Garry Tonon wanted to prove One Championship is ‘no joke’ against UFC’s Dustin Poirier

Jiu-jitsu sensation Garry Tonon has certainly been making a name for himself in MMA as a featherweight with One Championship, going 5-0 – all finishes – in the space of just 14 months.

But it was in another match on the mats, rather than the cage, that the American was hoping to prove himself.

A member of the “Danaher Death Squad” under coach John Danaher at Renzo Gracie Academy, black belt Tonon was set to grapple former UFC interim lightweight champion Poirier last month in Miami. But the charity contest was cancelled after Tonon sustained a cut above his right eye during training.

“Yeah it sucks, it was a good promotional opportunity for me to have that,” Tonon told the Post. “I also love grappling in general. Also, being able to intermingle with UFC fighters and prove myself is nice.

“There’s always guys that are doubters. For me, I think the DJ [Demetrious Johnson] and Eddie [Alvarez] experiment has proved how tough One Championship fighters are. Eddie lost one and DJ has had tougher fights in One in my opinion than he ever had in UFC, maybe with the exception of Henry Cejudo. But other than that he’s having really challenging fights. He’s winning, but not easily.