Pedigo Submission Fighting’s Dante Leon was promoted to black belt in 2017 following brown belt titles at the World and Pan No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu Championships. As a competitor who took a professional approach to his training from a young age, Dante jumped right into high level competition at black belt. His first major black belt title came at the 2017 Pan No-Gi, where he won four matches in the middleweight division. Dante won another Pan No-Gi title in 2018 and then won the biggest title of his career in 2019, the World No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu Championships.

“That was my first World title and will always hold a special place in my heart. It was an incredible final with memories to last a lifetime.”

The final of the 2019 Worlds No-Gi was against Jaime Canuto, a dangerous submission-oriented competitor known for his closed guard attacks and passing abilities. In one of the best matches of the entire event, Dante won by a score of 4-2. He nearly submitted Jaime with an armbar that started from a pass attempt, but Jaime survived and the match went the full ten minutes.

Though Dante has already had success at the elite levels of the sport, he’s the type of athlete who is always evolving his game. When he competes you can expect to see a vast array of techniques and positions from top, bottom, and from the feet. “I’m successful because I work hard and always improve. My wrestling and guard passing have hit new levels as of late as well as my leg locks.”

At the 2022 Worlds No-Gi, Dante will look to capture his second title. But this time, he’ll be dropping down to the lightweight division. For Dante, the change in division is all about challenging himself. “I don’t see many names at lightweight I have competed against before which is part of the reason for the move. I want many World titles in many different weight classes.” Joining Dante at lightweight are Lucas Valente, Deandre Corbe, Kieran Kichuk, Danilo Moreira, and Daniel Sathler.

In 2021, Dante officially joined the Pedigo Submission Fighting Team. Based out of Mount Vernon, Illinois, the team recently won its second Pan No-Gi title. “PSF is a special team. Not only because of the talent and Heaths incredible coaching, but the love and support members have for each other. We will be there in full force for No-Gi Worlds and I will do my part to help bring the team title home.”

You can catch Dante and the rest of the stacked lightweight division at the IBJJF Worlds No-Gi. The event starts on Thursday December 8th and can be watched exclusively on FloGrappling.