This article and the accompanying footage of Stephen Dana v Steven Perez from White Lion Promotions 9 is part of Free Fight Friday, our ongoing project to bring the best in professional Jiu-Jitsu competition to everyone. To avoid spoilers for the match, scroll directly to the footage below.
An exciting lightweight purple belt tournament featuring some top prospects took place at White Lion Promotions 9, and this match between Stephen Dana and Steven Perez served as the final. Dana is a 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu purple belt representing the Atlanta location while Perez is a purple belt competing out of Mortalis Jiu-Jitsu. Both men had defeated their first two opponents in the tournament and had booked their place in the final opposite one another with some impressive performances on either side of the bracket.
The final was over surprisingly quickly, as Dana sat to guard almost immediately and both men were clearly happy to engage in a leglock battle. Although Perez was able to stay safe at first, it was just a little over a minute before Dana was able to find the finish. Not only did Dana walk away as the purple belt lightweight champion with a perfect 3-0 record on the night, but he took home a $800 prize as well. One of his earlier submissions stood out so much that he was also awarded with ‘Submission of the Night’ for it, earning another $100 bonus for his efforts. Both men made statements at the event and it’ll be interesting to see how they’re able to perform over the next few years as they reach the highest level in the sport.
Subscribe to the official JitsMagazine YouTube channel for more Free Fight Friday footage, and the full match between Stephen Dana and Steven Perez can be found below:
