Andrew Henry Tackett
Andrew Henry Tackett is a black belt, 2024 ADCC Trials winner and inaugural UFC BJJ welterweight champion with four successful title defenses.
Biography
Sources for this profile
BJJ Heroes, Andrew Tackett, full biographical section, accessed 14 September 2026.(opens in a new tab)
Andrew Henry Tackett was born on 1 May 2003 in Orange County, California, and grew up in Austin after his family moved to Texas when he was a toddler.
Where in the source: Personal details and opening full biography; name, birth and early move.
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Rodrigo Brucutu Cabral awarded Tackett his Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt on 17 December 2022.
Where in the source: Opening rank attribution and concluding biographical paragraph about the December 2022 promotion.
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Tackett began jiu-jitsu in 2009 at Team Rabadi with his father and older brother William. Their father was a combat-sports enthusiast.
Where in the source: Full biography, childhood training at the local Team Rabadi academy.
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As the brothers became more interested in competition, they moved to Brazilian Fight Factory to train under Rodrigo Cabral in a more competition-focused environment.
Where in the source: Full biography, transition from Team Rabadi to Brazilian Fight Factory; historical training affiliation.
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IBJJF, World Jiu-Jitsu No-Gi Championship 2021, original official results.(opens in a new tab)
Tackett won the adult male purple-belt middleweight division at the 2021 IBJJF No-Gi Worlds, representing CheckMat.
Where in the source: 2021 event heading; ADULT / MALE / PURPLE / MIDDLE complete list: Andrew Henry Tackett first, Adilson Monteiro second; adjacent Light and Medium-Heavy lists.
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Tackett also won the adult male purple-belt open class at the 2021 IBJJF No-Gi Worlds.
Where in the source: 2021 event heading; ADULT / MALE / PURPLE / OPEN CLASS: Andrew Henry Tackett first, Dory Aoun second, Borysenko and Bohlin third; adjacent divisions checked.
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IBJJF, World Jiu-Jitsu No-Gi Championship 2022, original official results.(opens in a new tab)
Tackett won the adult male brown-belt middleweight division at the 2022 IBJJF No-Gi Worlds, representing CheckMat.
Where in the source: 2022 event heading; ADULT / MALE / BROWN / MIDDLE (175.60LB): Tackett first, Camara second, Iwamoto and Sousa third; neighboring Light and Medium-Heavy checked.
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ADCC, West Coast Trials 2024, second qualifier, official results.(opens in a new tab)
Tackett won the men's professional under-76.9-kilogram division at the 2024 ADCC West Coast Trials, ahead of Oliver Taza and Andy Varela.
Where in the source: Official qualifier results: qualified men77 list and Professional Male -76.9kg standings; Andrew distinct from William in -87.9kg.
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Kylie Rodriguez, FloGrappling, Andrew Tackett Used a Rear Naked Choke to Beat Tommy Langaker, 11 May 2024.(opens in a new tab)
Tackett submitted Tommy Langaker with a rear-naked choke at WNO 23 in Arlington, Texas, on 10 May 2024.
Where in the source: Entire relevant match report; event date/location in first paragraph and submission method in concluding report paragraph.
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Dan Kuhl, Combat Press, Andrew Tackett Eyes Submission Against Jonnatas Gracie at UFC BJJ 10, 20 August 2026.(opens in a new tab)
Looking back in August 2026, Tackett identified his 2024 WNO victory over Tommy Langaker as a turning point in his confidence that he could make elite grappling his full-time career.
Where in the source: The Win That Changed Everything, entire interview subsection; Tackett's own retrospective account.
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By August 2026 Tackett primarily trained at Syndicate MMA and the UFC Performance Institute, with occasional work at 10th Planet Las Vegas and ATC Wrestling Club.
Where in the source: Full introductory interview section describing current training locations.
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Tackett said his family had believed in a future professional jiu-jitsu career and that he wanted to be a fighter by age twelve. William, their parents and grandparents also moved to Las Vegas.
Where in the source: Full opening interview section on the family commitment, age-twelve ambition and relocation.
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Tackett favored a small core training group whose members stayed humble and wanted to improve together.
Where in the source: Full opening interview section, his positive explanation of the small-group approach; no allegations about other gyms retained.
