After a year out of the spotlight and months after being quietly removed from the UFC roster, Kron Gracie is set to make his return to mixed martial arts. The 37-year-old Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu standout will face Tom Picciano on December 12th at Victory Figh ting League 3, marking his first appearance since parting ways with the UFC earlier this year.
The matchup was announced during a recent VFL event, drawing immediate attention from MMA fans who had written off the youngest Gracie active in major competition.
Gracie’s release from the UFC didn’t surprise many. After debuting with promise in 2019—submitting Alex Caceres in the first round—his run in the promotion quickly unraveled. Over six years, he competed only four times, posting a 1-3 record that included losses to Cub Swanson, Charles Jourdain and Bryce Mitchell.
His last bout came in December 2024 at UFC 310, where Mitchell stopped him with a tough TKO. It was Kron’s third straight defeat and the long gaps between appearances suggested a lack of rhythm and direction more than a lack of skill. His name was officially removed from the UFC roster five months later.
As the son of Rickson Gracie and grandson of Hélio Gracie, Kron has lived under the heavy shadow of a surname that helped create modern MMA. That burden often shaped his choices inside and outside the cage.
Before his final UFC bout, Kron opened up about the pressure that came with representing the Gracie name. He admitted that during his 2023 loss to Jourdain, he followed advice from family and the jiu-jitsu community to rely exclusively on grappling—an approach that backfired.
“I came into that with just one tool… it was a **** decision,”
he said at the time.
He also described tension with his father, Rickson, who had publicly stated that Kron sought distance to “be his own man.” Kron later disputed some of those remarks, though he expressed love and concern for his father, who continues to battle Parkinson’s disease.
Kron appears ready to restart his career outside the bright lights of the UFC. His move to VFL suggests a recalibration rather than a retreat—a chance to rediscover the version of himself that once tore through the grappling world and won ADCC gold.
While his stint in the UFC fell short of expectations, Kron’s technical foundation and competitive lineage ensure his name still carries weight.
