Riding the momentum of good performances at the American Nationals in gi and no-gi, at the Atlanta Open and Jiu-Jitsu Con, Jackson Douglas is one of the strong competitors set to fight in the super-heavy division at the 2021 Worlds, which will be held this weekend in California.
In a recent interview, this 26-year-old black-belt under Lucas Leite pointed to his mindset as an important factor in his evolution in the past six months of competing. "I'm going in mentally and physically well," he said, "even though it's my first Worlds as a black-belt. I don't have that pre-competition weight, and I'm going there to do what I do at the gym."
Asked about his division, which will have 19 other athletes vying for the gold medal, he said: "I believe everybody there has the same plans and the same desire to win, but my intention isn't just to win. I want, on top of it all, to display some beautiful jiu-jitsu. The fight will be good; I want to be remembered with the gold medal on my chest and the wars I'm going to wage. All categories are abnormal this year, but I believe in mine there are a lot of big names, and lots of new people also want to show their worth. It's gonna be awesome."
With Marcus Buchecha having started a career in MMA, 2021 marks a big opportunity: there will be a new absolute world champion in BJJ. As to what this means to Jackson, he said:
"I train on a very big team, which is Checkmat, and, due to its being a very big team, we have a few rules for fighting in the absolute. I don't know whether, in this debut year, I get to fight in the absolute, but I will do my best so that, in future World Championships, I can be in the running for the absolute title."
"Buchecha is doing beautiful work in MMA, like he did in BJJ; he decided to give us an opportunity," Jackson added with a laugh. "If I fight, of course I'd bet on me to be the champion of the absolute division."
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