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In August 2026 Tackett described an eventual move into MMA as an ambition, while continuing to focus on grappling and learning striking twice a week.
Where in the source: Full closing Moving Toward MMA interview section; future aspiration, not an assertion of an MMA debut.
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Joe Harrington, FloGrappling, Craig Jones Invitational 2024 Results, 21 August 2025 retrospective.(opens in a new tab)
At the 2024 Craig Jones Invitational, Tackett beat Nicky Ryan and Eoghan O'Flanagan by unanimous decision before losing an under-80-kilogram semifinal to Kade Ruotolo by split decision.
Where in the source: CJI Results in 2024, Under80 semifinals, Under80 First Round and Quarterfinals complete lists; later CJI2 schedule is a different event.
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Simon Head, UFC BJJ 1 Results, 26 June 2025, covering the 25 June event.(opens in a new tab)
Tackett became the inaugural UFC BJJ welterweight champion at 170 pounds by submitting Andy Varela with a first-round rear-naked choke on 25 June 2025.
Where in the source: 170-pound title-match heading and full Tackett/Varela recap, before the following lightweight-title section.
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In the title-winning Varela match, Tackett passed from top position to side control, moved to the back and secured a body triangle before finishing the choke.
Where in the source: Complete 170-pound match recap, positional sequence leading to the first-round submission.
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E. Spencer Kyte, UFC, Andrew Tackett's Whirlwind Year Continues, 10 December 2025.(opens in a new tab)
Tackett defended his UFC BJJ welterweight title against Renato Canuto with a first-round D'Arce choke at UFC BJJ 2 on 31 July 2025.
Where in the source: Full article's first-title-defense account and dated Canuto submission photograph caption.
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In 2025 Tackett moved from Austin to Las Vegas to work with the UFC Performance Institute and new training partners.
Where in the source: Full December interview's relocation and Performance Institute discussion.
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Tackett described thinking about his parents' sacrifices when he was exhausted on the assault bike as a way to keep working.
Where in the source: Full interview answer about motivation during conditioning.
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Before facing Elijah Dorsey, Tackett identified Dorsey's defense-to-counterattack transitions as a difficult problem and prepared to use takedowns and top pressure.
Where in the source: Full closing Dorsey-preparation section; prospective plan attributed to Tackett.
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Thomas Gerbasi, UFC, Andrew Tackett: Hard Work and Sacrifice, 28 July 2025.(opens in a new tab)
In July 2025, Tackett described reducing hard jiu-jitsu to three or four sessions per week because of injuries, supplementing it with physical therapy, weights, yoga and drilling despite his desire to train harder.
Where in the source: Full interview section on managing injuries and changing training volume; Tackett's personal practice, not medical advice.
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Tackett said he had been homeschooled and accustomed to cameras since his early teens; becoming UFC BJJ champion brought substantially more public attention.
Where in the source: Full July 2025 interview, early media experience and post-title recognition.
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Simon Head, UFC BJJ 4 Results, 12 December 2025, covering the 11 December event.(opens in a new tab)
Tackett submitted Elijah Dorsey with an inside heel hook at 2:21 of round one on 11 December 2025 for his second UFC BJJ title defense. Afterward he said he had expected a takedown battle, not leg locks, and had not drilled leg locks in that camp.
Where in the source: Full Tackett/Dorsey main-event recap and complete written post-match quotations before Ronaldo Junior/William Tackett heading.
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Simon Head, UFC BJJ 7 Results, 3 April 2026, covering the 2 April event.(opens in a new tab)
Tackett retained the UFC BJJ welterweight title against Vagner Rocha by unanimous decision on 2 April 2026, completing his third defense after three rounds of exchanges.
Where in the source: Full main-event heading and recap, including late Rocha ankle-lock attack and decision; article published the following day.
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Simon Head, UFC BJJ 10 Results, 21 August 2026, covering the 20 August event.(opens in a new tab)
Tackett made his fourth UFC BJJ welterweight title defense by submitting Jonnatas Gracie with a face crank at 1:44 of round one on 20 August 2026.
Where in the source: Full main-event result and positional recap before Ste-Marie/Lima co-main section; event date in article introduction.
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