3x ADCC world champion Gordon Ryan was a guest on the Joe Rogan Podcast.
He had stated that an MMA career is possible but only under certain conditions:
Gordon Ryan Tells Joe Rogan About His Transition to MMA
Ryan had left NYC in late 2020 and moved to Puerto Rico with his coach, John Danaher, and team mates to open up their own academy. He plans to open the new academy sometime this year.
Now Ryan has announced some very bad news. Ryan has been suffering since 2014 from a serious stomach condition, Gastroparesis. He was able to reach the top of the professional grappling world while being affected by this illness. Now things have turned for the worse and he has been forced to take a temporary leave of absence from competition.
He will focus on coaching his teammates.
During the podcast, Ryan talked about the future of BJJ/Grappling and he made some controversial statements about Gi Jiu-Jitsu:
“Honestly, that’s dying in America. In the next 10 years, the Gi is pretty much going to be phased out. No Gi is the way of the future.”
View this post on Instagram
Ryan clarified that he was taking about Grappling as a spectator professional sport.
Gordon’s teammate Craig Jones has in the past stated something similar.
Craig Jones first came to prominence after eliminating heavy favorite Leandro Lo at ADCC. Since then he’s had his own bjj study as well as shared plenty of controversial attitudes including that ” Nobody Cares About Gi Jiu Jitsu “.
Craig Jones said a lot of really surprising things about gi – including the following:
“What attracts me to no gi is that nobody really cares about gi jiu jitsu from a spectator’s point of view “
Jones followed that up with
“I watched guys spend their whole lives dedicated to the gi and they’re all the same, they’re broke – nobody’s heard of them. They can’t get paid for seminars. It’s like .001% of guys actually make any money in gi jiu jitsu.”
While you may not agree with Ryan and Jones, there is no denying that they have made way more money and had more success in nogi. This probably doesn’t mean that people will stop training gi, or stop competing in it, just that the focus in Pro Jiu-Jitsu will change to mostly No GI.
Related:
Gordon Ryan How Much He Really Earns From Competing In Pro Jiu-Jitsu Events
Learn The Best Ways To Add the Kimura to Your Game Using Legendary Strategies from BJJ Pioneer and Champion MMA Fighter Rafael Lovato Jr.!
- Rafael Lovato Jr. has been competing in BJJ for over 20 years and is one of the most decorated American Back Belts in BJJ history claiming IBJJF world titles in gi and no gi, Brazilian Nationals Gold (first American to do so), and he boasts a 10-0 MMA record .
- Lovato Jr. has been using the kimura since he was 15 years old and the submission remains his most trusted method of finishing his opponents.
