Jon Blank

Jon Blank was born on December 29, 1993, in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, a city nestled in the Lehigh Valley region of the eastern part of the state. His relationship with grappling began at age 10, when he joined his school's wrestling program — a decision that would set the foundation for a lifelong pursuit of competitive combat sports. By high school, he had developed into a serious competitor for the Notre Dame High School wrestling team, earning a District 11 championship and qualifying for the Pennsylvania state wrestling tournament twice.

Following high school, Blank pursued a career as an electrician, a trade that provided both financial stability and the schedule flexibility needed to invest seriously in athletic competition. His introduction to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu came in 2014, when 10th Planet Bethlehem had just opened its doors. Already familiar with the 10th Planet system through prominent figures such as Eddie Bravo, Joe Rogan, and Renato Laranja, Blank recognized the opportunity and stepped onto the mats without hesitation. Under the guidance of JM Holland and Zach Maslany — his first and only instructors — he began developing the technical foundation and competitive mindset that would carry him to the highest levels of the sport.

Blank's ascent through the 10th Planet ranks was swift, defined by an appetite for competition and a willingness to test himself at increasingly high-profile events. In 2018, he captured the Ultimate Mat Warriors 2 title at 170 lbs, adding a regional championship to his growing résumé. Later that same year, still competing as a brown belt, Blank entered the Combat EBI 185 lbs Invitational — a high-profile event combining submission grappling with limited strikes, broadcast to a worldwide audience — and won the tournament outright. The victory announced him as one of the top competitors operating under submission-only and Combat EBI rulesets in the country.

That championship run as a brown belt set the stage for a milestone that followed shortly after. On December 29, 2018 — his 25th birthday — Blank received his black belt promotion from his coaches at 10th Planet Bethlehem. The ceremony marked both a personal and athletic turning point, capping a remarkable year in which he had delivered championship-level performances before even reaching the sport's highest rank.

With his black belt in hand, Blank wasted little time measuring himself against the world's elite. In 2019, he entered the ADCC USA Trials, finishing in 3rd place and advancing toward qualification for the World Championship. He went on to compete at the 2019 ADCC World Championship, held on September 28–29, 2019, in Anaheim, California — one of the most prestigious no-gi submission grappling events in the world. Competing in the 88 kg division, Blank finished in 4th place, firmly establishing himself among the top submission grapplers on the international stage less than a year after earning his black belt.

The ADCC result represented the culmination of a rapid competitive rise that had taken Blank from regional mats in Pennsylvania to the podium of a global championship — a testament to both the technical system instilled by JM Holland and Zach Maslany and his own relentless drive to compete at the highest level.

In July 2019, Jon Blank announced the opening of 10th Planet Allentown, his own affiliate academy within the 10th Planet network. Located in the Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania and close to his roots in Bethlehem, the gym represents a natural evolution from competitor to head instructor. In establishing the academy, Blank extends the same lineage under which he was developed — carrying forward the technical system and competitive culture cultivated by JM Holland and Zach Maslany at 10th Planet Bethlehem to a new generation of grapplers in the region.