Putting together a list of the top 25 black belts under 25 years of age threw up more than a few surprises. I lost count of the amount of times I literally asked myself “This guy is HOW old?” 

The amount of talent that exists in the sport is staggering, and it’s only getting better and better. When you stop to consider what some of these guys have achieved at such a young age, it’s inspiring. The future of jiu-jitsu is very bright indeed.

Our top 10 (well, nine, as we’re publishing our numero uno tomorrow) features world champions and winners in big professional tournaments like Polaris and Copa Podio. 

Who’ll be number one? Find out tomorrow! 




10. Tim Spriggs
Born 10. Oct 1991, age 23 

Heavyweight Spriggs received his black belt after winning Worlds in 2014, but he’s been renowned as a tough competitor since the early days of his grappling career. 

Competing at 94kg (207lb), Spriggs combines his incredible athleticism and power with an intelligent strategy and non-stop work rate. He’s not a great finisher but he puts his opponents under constant pressure from the off and is known for his wrestling and ability to dictate the pace of a match. 



Though he competes both gi and no-gi, Spriggs’s biggest wins have been without the gi, and he’s beaten notable names including Yuri Simoes (no-gi), Murilo Santana (no-gi). In the gi, he has defeated the likes of Vinny Magalhaes, Erberth Santos and Marcelo Mafra. 

He’s placed on the podium at major tournaments such as a bronze at 2015 Worlds and Pans and put in solid performances three times on various Copa Podio events, winning a superfight and narrowly missing out on third place to Erberth Santos in the 2015 heavyweight grand prix. 




9. Matheus Diniz
Born 8. Apr 1993, age 22 

Diniz exploded onto the collective radar of the grappling community when he stepped up in 2014 to fight Vinny Magalhaes on 24 hours notice on Metamoris 5 – as a brown belt, no less. Few people would relish the opportunity to tussle with Magalhaes, an ADCC and IBJJF world champion (not to mention UFC fighter and respected veteran), but Diniz has no qualms about showing what he was capable of. 

Diniz’s jiu-jitsu reflects this attitude on the mat. He’s intense in competition – both physically and mentally – and shares a key characteristic with his trainer and idol Marcelo Garcia; his sharp submissions. He’s got a high finishing rate and is versatile with his attacks (as evidence by recently wristlocking Garry Tonon at the No-Gi Pans). 



He shares a common origin as Garcia also in that he hails from the state of Minas Gerais in Brazil and used to train with one of Garcia’s old coaches. It was this connection that led to Garcia taking an interest in Diniz’s career, sponsoring him and later bringing him to the US to live and train, where he is now based.

A fearsome competitor with World no-gi (2014 & 2013), PanAm gi and no-gi (2015) titles as a brown belt, Diniz has earned his first achievements as a black belt in recent months with victories at the No-Gi Pans (winning absolute) and the New York Summer Open, winning both the middle heavyweight and the absolute division. 




8. Garry Tonon
Born 12. Sep 1991, age 24

What’s not to love about Garry Tonon? He’ll fight anyone, anytime under any rules. From IBJJF tournaments to ADCC to professional events such as Polaris, Tonon’s made a name for himself with his vicious heelhooks but his guillotine and rear naked choke are equally effective. 

A New Jersey native, Tonon came up under Tom DeBlass as part of the Renzo Gracie network. In recent times, he does most of his jiu-jitsu training at the main RGA school in Manhattan learning from notable jiu-jitsu mind John Danaher. Tonon balances this with running his own school in Brunswick, NJ. 



Tonon wrestled in middle school and freely admits he was never a high-level scholastic wrestler, but the influence on his style is evident. He’s got great takedowns that he’s adapted for the submission game and his scrambles are insane. One of the most amazing things about Tonon is his submission defense – though it’s not exactly desirable to keep getting caught in subs, Tonon seems to (almost ) always find a way out. Who doesn’t remember his ridiculous armbar escape against Kron Gracie at ADCC in 2013? 

In terms of accomplishments Tonon has impressed mostly in stand-alone events and high-level invitationals. He primarily competess no-gi, and he’s been victorious on Metamoris (vs Zak Maxwell), twice on Polaris (against Masakazu Imanari and Marcin Held), and he’s twice won the Eddie Bravo Invitational (EBI). Add to that IBJJF titles such as gold at 2015 Pans no-gi and a host of medals at brown belt, and Tonon has proved himself a versatile competitor that rarely turns down a challenge. 





7. Gianni Grippo 
Born 21.Mar 1992, age 23

Since getting his black belt at the end of 2013 / beginning of 2014, Grippo has consistently medalled at every major IBJJF tournament on the circuit in both gi and no-gi. Worlds, Pans, Europeans – you name it, he makes it to the podium almost every single time he steps out. 

Grippo spends the majority of his time fighting as a featherweight (70kg / 154.5lb), but regularly jumps into the openweight class also. With his long legs and natural flexibility, he’s a natural guard player and a cursory glance at any of his matches will tell you he has a preference for de la riva and the berimbolo. From on top, he’s got a killer leg drag. 



The main obstacles standing in Grippo’s path to success are featherweight king Rafael Mendes and Alliance team-mate Rubens ‘Cobrinha’ Charles. Rafa’s recent decision to retire from competition puts Grippo closer to gold, but the elder Cobrinha will always get preference should they meet in the brackets which usually results in Grippo getting default silver or bronze. As Cobrinha approaches 40, it should be Grippo’s time to shine; the Alliance Marcelo Garcia rep from New Jersey has the skills and the work ethic to make it to the top. 

