Mateo Cardona

Mateo Cardona was born in March 2004 in West Palm Beach, Florida, into a household where Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu was not simply a sport but a way of life. His father, Oscar Cardona, is a Colombian-born BJJ black belt and the founder of Cardona Jiu-Jitsu Academy in Lake Worth, Florida — the institution that served as the foundation of Mateo's early development. Oscar introduced his son to BJJ before the age of seven, simultaneously enrolling him in wrestling to build a well-rounded grappling base from the start.

The environment Mateo grew up in was defined by a collective family commitment to the sport. His mother, Claudia Cardona, trained in grappling and competed successfully in Masters divisions, reinforcing the competitive culture that surrounded him throughout his formative years. Training daily at the family academy under his father's direct instruction, Mateo developed within a setting that blended technical rigor with deep personal investment. This immersive upbringing — shaped by two grappling parents and a dedicated academy environment — accelerated his development at a pace that would become unmistakable on the competitive circuit.

Juvenile Success and Early IBJJF Dominance

Mateo Cardona's trajectory through the competitive ranks of BJJ is defined by rare and sustained consistency — one that saw him dominate at every level from juvenile through brown belt before reaching black belt. In 2021, competing as a juvenile, Cardona announced himself as an exceptional talent on the IBJJF circuit. That year, he captured the IBJJF World Championship, the IBJJF World No-Gi Championship, the IBJJF Pan American Championship, and the IBJJF Pan No-Gi Championship. His performance at the 2021 IBJJF Juvenile World Championship extended even further — he reached the final of the absolute division and earned a silver medal, a result that underscored his ability to compete effectively above his weight class.

Purple and Brown Belt Circuit Sweeps

Cardona's ascent into the adult colored belt divisions produced an equally commanding record. In 2023, competing at purple belt, he captured the IBJJF World No-Gi Championship and earned podium finishes at the IBJJF World Championship and IBJJF Pan American Championship. The following year, 2024, marked a decisive breakthrough in the gi divisions: Cardona swept the purple belt major circuit, winning the 2024 IBJJF European Open, the 2024 IBJJF Pan American Championship, and the 2024 IBJJF World Championship — affirming his standing as the top purple belt competitor on the international stage.

His brown belt campaign in 2025 was equally dominant. Cardona completed the major circuit sweep again, claiming gold at the 2025 IBJJF European Open, the 2025 IBJJF Pan American Championship, and the 2025 IBJJF World Championship. The pattern across juvenile, purple, and brown belt divisions is clear: Cardona did not simply win tournaments — he systematically conquered every tier of the sport before stepping onto the black belt stage.

With a decorated colored belt career behind him and an elite adult career ahead, the Cardona family made a deliberate and consequential decision: to relocate Mateo to Costa Mesa, California, to train at Art of Jiu-Jitsu (AOJ), the academy founded and led by world champion Guilherme Mendes. The move was driven by a clear objective — to place Mateo in the highest-level training environment available, surrounded by elite training partners and world-class coaching infrastructure.

Cardona arrived at AOJ as a purple belt, marking the beginning of a new phase in his competitive development. Under Mendes' instruction, he progressed rapidly through the ranks, continuing to compete at the highest IBJJF levels and recording major circuit sweeps at both purple and brown belt. The decision to join AOJ proved to accelerate not only his results on the competition floor but also the pace of his progression through the belt system — a testament to the quality of the environment and the caliber of coaching he received.

Promotion on the World Championship Mat

On May 30, 2025, immediately following his final match at the IBJJF World Championships, Guilherme Mendes promoted Mateo Cardona to black belt. The setting — on the competition mat at Worlds, moments after completing his brown belt major circuit sweep — reflected Mendes' recognition of Cardona's readiness and the weight of the moment. It was a promotion earned in full view of the sport's community, on one of the game's biggest stages.

A Lineage With Two Paths

Cardona's lineage carries two distinct and meaningful lines of succession. The first runs through his father: Carlos Gracie › Helio Gracie › Carlos Gracie Junior › Marcelo Ribeiro › Oscar Cardona › Mateo Cardona. The second runs through his instructor at AOJ: Carlos Gracie › Helio Gracie › Carlson Gracie › André Pederneiras › Ramon Lemos › Guilherme Mendes › Mateo Cardona. This dual lineage is not merely a technical formality — it reflects the arc of his development, rooted in his father's direct instruction from childhood and later refined under one of the sport's most accomplished coaches.

Immediate Black Belt Results

Cardona's transition to the black belt division was immediate and commanding. In 2025, he claimed gold at the 2025 IBJJF JJ Con in the Lightweight division (76 kg) and followed with a title at the 2025 IBJJF JJ Con No-Gi at 79 kg. Both performances signaled without ambiguity that his arrival at black belt carried the same competitive intent that had defined every prior stage of his career.