Heath Pedigo - Founder of Pedigo Submission Fighting

Heath Pedigo is the finest BJJ black belt and founder of the Pedigo Submission Academy. The most devoted team of this academy is referred to as Daisy Fresh which is highly prominent in the BJJ community.

Heath Pedigo was born on 16 August 1983 in Mount Vernon, America. From their childhood days, Pedigo and his brothers were highly involved in the different sports activities at Mt Vernon. Pedigo’s mother was the main personality in his life who influenced his sons to move ahead in sports. Initially, Pedigo practiced gymnastics and then with time, got involved in different sports activities such as football, soccer, baseball, basketball, and many more. Pedigo was highly skilled at an early age.

Although Pedigo and his entire family were completely obsessed with these sports, the major turning point came in Pedigo’s life when his brother, Randy Pedigo assisted him in increasing their interest in BJJ. In November 1993, Pedigo and his brothers acquired the BJJ inspiration by watching the first Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Randy’s obsession with boxing was at its peak so he saved some money to buy the VHS tapes of vale-tudo footage. By repeatedly watching the footage, both Heath Pedigo and his brother learn the various grappling techniques by sitting at home.

Once Pedigo was asked about his BJJ learnings, he said:

Both Heath Pedigo and Randy worked hard and defeated various top competitors in different BJJ competitions. In 1999, Pedigo’s BJJ debut occurred when he fought as a substitute fighter at a combat show in Northern Indiana. The main fighter left the match in the last minutes and then Randy asked his brother to compete in his replacement. Then surprisingly at the age of 15, Pedigo defeated the opponent and secured the victory by applying the Triangle Choke technique.

At the time of the North American Grappling Association Championship, Pedigo stayed at Joe Cuff’s home who was the tournament’s promoter. Along with the Pedigo, some other top competitors were also staying there including the renowned Nogueira Brothers and some top fighters of the mixed martial arts. Heath Pedigo got the chance to practice his grappling techniques with these finest athletes. By looking at Pedigo’s grappling expertise, Minotauro appreciates the health and asks him to learn more advanced grappling skills under the highly skilled and professional instructor. He also guided him to add BJJ gi to his grappling routine and Pedigo also followed his advice. Then in 2007, Pedigo considered Minotauro’s advice and moved to East St Louis to train under Rodrigo Vaghi, a famous 6th-degree black belt.

In 2016, a ceremony was held in which Heath Pedigo earned his black belt under Rodrigo Vaghi who also awarded all other belts to Pedigo.

At Rodrigo Vaghi’s coaching institute, Jonathan Thomas was the main training partner of Heath Pedigo. He stayed there for two years and competed in various competitions as a blue belt. Then in 2011, after moving back to his birthplace, Pedigo opened his new coaching institute,  Pedigo Submission Fighting Team. Pedigo hired an old building, the previous “Daisy Fresh Laundromat” to establish his Pedigo Submission Fighting team. Pedigo selected that place as all facilities required for grappling were present. That spot had a larger surface to place the wrestling mat for sparring and the parking area was also there for the athletes’s ease. Pedigo's Institute produced various top competitors who ultimately transformed into promising personalities in jiu-jitsu.

Daisy Fresh BJJ is more than an institution as students not only learn grappling techniques but also learn how to spend their lives by getting inspiration from jiu-jitsu. As a head instructor, Pedigo gained massive fame as his team developed the top talent for the entire BJJ world. Undoubtedly, the publicity and prominence of the Daisy Fresh BJJ team are due to Pedigo’s efforts. 

Heath Pedigo is highly concerned about his future BJJ achievements. Pedigo and his entire team are highly passionate about spreading their distinct jiu-jitsu approach in terms of grappling and training. They want to work harder by keeping their goal in mind to inspire and empower the great number of BJJ athletes.

Photo Credit: @pedigosubmissionfighting