The WNO 23 card features some of the biggest names in the sport, multiple ADCC World Champions, IBJJF World Champions and even one of the most prominent families in the sport. 

Starting in February 2020, WNO turns 23 on May 10 in Arlington, Texas at with WNO 23: Meregali vs. Rocha. 

The card begins at 8 p.m. EST with an undercard full of athletes making their WNO debut. On the main card, former WNO champion Diogo “Baby Shark” Reis makes his return to the WNO mat looking to regain momentum after losing the Featherweight belt at WNO 21 due to an injury during his match to Diego Oliveira. Reis faces Shay Montague.

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• WNO 23 Tickets Are Available! Don't Miss Nicholas Meregali vs. Vagner Rocha
• WNO 23 Card Results At Past Who's Number One Events

One of the best matches on the card may be the showdown between Nicky Ryan and JT Torres. Ryan was slated to be a WNO headliner in 2023, but an injury paused his match with Mica Galvao. Now he returns to WNO to faces two-time ADCC World Champion Torres.

Felipe Pena and  Rafael Lovato Jr. face off in a heavyweight match that features a pair of former WNO main eventers. Andrew Tackett takes on Tommy Langaker, making his WNO Debut as well. 

Get your tickets for WNO 23 in Arlington, TX on May 10

The last match on the card will feature the No. 4 Pound-for-Pound No-Gi and No. 1 Gi grappler in the world, Nicholas Meregali, tangling with Vagner Rocha, one of the most successful grapplers and combat sport athletes of the last decade. 

Rocha is on the same card as his daughter, Jasmine, and son, Achilles. Jasmine Rocha competed for the WNO Flyweight Championship in 2023 after making her WNO debut earlier in the year. Achilles also made his WNO debut in 2023. 

Here are five things to know about the WNO 23 card. 

Nicholas Meregali Is Headlining For Third Time Since May 2023

Meregali is in the main event for the third time since WNO 18 in May of 2023. He defeated ADCC 2022 -218 lbs Champion Kaynan Duarte by submission and at WNO 19 in August of 2023 defeated current Lightweight WNO champion Pedro Marinho by submission at WNO 18.

Meregali’s only loss at WNO in his career came at the first WNO when he lost to Victor Hugo. Since then, he’s defeated all his opponents, including Rafael Lovato Jr., who is on the card. 

Felipe Pena, Rafael Lovato Jr.: A WNO Light Heavyweight Classic

Felipe Pena mainevented the first WNO event of 2023 when he defeated Nicky Rodriguez in a match that was supposed to feature Pena against Gordon Ryan. Ryan was forced to withdraw from the match due to an illness and Pena met Rodriguez in a match with a 30 minute limit. Pena came out on top. Later that year he faced Haisam Rida at WNO 19 and won. 

Lovato mainevented WNO 21 when he faced Marinho for the WNO Light Heavyweight title. He didn’t beat Marinho, but did go 2-1 at WNO in 2023. 

Nicky Ryan vs. JT Torres A Main Event Worthy Match

Ryan returned to WNO last August and beat Rene Sousa. He was then being eyed to headline a WNO with another Middleweight star, Mica Galvao, the current WNO Middleweight Champion. 

But an injury forced Ryan out of that showdown at WNO 22 and Galvao had a match with Kenta Iwamoto. Now healthy, Ryan returns to the WNO mat against JT Torres, who won ADCC World Championships in 2017 and 2019 in the -169.5 lbs weight class. The winner of this match just might have a future date with Mica on the horizon. 

Ryan called the match the biggest of his career. 

Rocha, Rocha, Rocha On The WNO 23 Card

It’s a family affair on May 10. For the first time ever WNO will have a father, son and daughter all competing on the same card. Achilles, the youngest, will face Cameron Couch in his second WNO match. Jasmine meanwhile will look to bounce back at WNO after losing to Ffion Davies in a title match in 2023. Vagner has headlined before, facing Gordon Ryan in 2021. 

The Ryans had been the only family to have multiple members on a card before Jasmine and Rocha did so last year. Gordon and his brother Nicky competed on the same WNO card in 2020. Brothers William and Andrew Tackett, who faces in Tommy Langaker, have both been on WNO cards but never on the same night. 

Baby Shark Makes His Comeback 

Diogo Reis lost to Diego Oliveira at WNO 21 in November 2023 after suffering an injury  during the match. Oliveira became both the Featherweight and Lightweight WNO champion. 

Nearly six months later, Reis is back at WNO looking to gain momentum and possibly get in position to challenge for the WNO belt again. He faces Shay Montague who is making his WNO debut on May 10. 

Montague joins  Langaker on the main card as athletes making their WNO debut in the main card.    

How To Stream WNO 23: Meregali vs Rocha On FloGrappling

WNO 23 is streaming live on Flograppling and the FloSports App at 8 p.m. EST. Breaking news, updates and replays will be available on both platforms. 

WNO 23 Card

WNO 23 Main Card

• Nicholas Meregali vs Vagner Rocha
• Andrew Tackett vs Tommy Langaker
• Felipe Pena vs Rafael Lovato Jr
• Nicky Ryan vs JT Torres
• Jasmine Rocha vs Emily Ferreira
• Diogo 'Baby Shark' Reis vs Shay Montague

WNO 23: Undercard

• Achilles Rocha vs Cameron Couch
• Luccas Lira vs Hasam Alabed
• Cassia Moura vs Jessie Crane
• Evan Leve vs Marlon Tanaka

WNO History: Here's Every Who's No. 1

Here is every WNO event ever with match replays, news and results

• WNO 22: Rodriguez vs. Hugo 
• WNO 21: Marinho vs. Lovato 
• WNO 20: Night of Champions
• WNO 19: Meregali vs. Duarte
• WNO 18: Meregali vs. Marinho
• WNO 17: Pena vs. Rodriguez
• WNO 16: Ste-Marie vs Bastos
• WNO 15: Gordon Ryan vs Felipe Pena
• WNO 14: Who's Next Finale
• WNO 13:  Gordon vs. Couch 
• WNO 12: Craig Jones vs. Pedro Marinho 
• WNO 11: WNO Championship
• WNO 10: Jones vs. Ruotolo
• WNO 9: Jones vs. Pena
• WNO 8: Rafael Lovato Jr. vs. Gilbert Burns
• WNO 7: Gordon vs. Vagner
• WNO 6: Craig Jones vs. Ronaldo Junior
• WNO 5: Kaynan Duarte vs. Rodolfo Vieira
• WNO 4: Gordon Ryan vs. Matheus Diniz
• WNO 3: Gary Tonon vs. Dante Leon
• WNO 2: Gordon Ryan vs. Kyle Boehm 
• WNO 1: Who's No. 1

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