Six Andrew Wiltse Matches That Perfectly Showcase His Breakneck Style
Six Andrew Wiltse Matches That Perfectly Showcase His Breakneck Style
Andrew Wiltse has been a standout talent on the mats for years, and if you've been paying attention you've seen him pull off some pretty crazy things.
Daisy Fresh the series introduced the world of jiu-jitsu to America's most blue-collar jiu-jitsu team, Pedigo Submission Fighting, and emerging as their unofficial team captain and unlikely celebrity is Andrew Wiltse.
Known for his buzzsaw style of passing and relentless attacks, we here at FloGrappling have been following the story of Andrew Wiltse ever since he was a white belt. Now, after receiving his black belt at the 2019 No-Gi World Championships, it's time to take a look back at some of Andrew's brightest moments in competition.
Below are six different matches that all display the ferocity and technique of jiu-jitsu's newest black belt contender.
1. Blue Belt Days
When I say we've been following Andrew his whole career, I really mean it. Andrew Wiltse has been a standout talent on the mats for years and if you've been paying attention you've seen Andrew pull off some pretty crazy things. Like this blue belt absolute match from No-Gi Pans when he arm locked his opponent while giving up at least 80lbs.
2. First Purple Belt Match Ever
FloGrappling was mat-side when Heath Pedigo promoted Andrew to purple belt right before his first match at the now infamous ROYAL Invitational. One of the only blue belts to enter the competition, Heath felt that if he was going to be fighting purple belts he should probably be one. This was an incredible tournament that saw Andrew make the finals and prove he was ready to tangle with the sport's best.
3. Beating Europe's Top Prospect
Although Andrew has found more success in the no-gi arena, his gi matches are really where his competitive drive shines. This match is a perfect example. Losing by two points for a majority of the match Andrew never quit trying to slice through Bruno Lima's guard until he forced the turtle position and sunk in the hook for a 4-2 win in the last minute of the match.
4. First No-Gi World Title
One of the biggest feathers in Andrew's cap are his multiple no-gi world championships gold medals but none was more impressive than in 2017 when he took out the surging Atos competitor Ronaldo Junior.
5. Andrew vs Kaynan
Now despite this being a loss for Andrew, I included it to point out that Andrew has been competing against the best competition around for years. In 2019 Kaynan Duarte solidified himself as a dominant black belt, but Andrew had been fighting him for years and knew exactly what level he was at. If Kaynan's success at black belt is any indication, Andrew shouldn't have a problem establishing himself among the elite.
6. Bonus Match: America's Best Square Off
Another match from deep within our archives uncovers two of the best American prospects meeting on the mats as blue belts. Andrew and Connor DeAngelis have met multiple times over the years but when they first met Andrew proved he was much further along on his jiu-jitsu development.
