Yasmyn Castro

Yasmyn Castro is a black belt from Marcio André Jiu-Jitsu (MAJJ) in Phoenix, Arizona, where she trains and teaches. She started jiu-jitsu at 14 and turned 26 in 2026.

Her first podiums at IBJJF tournaments came in 2017, as a juvenile blue belt. In 2020 she won the Europeans at roosterweight, still at blue belt. At purple belt she took silver at the 2021 Worlds and the 2022 Europeans, then won the world title in 2023, always at roosterweight.

At brown belt she took silver at the 2023 No-Gi Worlds and at the 2024 Pans, the second one at light-featherweight. At the 2024 Worlds she won all three of her matches by submission, the last one against Camila Reis of Lotus Club, and took gold at roosterweight. Marcio André gave her the black belt on the podium, on May 30.

In her first year as a black belt she took silver at the American Nationals and won her weight class and the open class at the Phoenix Open. In January 2025 she reached the final of the Europeans at roosterweight and took silver after losing to Thaís Loureiro. That year she won double gold at the Phoenix Open again.

In 2026 she won the light-featherweight division at five IBJJF Opens: Los Angeles, Orange County (twice), Denver and San Diego. In Los Angeles she submitted both of her opponents. In February she had a gi superfight against Ashlee Funegra at the IBJJF Grand Prix, in California, and lost by armbar. After that came bronze at the American Nationals, silver at the gi Jiu-Jitsu CON and gold at the No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu CON, her first no-gi title as a black belt.

Outside IBJJF tournaments, she placed third at the UFC BJJ Phoenix Open in September 2026, in the 125 lb division. At MAJJ she also coaches students at tournaments, and in 2026 she coached at Pan Kids for the second time.