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# Marco Mendes Enters No-Gi Light at the 2026 Sacramento Fall Open: The Reigning No-Gi World Champion
- URL: https://www.fabricjiujitsu.com/marco-mendes-sacramento-fall-open-2026/
- Published: 2026-10-16T03:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-16T02:59:59.000Z
- Description: The 2025 No-Gi world champion at feather won Sacramento’s no-gi middle title last year and is one of two black belts at no-gi light on Saturday.
- Author: Chase Smith
- Tags: News, Sacramento Fall International Open 2026, Marco Mendes

Marco Mendes, the reigning No-Gi world champion at feather, is entered at light in the no-gi tournament at the Sacramento Fall International Open on Saturday. Lucas Lima is the only other black belt registered in his division.

Sacramento is familiar ground. Mendes won no-gi middle at this same Open last year, and he’s No. 17 in the no-gi ranking as of October 14.

Mendes against Gianni Grippo in the 2025 No-Gi World Championship feather final:

And FloGrappling’s look at his four submissions on the way to the 2025 Pan No-Gi title:

## His titles

Mendes won the Pan No-Gi and the No-Gi Worlds at feather in the same season, after taking bronze at both in 2023 and at the No-Gi Worlds again in 2024.

| Year | Event                                                                                      | Division | Result |
| ---- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | -------- | ------ |
| 2025 | [No-Gi World Championship](https://ibjjf.com/events/2965/results?ref=fabricjiujitsu.com)   | Feather  | Gold   |
| 2025 | [Pan No-Gi Championship](https://ibjjf.com/events/2955/results?ref=fabricjiujitsu.com)     | Feather  | Gold   |
| 2025 | [Sacramento Fall Open No-Gi](https://ibjjf.com/events/2824/results?ref=fabricjiujitsu.com) | Middle   | Gold   |
| 2025 | [Pan Championship](https://ibjjf.com/events/2692/results?ref=fabricjiujitsu.com)           | Feather  | Bronze |
| 2024 | [No-Gi World Championship](https://ibjjf.com/events/2538/results?ref=fabricjiujitsu.com)   | Feather  | Bronze |
| 2023 | [No-Gi World Championship](https://ibjjf.com/events/2131/results?ref=fabricjiujitsu.com)   | Feather  | Bronze |
| 2023 | [Pan No-Gi Championship](https://ibjjf.com/events/2261/results?ref=fabricjiujitsu.com)     | Feather  | Bronze |
| 2023 | [American Nationals](https://ibjjf.com/events/2221/results?ref=fabricjiujitsu.com)         | Feather  | Gold   |

## The no-gi light division

Two black belts are registered at no-gi light:

- **Marco Mendes** (Aspire To Inspire): No. 17 in the no-gi ranking.
- **Lucas Lima** (Alliance): also entered at light in the gi tournament.

Mendes is entered in no-gi only.

## Brackets and where to watch

The IBJJF posts Sacramento’s brackets and schedule on Friday, and no stream has been announced. We’ll add the time to our [Sacramento event page](https://www.fabricjiujitsu.com/sacramento-fall-open-2026/) when it’s out. The rest of the weekend is in [The Weekend Ahead](https://www.fabricjiujitsu.com/weekend-ahead-oct-16-18-2026/) and on the [calendar](https://www.fabricjiujitsu.com/calendar/).

*All results, records and videos in this story come from official channels.*