‘The MMA Game Against The Jiu-Jitsu Game’ – How Bruno Pucci Plans To Upset BJJ Superstar Dante Leon

Bruno “Puccibull” Pucci could make waves in the submission grappling world when he collides with decorated Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Dante Leon on December 6 in U.S. primetime at ONE Fight Night 26: Lee vs. Rasulov on Prime Video.

The pair will lock horns in an intriguing lightweight submission grappling tilt at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

Although he comes from a BJJ background and has been a black belt for nearly 15 years, Pucci has spent the past decade-plus focusing on his mixed martial arts career.

A veteran of 11 MMA bouts in ONE, the 34-year-old says that his submission grappling game is similar to his MMA game – always targeting the stoppage.

He spoke to onefc.com about what fans can expect to see when he faces Leon:

“I like to scramble. I like to go for the finish. I try to finish. If possible, to do it fast. Sometimes it doesn’t come or it doesn’t go my way because once you try to attack, you can leave some openings behind. But, you know, I try to go forward, and I don’t save too much.”

Pucci is far from a novice in grappling.

Before committing his time to MMA, he was a two-time Purple Belt IBJJF No-Gi World Champion and has dedicated the past two years since his last MMA fight to training and teaching BJJ.

He recognizes that Leon is one of the most accomplished and dangerous submission hunters on the circuit today. However, he knows he’ll have an advantage over the Canadian powerhouse when it comes to competing in a ring and his ability to use the ropes to control and dictate the exchanges.

“Puccibull” explained:

“[Leon is] very well-rounded. He can wrestle. He has submission attacks. He also passes strong. He’s pretty complete, as he should be as a black belt.

“But I think, for this match, what I’m playing is the ring experience and the boundaries. I wanna see how that’s gonna play out, and I’m excited for that. And, yeah, he’s a strong opponent.”

The Brazilian is confident that he’ll have a clear path to victory if he can get to his opponent’s back, where he has proven to be an excellent finisher.

To get there, Pucci aims to present Leon with a unique, MMA-oriented style of grappling that he’s not accustomed to seeing:

“I think if I get to his back, I’m pretty comfortable that I can finish him there. Everything comes up on how to get there. And, as I said before, I just wanna use my MMA experience against his jiu-jitsu experience. Because he’s a very good jiu-jitsu guy on top of the wave right now, and I think that’s what is gonna count in my favor.

“Jiu-jitsu for jiu-jitsu, we’re both good. But I think, as I fought for ONE for a while, and as I stepped into the ring for a while, I think that experience can help me come out on top. So, I want to really use the MMA game against the jiu-jitsu game.”

Pucci Embraces Underdog Status

Bruno Pucci is well aware that, on paper, he’ll be a significant underdog against Dante Leon – one of BJJ’s top pound-for-pound competitors.

“Puccibull” is embracing his underdog status and said it will let him perform with a clear and unburdened mind:

“I feel like in certain ways, it’s good for me because I feel the pressure is on him. He’s a younger guy, younger than me, coming up, winning everything.

“I fought MMA for a while. I stepped away from jiu-jitsu. So I think the pressure is on him, and I feel like this makes me more relaxed.”

According to Pucci, his underdog mentality will allow him to take more risks, chase the submission with reckless abandon, and, perhaps, spring an upset against the BJJ sensation.

He explained how competing with “nothing to lose” makes him a more dangerous grappler:

“I have nothing to lose. And when you have nothing to lose, I feel you can offer more risks. That’s how I see it.

“When you are concerned when you are fighting, sometimes when you have too much on your plate, you can fight certain ways, like not to lose, and that can kind of stop you. Not saying that Dante is gonna do that, but I’ve already been in those shoes where, like, ‘Man, I don’t wanna lose.’ And you wanna win, but you’re too concerned about not losing because the pressure is on you, so that sometimes can stop you. And for me, I don’t feel that at all right now.

“I’m just excited. I feel that that’s gonna help me with my performance.”