Keith Krikorian is one of the brightest stars competing under the 10th Planet banner and it might be surprising to some to learn that up until now, he hasn’t even been a black belt. Krikorian represents the latest generation of 10th Planet competitors who are making waves in the submission-only and no gi scenes, along with PJ Barch and Grace Gundrum. At the age of 22, he’s already achieved huge things in the sport and has plenty of time ahead of him to improve on his record.
He’s competed against some of the biggest names in the sport, and on some of the biggest stages, including the BJJ Fanatics Grand Prix where he had one of the most memorable matches of the night against Aaron “Tex” Johnson. Although the eventual Grand Prix winner was actually his 10th Planet teammate Kyle Boehm, Krikorian made an impression at the event with his non-stop offensive style that always leads to exciting matchups.
Because of his fun style, he’s been a regular feature on the Fight 2 Win stage as well and won titles on their mats. Keith Krikorian has also had the advantage of already competing at the ADCC World Championships before being awarded his black belt, even entering the absolute division despite weighing in at under 66kg. He had two incredibly tough matches in 2019, coming up against the man who would win the 66kg bracket in the first round, Augusto “Tanquinho” Mendes, and then facing a significant weight disadvantage in the absolute division, in the legendary Marcus “Buchecha” Almeida.
Most recently though, Krikorian was seen on Submission Underground 18 getting a lightning-quick finish against Rafael Domingos. It was on his return home that his coach, Richie “Boogieman” Martinez announced his black belt promotion on his official Instagram account:
