"I wanna finish the match" - Dante Leon eager to prove the 'skill gap' between him and Tommy Langaker

Although her promotional debut was an incredible victory against ONE Championship veteran Bruno Pucci in their lightweight submission grappling match at ONE Fight Night 26 last December 2024, Dante Leon feels he needs to prove more in his second outing under the promotion.

Leon submitted Pucci with a sleek arm triangle choke in over two minutes, and he is now pitted against former two-time ONE lightweight submission grappling world title challenger Tommy Langaker in a catchweight contest on Jan. 10 at ONE Fight Night 27.

Before he gets his hands against the Norwegian submission specialist, the 29-year-old Canadian star was recently interviewed by ONE Championship, where he spoke about wanting to show that his skills are superior to Langaker:

"I wanna show that there's a skills gap between Tommy and I. I wanna prove that to the public, and I wanna handle business, and I wanna finish the match."

Dante Leon's dream debut was also capped off with an additional US$50,000 performance bonus from ONE Championship Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong to make it sweeter.

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Dante Leon wants to use Tommy Langaker as a springboard toward a shot for the world title

In another recent interview with JitsCast, before his match with Langaker, the Pedigo Submission Fighting representative claimed that another win for him would inch him closer toward a shot for the world title that is currently held by 21-year-old phenom Kade Ruotolo.

Leon clarified that he is not rushing to get his shot right away and instead claimed to gradually build his name in the sport, stating:

"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."

Check out Dante Leon's full interview below:

North American viewers with an active Prime Video subscription can watch all the action at ONE Fight Night 27 on Jan. 10, which will emanate from the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.