Former Pitt wrestler James Lledo captures Cage Fury FC amateur MMA title, eyes turning professional in 2026

James Lledo, a former Pitt wrestler, poses with the Cage Fury FC 175-pound NextGen catchweight championship belt. Lledo is 6-1 as an amateur. He won the belt July 26th at the Hard Rock & Casino Atlantic City. Photo by Andrew Palla

James Lledo wanted to get some help to round out his mixed martial arts skillset. His cousin knew a guy who may be able to help. Lledo was put in touch with UFC veteran Bill Algeo, who helped Lledo work on adding kicks.

Lledo, who trains with Algeo MMA & kickboxing in King of Prussia, recently won The Cage Fury FC 175-pound NextGen Championship at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City in July. The former Pitt wrestler and Lower Merion High School graduate is now 6-1 as an amateur.

"I want to put myself in tough positions," Lledo said. "I want to make sure I am growing every day. It's a deep game. It's important to continuously get better."

Lledo, 23, picked up MMA during his second year of college. Lledo had a 28-15 record with the Panthers, including a career-high 15 wins during his sophomore season. During Lledo's time at Pitt, he said his interest in wrestling started to fade.

He found MMA to be a natural transition. He initially started training with Stout Pittsburgh and still works locally with The Southside Boxing Club. While boxing always felt like it came naturally to him, Lledo wanted to work with Algeo to pick up better technique for kicks.

"I always liked fighting," Lledo said. "I would see the UFC and other stuff and I was always interested in it. When I lost some interest in wrestling, I wanted to try it. That's been it ever since."

Lledo has found a lot of success finishing fights at the amateur level. He is 6-1 and has three wins by submission and two by knockout. Lledo's lone defeat was a decision loss to Chris Droege on June 8, 2024. 

Lledo bounced back with a knockout win over Tyler Dibert in April 2025. During Lledo's championship win over Joe Teguia, he persevered through some adversity. Lledo executed a successful trip 30 seconds into the fight and used the takedown to get in top position and utilize ground-and-pound.

Teguia was able to shove Lledo off and onto the canvas. When Lledo went to stand back up to his feet, Teguia fired a stiff shot that caught Lledo clean.

"I felt in control," Lledo said. "It was a good fight. He came ready to fight. He was tough. I never really felt out of control."

Lledo regained control with 1 minute, 22 seconds left in the first round when he landed a knee to the head. He followed that up with a takedown seven seconds later. Lledo then successfully rained down more strikes from the top.

While Teguia worked his way back to his feet, he was dropped again with a calf kick late in the first round. Teguia would tell his corner following the first round that he couldn't see and the doctor stopped the fight.

Lledo said he plans to turn professional next April. Until then, Lledo is open to going anywhere and meeting with anyone who can help him improve.

"I always travel," Lledo said. "I want to go anywhere that can add value. But I'm confident with what I have. I'm surrounded with people who love and care about me."

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected] or on X @J_oshRizzo.