# Tommy Langaker

> Norwegian BJJ pioneer, 2023 IBJJF No-Gi World Champion, two-time ADCC European Trials winner, and ONE Championship submission grappler.

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- **Last updated:** 2026-07-18

## Identity

- **Name:** Tommy Langaker
- **Full name:** Tommy Lilleskog Langaker
- **Belt:** black belt
- **Team:** Wulfing Academy / Kimura Nova União
- **Nationality:** Norway
- **Born:** 1994-02-08
- **Birthplace:** Haugesund, Norway
- **Weight class:** Middleweight / 77-82.3 kg (ONE lightweight limit 169.3 lb)
- **Height:** 5'10" (178 cm)

## Biography

Tommy Lilleskog Langaker was born on February 8, 1994, in Haugesund, Norway. His first martial art was Japanese Ju-Jutsu, which he began at 11, competing in the traditional Scandinavian rule set before Brazilian jiu-jitsu reached his hometown. At 17 he was introduced to BJJ through a friend and trained first under Luis Alberto Armas, a Peruvian purple belt affiliated with Luiz Guigo whose approach to competition left a strong mark on Langaker's early game.

As Langaker began chasing higher-level tournaments, he built a close partnership with fellow Norwegian standout Espen Mathiesen. The pair traveled to California near the end of 2014 to train at Art of Jiu Jitsu under Rafael and Guilherme Mendes, a period Langaker later described as proof that Norwegians could measure themselves against full-time elite competitors. He committed to life as a professional athlete in 2015, worked sporadically as a carpenter to keep the project alive, earned his brown belt under the Mendes brothers, and then returned to Norway to train with José Carlos at Kimura/Nova União.

Langaker's brown-belt run under José Carlos included IBJJF Pan, European Open, and Copa Podio success, leading to his black belt promotion in June 2017. At black belt he became one of Europe's most reliable gi medal threats, taking silver at the 2018 IBJJF World Championship, bronze at the 2021 Worlds, gold at the 2020 IBJJF European Open, AJP Abu Dhabi Pro gold in 2019, and Abu Dhabi Grand Slam gold in 2020. He also helped grow Norway's BJJ scene through Wulfing Academy, founded in Haugesund with Mathiesen, Vegard Randeberg, and Kenneth Vikse.

His style is dynamic and submission-heavy: BJJ Heroes and Wulfing list his favorite positions as keylocks, crab rides, and berimbolos, while FloGrappling's record data shows repeated finishes by back chokes, rear naked chokes, triangles, armbars, and other upper-body attacks. Langaker's guard inversions and back-taking routes made him a crowd favorite in the gi, but his later no-gi work added leg-lock threats as well, most visibly the heel hook he used to submit sambo world champion Uali Kurzhev at ONE Fight Night 7.

The no-gi phase of Langaker's career elevated him from European star to global contender. He won the 77 kg ADCC European, Middle-Eastern, and African Trials in 2022, debuted at ADCC Worlds that year, then joined ONE Championship with a decision win over Renato Canuto and the Kurzhev submission, both earning performance bonuses. In 2023 he challenged Kade Ruotolo for the ONE Lightweight Submission Grappling World Title, won IBJJF European No-Gi gold, beat Oliver Taza at Polaris 26, and captured the IBJJF No-Gi World Championship at middleweight. FloGrappling later called him the reigning IBJJF middleweight no-gi world champion when he won the 2024 European Trials, submitting Davis Asare by rear naked choke in the 77 kg final to qualify for ADCC again.

## Lineage

Carlos Gracie > Helio Gracie > Carlson Gracie > André Pederneiras > Jair Lourenço > José Carlos > Tommy Langaker

## Instructors

- José Carlos
- Rafael Mendes
- Guilherme Mendes
- Luis Alberto Armas

## Signature techniques / game

- Crab ride
- Berimbolo
- Keylock
- Back takes
- Rear naked choke
- Triangle choke
- Armbar
- Heel hook

## Major achievements

- 1st Place IBJJF World Championship No-Gi — black belt middleweight (2023)
- 1st Place ADCC European, Middle-Eastern, and African Trials — 77 kg (2022 / 2024)
- 1st Place IBJJF European Open — black belt middleweight (2020)
- 1st Place IBJJF European Open No-Gi — black belt middleweight (2023)
- 1st Place Copa Podio Grand Prix (2019)
- 1st Place AJP Abu Dhabi Pro (2019)
- 1st Place AJP Abu Dhabi Grand Slam (2020)
- 1st Place Swedish Open — weight and absolute (2017 / 2019)
- 2nd Place IBJJF World Championship — black belt middleweight (2018)
- 3rd Place IBJJF World Championship — black belt middleweight (2021)
- 2nd Place IBJJF European Open — black belt middleweight (2019 / 2022)
- ONE Championship submission grappler; wins over Renato Canuto and Uali Kurzhev
- Polaris Squads 2 Team Europe captain and Jits Magazine Male Grappler of the Year (Gi, 2020)

## Colored belt highlights

- 1st Place IBJJF Pan Championship (2017, brown)
- 1st Place IBJJF European Open (2017, brown)
- 1st Place IBJJF Las Vegas Open — weight and absolute (2015, purple)
- 2nd Place IBJJF World Championship (2015, purple)
- 2nd Place IBJJF European Open — absolute (2017, brown)
- 3rd Place IBJJF World Championship — weight and absolute (2016, brown)
- 3rd Place IBJJF World Championship (2014, blue)
- 3rd Place AJP Abu Dhabi World Pro — absolute (2016, brown)

## Official / social links

- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/langakerbjj/
- Website: https://wulfingacademy.com/
- BJJ Fanatics: https://bjjfanatics.com/collections/all/fighter_Tommy-Langaker

## Sources

- [BJJ Heroes — Tommy Langaker](https://www.bjjheroes.com/bjj-fighters/tommy-langaker)
- [FloGrappling — Tommy Langaker athlete profile](https://www.flograppling.com/people/5950116)
- [FloGrappling — 2024 ADCC European Trials recap](https://www.flograppling.com/articles/12144786-tommy-wins-adcc-trials-pearman-goes-6-for-6-adcc-european-trials-recap)
- [Wulfing Academy — Tommy Langaker instructor profile](https://wulfingacademy.com/instructors)
- [Instagram — Tommy Lilleskog Langaker](https://www.instagram.com/langakerbjj/)
- [ONE Championship — Tommy Langaker](https://www.onefc.com/athletes/tommy-langaker/)
- [ONE Championship — Samurai mindset feature](https://www.onefc.com/submission-grappling/this-is-my-calling-how-tommy-langakers-samurai-mindset-led-him-to-the-top-of-the-grappling-world/)
- [Wikipedia — Tommy Langaker](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tommy_Langaker)

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