Garry Tonon begins his gradual descent to 145 lbs for ADCC this year

ONE Championship featherweight contender Garry Tonon has begun the weight cut to 145 lbs to compete in the ADCC (Abu Dhabi Combat Club) Submission Fighting World Championship. 'The Lion Killer' is one of the greatest submission grapplers in the world and competes in ONE Championship's 155-pound MMA division.

The US-born fighter recently shared a post about his weight cut on Instagram:

"First run of the @adcc_official cut to 145."

ADCC is the premier submission grappling competition on earth. Tonon has competed at the highest levels of Brazilian jiu-jitsu, having won several world championship titles. However, in ADCC, the ONE fighter has earned a No.3 position as his highest rank. This year in 2022, he wants to compete and do better than third place.

He has not competed in ADCC since 2019, and has been less active in Brazilian jiu-jitsu matches since he began competing in MMA. The 2022 ADCC competition will be a return to familiarity for the US-based fighter.

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Garry Tonon in ONE Championship

Garry 'The Lion Killer' Tonon took the submission grappling world by storm, earning dozens of world championships in Brazilian jiu-jitsu competitions. He earned titles in Eddie Bravo Invitationals, Polaris, Metamoris, IBJJF, and others before making his debut in ONE Championship.

The grappling-based fighter impressed MMA fans by going undefeated, earning six straight wins to start his MMA career. He won half his bouts via submission, but he is also well-rounded, having won two bouts via KO/TKO. These victories earned Tonon a world title shot against the reigning ONE featherweight world champion Thanh Le.

Thanh Le eventually defeated Tonon at ONE: Lights Out last March, defending a heel-hook submission before going on to score a first-round knockout. Le extended his knockout streak to five in a row. He will next defend his world title against Chinese knockout artist Tang Kai at ONE 160 on August 26.

Garry Tonon is back in submission grappling for the 2022 ADCC competition but is still actively competing in ONE Championship. He says his time in ONE has hugely helped him develop his submission grappling game as well. Speaking to ONE in an interview, the US-born athlete said:

"When I started professional grappling, it wasn’t even really a thing. It was just starting. I think that the work that I did and the type of matches that I had helped put it on the map. And my experiences with ONE only furthered that."