Dominic Dillon Joins Matador | Catch Wrestling World Champion, Grappling Innovator and Creator of Moves You Don't Know

One of Britain's Most Unpredictable Grapplers Is Now on Matador

Matador is proud to welcome Dominic Dillon to the platform.

A Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt, Catch Wrestling World Champion, MMA veteran, professional grappler, coach, and instructor, Dillon has built a reputation as one of the most creative and unconventional competitors in British grappling.

In an era where many athletes are becoming increasingly systemised, Dillon has carved out a different path. His style is built around pressure, experimentation, reactions, and attacking from positions most people aren't even considering. Rather than following predictable pathways, he creates problems, forces movement, and capitalises on chaos.

That unpredictability has become one of the defining characteristics of his grappling.

Practitioners can now connect with Dominic Dillon through Matador, including access to seminars, athlete content, and his instructional series Moves You Don't Know.

Who Is Dominic Dillon?

A Martial Artist Shaped by Multiple Disciplines

One of the reasons Dominic Dillon's grappling feels so different is because it wasn't built through Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu alone.

Long before the modern no-gi explosion, Dillon had already spent years training across multiple combat disciplines, including:

• Japanese Jiu-Jitsu
• Catch Wrestling
• Kickboxing
• Mixed Martial Arts
• Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

That broader martial arts background remains visible throughout his game today.

There is wrestling pressure in his scrambles. There are catch wrestling influences throughout his submissions. There is MMA urgency in his pace. Most importantly, there is a willingness to attack during movement itself rather than waiting for perfect positional control.

The result is a style that feels difficult to prepare for, difficult to predict, and extremely entertaining to watch.

Dominic Dillon and Catch Wrestling

The Foundation of His Grappling Identity

Perhaps the biggest influence on Dillon's approach is catch wrestling.

This isn't simply another achievement on his résumé. It is one of the core reasons his grappling developed differently from many modern competitors.

Historically, catch wrestling focused on:

• Continuous pressure
• Forcing reactions
• Punishing rides and pins
• Transitional submissions
• Aggressive positional control
• Finishing opportunities during scrambles

That philosophy remains visible throughout Dillon's game today.

Where many modern grapplers build highly structured systems around positional progression, Dillon often attacks transitions themselves. His objective isn't necessarily to follow a fixed roadmap.

His objective is to create danger.

Catch Wrestling World Champion

A Major Milestone in His Career

One of the defining moments of Dillon's career came in 2018 when he became a Catch Wrestling World Champion.

Within grappling circles, this achievement carries significant weight.

Catch wrestling remains one of the most historically important submission grappling disciplines, influencing:

• Early MMA
• Submission wrestling
• Professional wrestling
• Modern no-gi grappling

It also has deep roots within British combat sports history through Lancashire catch wrestling and the legendary Snake Pit lineage associated with Wigan.

By becoming a Catch Wrestling World Champion, Dillon established himself as something different from a traditional tournament-focused BJJ competitor. His grappling identity extends beyond modern jiu-jitsu alone.

Creativity Over Convention

Why Dominic Dillon's Grappling Feels Different

Modern no-gi grappling has become increasingly system-driven.

Leg lock systems. Body lock passing. Wrestling integration. Positional sequences. Highly structured reactions.

These developments have pushed the sport forward technically, but they have also made many athletes look stylistically similar.

Dominic Dillon represents the opposite side of that spectrum.

His approach embraces:

• Creativity
• Adaptability
• Experimentation
• Reactions
• Unpredictability

Rather than seeking optimisation alone, Dillon explores unconventional solutions and attacks that many athletes simply overlook.

His grappling feels alive.

And that's part of what makes it so interesting.

Moves You Don't Know

Dominic Dillon's Instructional Available on Matador

For practitioners wanting a deeper insight into Dominic Dillon's approach to grappling, Matador hosts his instructional series:

Moves You Don't Know

Even the title tells you exactly what to expect.

This isn't another instructional built around techniques that have already been recycled thousands of times across social media. Instead, it explores unconventional attacks, awkward entries, catch wrestling-inspired controls, and positions that many grapplers rarely spend time developing.

The course contains 29 lessons covering topics such as:

• Broken scarf hold attacks
• Crucifix entries from side control
• Closed guard to crucifix transitions
• Stockade crucifix entries
• Choi bar escapes
• Side-control attack chains
• Reverse bulldog entries
• Kimura trap counters
• Anaconda-to-crucifix transitions
• Bear trap systems
• Inside heel hook entries
• Corkscrew armlocks from butterfly guard

What makes the instructional particularly interesting is that many of the techniques don't fit neatly into traditional Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu categories.

That's intentional.

The course reflects Dillon's wider philosophy:

• Attack transitions
• Punish movement
• Use discomfort as control
• Stay dangerous during scrambles

Rather than waiting for perfect positions, Dillon demonstrates how to turn movement, escapes, and transitional moments into offensive opportunities.

For grapplers trapped inside rigid systems, it offers something genuinely different.

View the instructional:
Moves You Don't Know by Dominic Dillon
https://matadorapp.io/courses/moves-you-dont-know_JQpdoz4EfMB2byVuk4qx

Professional Grappling, MMA and Entertainment

Why His Matches Stand Out

Over the years Dillon has competed across:

• Polaris
• GrappleFest
• SGI
• Professional MMA
• Submission grappling superfights

His matches rarely follow predictable patterns.

Where many athletes favour low-risk exchanges and tactical control, Dillon's style naturally creates movement, scrambles, transitional attacks, and submission opportunities.

That approach makes him effective.

It also makes him entertaining.

As professional grappling continues evolving as a spectator sport, athletes who understand both effectiveness and entertainment become increasingly valuable.

Dillon is one of those athletes.

What You Learn Watching Dominic Dillon Grapple

The Value of Unorthodox Thinking

Watching Dillon compete teaches lessons beyond individual techniques.

You see:

• Submissions appearing during scrambles
• Awkward positions becoming attacks
• Pressure creating opportunities
• Transitions becoming traps
• Chaos being weaponised deliberately

More importantly, you learn that grappling isn't simply about memorising systems.

It's also about:

• Timing
• Adaptability
• Creativity
• Confidence
• Problem solving

Those lessons often translate far beyond a single technique.

Why Dominic Dillon Matters in Modern Grappling

Preserving Creativity in an Increasingly Structured Sport

As grappling continues becoming more systemised, athletes like Dominic Dillon serve an important role.

They remind practitioners that:

• Creativity still matters
• Improvisation still matters
• Reactions create opportunities
• Unorthodox attacks can still work
• Originality still has value

British grappling isn't evolving in just one direction.

There is still room for catch wrestling influence, hybrid martial arts approaches, experimentation, and unconventional problem solving.

And athletes like Dillon continue proving exactly that.

Train With Dominic Dillon Through Matador

Seminars, Instructionals and Athlete Content

As platforms like Matador continue connecting practitioners with athletes, seminars, instructionals, and events, it becomes easier than ever to discover styles that sit outside the mainstream.

Whether through seminars, athlete content, or his instructional Moves You Don't Know, Dominic Dillon brings a unique perspective that blends catch wrestling, MMA influence, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and aggressive transitional attacks into a style that is difficult to replicate and impossible to ignore.

For practitioners looking to explore something different from conventional grappling systems, Dominic Dillon's content on Matador offers exactly that.

Because sometimes the most interesting techniques are the ones nobody else is looking at.