The Miyao brothers are his main rivals (Paulo in particular) with the Brazilians so far getting the better of Grippo. Time will tell if he can overcome his stylistically-similar opponents. 




6. Keenan Cornelius
Born 25. Feb 1993, age 22

Maybe the best-known name on this list, Keenan Cornelius is many things: an innovative technical wizard, internet darling, and bona-fide world class competitor. He made his name by winning everything there was to win at brown belt, taking gold in every IBJJF competition he entered save one, where he took silver (against Paulo Miyao at 2013 Worlds). 

He joined the black belts in 2014 at the age of 21 and has taken top spot at the 2014 No-Gi Worlds and the 2015 Pans, a silver medal at ADCC at 88kg, and a bronze in the openweight of last year’s Worlds, sharing the podium with the giants Buchecha, Rodolfo Vieira and Bernardo Faria. Cornelius is undefeated in four Metamoris appearances and caught a submission on Dean Lister on Polaris 1.  



A lanky middle heavyweight, he’s still growing into his frame and has potential to end up a legit heavyweight. At 6’2” his long limbs and flexibility means you’ll rarely see his guard passed. Though he’s comfortable from his back he has an underrated top game and passes well from his feet. 

In the gi Cornelius has become known as one of the driving forces behind threading the lapel between the legs, dubbing his system of attacks the ‘worm guard’. He regularly releases videos where he breaks down his matches and teases new material he’s working on at the ATOS gym in San Diego where he trains. 




5. Joao Miyao
Born 11. May 1991, age 24

Along with his twin brother Paulo, Joao is one half of the (in)famous Miyao brothers. They entered the consciousness of the grappling community as purple belts in 2011 when a video of them berimboling their way through a tournament in Brazil went viral. 

Though they are almost identical, Joao competes one weight class below his brother as a light featherweight. As competitors they are relentless, fighting almost every weekend where possible. Joao has medalled at 19 IBJJF tournaments this year alone, never winning less than silver. 



Hailing from a small city in a remote and poor state in Brazil, they moved to Sao Paulo as teenagers and started training in earnest under Cicero Costha, the coach who produced Leandro Lo. Along with a number of other economically disadvantaged youngsters, they lived in the gym sleeping on the same mats on which they would train three times every day. 

Joao holds wins over many notable grapplers and as a black belt has claimed titles such as European (2014 and 2015), Brazilian (2014 and 2015) and Pan no-gi champion (2014 and 2015). He usually competes at light feathweight, dropping to rooster (57.5kg / 127lb) only for Worlds. 




4. Erberth Santos
Born 17. Feb 1994, age 21

The bad boy of BJJ, Erberth Santos is an intense dude. A black belt for less than a year (he was promoted in December of 2014) he’s already won the 2015 European championships and Brazilian nationals, taking double gold in the latter. 

An imposing super heavyweight (100kg / 222lb) who occasionally drops to 94kg (208lb) he combines strong stand-up with a focus on judo with a dominating top game. His weakness appears to leglocks, as he’s been caught out by the likes of Bernardo Faria (kneebar, twice) and Buchecha (Estima lock). Aside from this, he’s a complete grappler. 



Santos’s most impressive performances have come this year with a win at the Grand Slam in Tokyo and double gold at the Rio Winter Open, where he finished five of his six matches by submission. He also placed third at the 2015 Copa Podio Heavyweight Grand Prix. 

At only 21 and with plenty of maturing left to do, Santos could well become one of the most dangerous bigger grapplers in the game. 




3. Paulo Miyao
Born 11. May 1991, age 24

Naturally a touch bigger than his twin, Paulo competes more often at featherweight than his light feather brother, even creeping up to lightweight on occasion. For big tournaments such as Worlds or Pans, he’ll cut the extra weight to make the light feather limit of 64kg (141lb).  

Paulo has won gold in every IBJJF tournament he’s entered this year save for one, and that was only because the 2015 Europeans was a closeout with his brother who took gold. In 2015 alone he’s had gold hung around his neck a staggering 17 times. 



A committed guard player like his brother, Paulo’s jiu-jitsu is based around getting the back via leg fighting and he employs judicious use of the berimbolo. He’s no point fighter though: over half of his wins come via submission, with the vast majority of those being chokes from the back. 

With gold medals at Worlds, Pans (gi and no-gi) this year, Paulo is one of the most successful grapplers on the list in terms of major tournament victories. 




2. Joao Gabriel Rocha
Born 11. Jul 1992, age 23

Super heavyweight Joao Gabriel Rocha has been training since he was a toddler, and his dedication to the art of jiu-jitsu has seen him forge an incredible career in the sport. As a teen, he lived less than a block away from the famous Tijuca Tennis Club in Rio de Janeiro, home to the IBJJF World Championships until 2005 and many major tournaments. 

2012 was his breakout year, where he won Worlds, Pans and Brazilian nationals as a brown belt. Being promoted to black belt in January 2013 he managed silver at Worlds and a silver at ADCC in China. 



In early 2014 Rocha was diagnosed with cancer and he was sidelined while undergoing treatment. He lost the entire year to his battle with the disease, only returning to train in early 2015. In his first tournament back he won gold at the Rio Fall Open, following it up with another gold at Brazilian nationals and a silver at Worlds. 

Capping off a solid return to competition, Rocha made it to the finals of the absolute (openweight) division of the 2015 ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championships, losing a razor-thin decision to overall winner Claudio Calasans. Now he’s fully recovered and getting back into action, Rocha size and youth should see him develop well over the next couple of years into potentially one of the toughest people on this list.


What do you think about out top ten 25 Black Belts Under 25 Years of Age? Leave a comment below! 

Check back tomorrow for #1!