Las Vegas– The most exciting grappling event of 2018 hits Las Vegas on Friday, October 5, as Kazushi Sakuraba’s QUINTET® promotion makes its US debut.
The stacked QUINTET 3 card will feature Sakuraba himself in action along with fellow UFC Hall of Famer Urijah Faber, former UFC heavyweight champion Josh Barnett and elite grappling champions including three-time EBI winner Geo Martinez and reigning Polaris middleweight king Craig Jones.
The entire event will be streamed live and then make available via video-on-demand only on UFC FIGHT PASS.
Sakuraba says: “I’m very excited to announce QUINTET will now make its way to Las Vegas. Japanese fans and FIGHT PASS viewers already know how thrilling our five-on-five, winner stays on team grappling event is, and now the fight capital of the world is cordially invited to witness an event unlike anything seen before in the United States.”
QUINTET’s unique format sees teams of five face-off in single matches until all the members of one team have either been submitted or eliminated from the match by means of a time-limit draw (where both competitors are eliminated). Four teams will compete at the event, with the two winning semi-final squads then meeting in a finale match to decide the QUINTET 3 champions.
David Shaw, UFC Senior Vice-President of International and Content, said: “We’re excited Quintet is bringing such a stacked event to UFC FIGHT PASS on what already is going to be an historic week for fight fans.”
The four teams are already taking shape:
Team Sakuraba
Kazushi Sakuraba (UFC Hall of Famer, PRIDE FC legend)
Josh Barnett (former UFC heavyweight champion)
Marcos Souza (Abu Dhabi Grand Slam champion)
Roberto Souza (Abu Dhabi Grand Slam champion)
Daisuke Nakamura (former DEEP LW champion)
Sakuraba: “We will be ready for battle and give the fans great entertainment.”
Team Alpha Male
Urijah Faber (UFC Hall of Famer)
Dustin Akbari (BJJ black belt, Team Alpha Male coach)
Chris Holdsworth (The Ultimate Fighter Season 18 Champion)
Kelly Anundson (Bellator, The Ultimate Fighter Season 19)
Antoine Jaoude (2004 Athens Games Olympian)
Faber: “I’m super excited to bring Team Alpha Male to this event. Combat sport has always been a game of human chess and outthinking your opponent. QUINTET takes that to a whole other level, adding more tools and more complexity. We can’t wait!”
Team Polaris (QUINTET 1 Champions)
Craig Jones (Polaris middleweight champion)
Gregor Gracie (World champion, 2004/2005; ADCC third-place 2009)
Marcin Held (former UFC fighter; BJJ black belt)
Dan Strauss (British and European champion; BJJ black belt)
Vitor ‘Shaolin’ Ribeiro (BJJ blackbelt, World Champion)
Ben Tong, Polaris co-owner: “Team Polaris is looking forward to defending the title we won at the inaugural QUINTET. The other three teams are very strong, but we are very confident we have the talent and the tactics to win again.”
Team 10th Planet (QUINTET 2 Champions)
Geo Martinez (Three-time EBI champion)
Richie Martinez (EBI 1 runner-up, Gracie Worlds runner-up; IBJJF Worlds runner-up)
PJ Barch (BJJ black belt; Division 1 wrestler)
Adam Sachnoff (BJJ Black belt)
Amir Allam (BJJ Black Belt)
10th Planet head coach Eddie Bravo said: “The rules of QUINTET are the same rules my guys train every day at 10th Planet. We were made for this. If it ain’t broke – don’t fix it: we are coming back with the same team that won QUINTET 2.”
Tickets, priced at $47 and $79 are available from the official QUINTET website. VIP ticket purchases include a meet & greet experience with Sakuraba and other stars and receive a special signed commemorative poster.
