Craig Jones Takes On Ronaldo Junior In WNO Main Event On February 26th!
Craig Jones Takes On Ronaldo Junior In WNO Main Event On February 26th!
Two of the most exciting grapplers in the game will throw down on February 26th at WNO: Craig Jones vs Ronaldo Junior!
Who's Number One (WNO) returns on February 26th, with a sure to be fireworks main event between Craig Jones and Ronaldo Junior! Two of the most exciting grapplers in the game, you're going to want to tune in and see how Ronaldo's relentless passing does against Craig's submission oriented guard game.
This event will go down yet again in Austin, Texas with no spectators. This match, and all others on the card, will take place under WNO rules and be 15 minutes in length. The two have agreed to meet at a catchweight of 195, with Ronaldo typically competing at 185 and Craig at 205. Just like at previous events, there will be a press conference and weigh ins streamed free on our social media platforms the day before the event, on Thursday, February 25th.
FloGrappling Official No-Gi Rankings
This will be the second time on WNO for both competitors. Craig submitted Roberto Jimenez by heel hook at our October event, and Ronaldo lost a decision to Vagner Rocha in July. Both athletes have an exciting style, the most important factor for getting on Who's Number One, and this should surely be another action packed match.
Craig Jones
Recently relocated to Puerto Rico with the rest of his Danaher Death Squad (DDS) teammates, Craig Jones returns to WNO after his spectacular submission finish in our October co main event. Craig comes into this one on a three match submission streak, and he has an 83% submission rate in his wins throughout his career.
This match should re kindle the long running Atos vs DDS beef, with Craig having previously scheduled to fight Hulk before getting COVID-19 and feuding with Josh Hinger on social media in 2020. Craig also has a loss to Kaynan Duarte, perhaps a win over one of Atos most heralded prospects in Ronaldo could set up another showdown with one of his Atos rivals.
Watch: Submission Hunter - 15 Craig Jones Finishes
An ADCC silver medalist with wins over Leandro Lo, Keenan Cornelius, Dante Leon and Gabriel Arges in his career, Craig is no doubt one of the best pound-for-pound grapplers in the game today. While regularly competing in the light-heavyweight division at 205 pounds, Craig can make 185 and has a submission win over the top ranked athlete at middleweight. 2021 could be the year Craig cements himself as the king of a division, but first he has to get through Ronaldo.
"I'm a big fan of watching Ronaldo compete in the gi, he's exciting, pushes forward and tries to finish his opponents. This is why I challenged him to a no-gi match. When I was announced for this match in December, he questioned whether I will show up. He needs only to ask his teammate Josh, not even pink eye will keep me at home."
Ronaldo Junior
A dominant force at the colored belts in IBJJF competition, Ronaldo Junior has already won Pans in both gi and no-gi during a short black belt career. He has yet to make a name on the professional circuit though, and a dominant performance here could propel him to stardom similar to Craig at ADCC in 2017.
Ronaldo comes into this match on a 16 fight win streak, with a 48% submission rate in his 48 wins at black belt. Ever since purple belt, Ronaldo has had a reputation as a must watch athlete at IBJJF tournaments, with his insane pace during passing chains breaking many top flight competitors over the years.
Ronaldo has always been considered a future superstar, now he has his chance to compete at the highest level and make that hype into reality. The obvious question here is can he handle the leg attacks that Craig will throw at him, but his coach Andre Galvao has made a career of shutting down leg lockers at ADCC and should have Ronaldo fully prepared for February 26th.
"I feel better than ever, training super hard with my team in San Diego. I'm coming for my first victory in 2021, I'll be performing the way people love to see. Real jiu-jitsu, I'm ready."
This main event is sure to be one of the best matches in 2021, and we have an exciting card with six more matches to fill out yet another stacked WNO event. More match announcements will be coming soon, make sure you pay attention to our social media for those announcements and tune in on February 26th for WNO: Craig Jones vs Ronaldo Junior!
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