March 28, 2024

Grappling Report: Gordon Ryan sets his sights on MMA

By Roy Billington

Bloodyelbow.com

It looks like grappling phenom Gordon Ryan is considering putting down his crown in pursuit of MMA gold.

When it comes to nogi grappling, superlatives don’t do justice to Gordon Ryan and his recent dominance in the sport. A multi-time Eddie Bravo Invitational champion, double-gold world champion and two-time ADCC medalist, Ryan has won pretty much all there is in the nogi world. While he intends to pursue the one medal that has eluded him, the ADCC absolute title, Ryan also has set his sights on a future transition to MMA.

Ryan’s initial plans for the future included making the switch to IBJJF gi tournaments, but during a recent appearance on The MMA Hour, Ryan told Luke Thomas that those plans have changed:

“Gi is just not as exciting for me,” Ryan said. “I don’t want to invest time into something that’s not as fun as MMA, which is my ultimate goal. My ultimate goal was always to be the best in MMA, not the best in grappling.”

Ryan’s next outing will be against a former UFC champion in Fabricio Werdum, but the pair won’t be competing in the cage, they will meet as part the heavyweight tournament at the upcomingCombat Jiu Jitsu Fight Night.


GRAPPLING STORIES

Superbad. Oscar nominee, Jonah Hill has became the latest in a long-line of celebrities to find solace on the mats. Hill has spent the last few months training at Clockwork BJJ and has recently earned his first stripe.

Keenan Cornelius beats Tex Johnson. Sometimes it is easy to forget just how good Keenan Cornelius is. Cornelius met ADCC trials winner, Tex Johnson at the inaugural Third Coast Grappling event and scored an astonishing 36 points. Johnson, who won ADCC trials and won a F2W title in 2018, looked outmatched against Keenan who passed his opponent at will.

The Bad Guy gets his Black Belt. The mean streets of West Linn, Oregon, just got a little bit meaner as former UFC title contender Chael Sonnen was recently awarded his black belt from Gracie Barra stalwart Fabiano Scherner. Sonnen, a collegiate wrestler, was no novice to grappling when he first donned the gi, but he has shown great dedication to the sport in recent years and defeated a number of elite grapplers in nogi competitions.


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