Craig Jones

No-Gi · -99kg · Black belt

B-Team Jiu Jitsu · Austin, TX

Craig Jones's BJJ record is 64-19-4 with 52 submissions, meaning he finishes 81% of the matches he wins. He took ADCC silver twice, in 2019 and 2022, and holds Polaris titles at 185lbs and 205lbs. He's an Australian black belt under Lachlan Giles, promoted in 2016, and runs B-Team Jiu Jitsu in Austin, Texas. His most recent sourced win is a buggy choke over Chael Sonnen at CJI 2 in 2025.

64 wins. 19 losses. How they came.

Grappling and submission-only results. Professional MMA bouts are recorded separately and are not included in this record.

52 finishes, 7 doors.

The numbers behind the game.

Hardware, in order.

Match history

DateOpponentEventMethodResult
2025Chael SonnenCJI 2 · SuperfightBuggy chokeWin
Aug 2024Gabrielle GarciaCJI · SuperfightRear naked chokeWin
2024Rafael LovatoUFC FP6 · SuperfightInside heel hookWin
2024Rinat FakhretdinovKarate Combat · SuperfightTriangleWin
2024Phil RoweKarate Kombat · SuperfightTriangleWin
2023Felipe PenaUFC FPI 4 · SuperfightDecisionWin
2023Gregor GracieQuintet 4DrawDraw
2023Richie MartinezQuintet 4Toe holdWin
2023Geo MartinezQuintet 4ArmbarWin
2023Kyle BoehmQuintet 4DrawDraw
2023Gerald MeerschaertPolaris 26 · SuperfightRear naked chokeWin
Sep 2022Kaynan DuarteADCC · FinalPointsLoss
Sep 2022Nicholas MeregaliADCC · SemifinalDecisionWin
Sep 2022Kyle BoehmADCC · QuarterfinalGuillotineWin
Sep 2022Joao CostaADCC · Round 1SubmissionWin
2022Pedro MarinhoWNO 11 · SuperfightDecisionLoss
2022Eldar SavidovAIGA · SuperfightRear naked chokeWin
2021Ronaldo JuniorWNO 6 · SuperfightInside heel hookWin
2021Luiz PanzaWNO 9 · SuperfightInside heel hookWin
2021Tye RuotoloWNO 10 · SuperfightDecisionWin

87 sourced matches in total.

Against the names that matter.

Where the game came from.

Lineage: Mitsuyo Maeda · Carlos Gracie · Carlson Gracie · John Will · John Simon · Lachlan Giles · Craig Jones

The 81% finish rate is the whole story

Jones came out of the Australian scene under Lachlan Giles, whose own ADCC run put leg locks on the map for a generation of grapplers outside the Danaher room. Giles promoted him in 2016. Jones was competing at the top of ADCC by 2017.

His record reads differently from most elite grapplers, and the difference is the point. He has 19 losses, which is a lot at this level, and 52 submissions against just 2 points wins. He isn't trying to manage a lead. Of his 64 wins, only two came on the scoreboard.

The rivalry that defines his ADCC years is with Gordon Ryan, and it isn't close: Jones is 0-3, losing by arm triangle at ADCC 2017, by decision at EBI 14 the same year, and by short choke at Quintet 3 in 2018. Both of his ADCC silvers came in brackets Ryan wasn't in.

Since 2023 his sourced matches move outside pure grappling events, into Karate Combat and UFC Fight Pass cards, then his own Craig Jones Invitational. He beat Gabi Garcia by rear naked choke at CJI in 2024 and Chael Sonnen by buggy choke at CJI 2 in 2025. Our records list him as active.

Heel hooks and chokes, split down the middle

His finishing numbers are unusually balanced for a leg locker: 14 inside heel hooks and 14 rear naked chokes, then five outside heel hooks and five triangles. That split is why the leg entries work. An opponent defending the legs concedes the back, and an opponent defending the back concedes the legs.

The kneebars and guillotines in the tail are the tell of someone hunting the finish from wherever the scramble stops, rather than steering toward one position.

Common questions.

Did Craig Jones retire from BJJ?

Our records list him as active, with sourced matches as recently as 2025, including a win over Chael Sonnen at CJI 2. His competition schedule has shifted toward events he promotes himself and toward crossover cards rather than the IBJJF and ADCC circuit.

Is Craig Jones good at jiu-jitsu?

He's a two-time ADCC silver medalist, in 2019 and 2022, with a 64-19-4 record and 52 submission wins. His 81% finish rate is among the highest of any grappler in our database with more than 50 recorded wins.

What is Craig Jones's record against Gordon Ryan?

Jones is 0-3. Ryan beat him by arm triangle at ADCC 2017, by decision at EBI 14 in 2017, and by short choke at Quintet 3 in 2018. Our records show no meeting between them since.

What titles has Craig Jones won?

Polaris champion at 185lbs in 2018 and 2019, and at 205lbs in 2018. At ADCC he has two silvers, 2019 and 2022, and no gold. Eight podium finishes in total across our records.

Jiu jitsu in Austin.

Sourcing

Record compiled from 87 sourced results and 8 title records across 1 source page. 15 matches carry an exact date; the remaining 72 are dated to the year only, as published by the source. Last verified 2026-08-28.