On paper neither man was to have made it far in this World Series of Grappling Tournaments. Jake was in possibly the toughest middleweight bracket ever assembled and Melendez was an MMA fighter who had only competed once in a submission grappling tournament and was a mere blue belt in the art of Brazilian Jiu-jitsu. Melendez would now face Hawaii's top 145lbs grappler, the 2x ADCC runner up, Baret Yoshida. Yoshida, a BJJ Black belt, is known for his phenomenal guard work and finishing prowess. He was one of the tournament favorites and was expected to go through Melendez like a hot knife through butter.

However someone forgot to tell Melendez, who despite finding himself in trouble early, toughed his way out of every submission attempt and then used reversals and takedowns to outpoint the seasoned veteran. This was one of the tournaments biggest upsets.

Melendez was not as fortunate in his next match. He lost on points when his opponent reversed a takedown attempt and amassed an 8 point lead. Melendez then scored 2 points of his own and looked to have turned the tide on his wearied opponent, but it was too late as time ran out. Overall a great performance by Gilbert Melendez.

Jake Shields had the type of performance that would redefine mat toughness. His first match of the day was against "The Ultimate Fighter" winner, Diego Sanchez. Jake has for some time now wanted to compete in the UFC and now he had the chance to face off against their new poster boy, Sanchez. Shields would not disappoint. Sanchez came in confident after going through his pre-fight ritual of slapping himself in the head and face as if to awaken some inner spirit. The 2 men battled each other in a test of wills, each man impressing the crowd. At the 5 minute mark the scoring phase began and it was then that Shields took control of the match. He twice reversed Sanchez and took him down to build a commanding lead. Sanchez looked tired and had no answer for Jake's aggresive style. Shields prevailed and a distraught Sanchez was left to reassess himself while Shields awaited his match against Cameron Earle.

Earle is widely considered one of America's top Black belts. The Ralph Gracie prodigy has amassed wins over the likes of Javier Vasquez, Eddie Bravo and Marcelo Garcia. He has only lost once in his weight and has only been submitted once by a heavier David Terrell.

The rivalry between Northern California's 2 top Jiu-jitsu schools is friendly in nature but a very fierce one. As Earle and Shields took the mat it was clear that this would be once again Team Cesar Gracie vs. Team Ralph Gracie.

Earle came out and went to guard on Shields where he worked his sweeps and submission attempts. It was there that Earle secured a deep armbar. There looked to be no escape for Shields as he tried to pull his arm out, wincing in pain.

As Shields' arm began to pop he was able to get out just before it completely broke. Earle looked shocked that Shields had not tapped. After a scramble, Shields took Earle down and then worked hard for the pass. Earle was forced to turn to his knees to avoid giving up points for the pass. From there Shields secured both hooks and attacked Earle's neck. As the time ran out it was clear that Shields would be advancing.

Jake's next opponent was scheduled to be Pablo Popovitch. However it seemed that this match would not happen due to the fact that Jake's arm had ballooned to twice its original size and was no longer able to straighten. Earle's armbar had taken its toll. After some consideration Jake decided to continue. He had come too far and refused to quit. Unlike his two previous matches Popovitch was more tactical, refusing to engage and taking advantage of the rules and frustrating Shields. He picked his shots and finally scored on a takedown, arm-dragging Shield's bad arm. Pablo was winning 6-0 but he was tired and took various timeouts, citing an eye problem, blood on Shield's foot, etc.. Pablo advanced to the finals against Marcello Garcia and Shields was left to fight for 3rd place against Leo Santos.

Leo Santos had been impressive in the tournament with an electrifying flying armbar on UFC fighter, George St. Pierre. Santos lost to Marcello Garcia by the thinnest of margins. Garcia scored no points on Santos and won only by an advantage. The multiple time Jiu-jitsu Black-belt World Champion looked to beat his American opponent. Santos immediately went to guard and attacked Jake's injured arm. His attack was dangerous but Jake was able to again work his way out. From there Jake was relentless. While trying to pass he went to Santos' back, secured one hook and looked for the other. Santos defended the second hook but left his neck vulnerable to Jake's favorite attack; the choke. With Jake's choke sunk in tight Santos was forced to tap. Jake Shields had gained the respect of the grappling world and the admiration of his entire team.

We congratulate our warriors Gilbert Melendez and Jake Shields.