Dante Leon says victory over Tommy Langaker "puts an exclamation point" on his quest for ONE Championship gold

Dante Leon knows that there are high stakes hanging over what will be his second appearance in the ONE Championship. The highly regarded submission grappler is one of the newer additions to the promotion's roster.

In December, he announced his arrival in the promotion by making quick work of Bruno Pucci at ONE Fight Night 26, submitting him in just over two minutes.

With a debut win under his belt and a performance bonus in his back pocket, Dante Leon turned his attention towards one of the top contenders in and around his weight class.

He is now set to return at ONE Fight Night 27 on January 10 where Tommy Langaker will be waiting for him at Bangkok's legendary Lumpinee Stadium.

As a former two-time title challenger, beating a competitor like Langaker is the kind of win that will propel Leon up the ladder.

He spoke about this in a recent interview on the JitsCast, where he said that whilst he is aware of this, he isn't looking to jump right to the top:

"So, you know, I think beating Tommy really puts an exclamation point on it all. But I'm not in a huge rush to get to the title, just get to the title and then fizzle out. I want to build up a reputation more."

Watch the full interview below:

---

Dante Leon is prepared to work his way to the top

Dante Leon didn't arrive in ONE Championship with the intention of pulling off a smash-and-grab to become a world champion.

He's in it for the long haul and is more than happy to continue proving himself with every performance that he delivers.

That being said, a win over Langaker doesn't leave many challenges for him that will be worth his time because of how successful the Norwegian competitor has been.

ONE Fight Night 27 will be available to active Amazon Prime Video subscribers in North America.