions. Chewy worked with his partners to create a unique ruleset and bracketing method to achieve just that: A tournament that aims to provide up to 4 matches per division, allows a wide variety of submissions at each level, and rewards those for attempting or finishing submissions. 

The first Chewjitsu Open was hosted in July 2023 at Chewy's gym, Derby City Mixed Martial Arts, in Louisville, Kentucky. The tournament was so successful that registration had to be closed early due to concerns of exceeding capacity at the gym. From 10 am until 5:30 pm, over 400 matches took place across 5 mats with nonstop action. Almost all competitors received 4 matches per division due to the unique Round Robin, Madison bracketing matchmaking method. Hosted on one of the hottest days in the summer, competitors braved the heat and fought their hearts out to put on some incredibly exciting matches and gain some invaluable experience as they progressed in their jiu-jitsu careers. 

The one criticism of the tournament? Not enough space!

Not knowing how large or successful the first tournament would be, Chewy and the tournament organizers hosted it at Chewy's gym to try to manage expenses while still putting on a top quality show. This would be a launching point to decide if there was a desire for more tournaments at a larger venue, and the message was loud and clear: Competitors wanted more Chewjitsu Opens!

Due to the success of the first tournament, Chewy and tournament organizers partnered with Nuway Combat and 3Step Sports to bring the Chewjitsu Open to the national stage. Nuway Combat has decades of experience hosting large grappling tournaments with thousands of competitors all across the country. The new partnership will bring the Chewjitsu Open's unique format and ruleset to 8 different states in 2024 with more to come as the program grows. 

Operational Excellence

Chewy and the tournament organizers are all experienced black belts that have competed at some of the biggest and toughest competitions in the world. Each have over 15 years of jiu-jitsu experience, have competed countless times, and won at some of the highest levels in the sport. Their experience training, teaching, competing, and organizing tournaments, proven by the successful reception of the first Chewjitsu Open and others, is a reputation you can count on for a smooth and organized experience when you compete at their next tournament. 

Testimonials

"I loved every single moment of this."

"One of the better local BJJ tournaments I’ve been to."

"It was such a great experience. 4 matches in no gi and 4 matches with gi. The atmosphere was so good. Can’t wait for the next one!"

"Had a blast can’t wait for the next one"

"Thank you … for hosting an AWESOME tournament!!"

"Thank you guys for putting on such a great event!"

"What an awesome event for my first competition. I really hope I’m blessed enough to go to the next one!!!!"

"Had an awesome time! Waiting for Chewjitsu Open 2024!!"

"It was a fantastic event!"

"Great event"

"I had a phenomenal time competing in the first ever Chewjitsu Open … Tournament was super organized, well paced, and offered plenty of competition matches to test our mettle."

"Thanks for hosting a great comp."

"The tournament was well-ran and I’m looking forward to the next one."

"As a competitor everything seemed to run smooth and all the work was greatly appreciated!"

"That was one of the smoothest tournaments I’ve ever competed in."

"Had a blast at the Chewjitsu Open … It was a well ran tournament and we’ll definitely attend the next one!"

"You folks ran a great comp."

"Thanks for a great first competition for my son. It was very organized. Y’all did a great job!"