On November 30th, 2023, Gordon Ryan will defend his heavyweight title – taking on Lucas “Hulk” Barbosa at WNO 21!
This announcement came shortly after Ryan’s recent WNO title defense – where he defeated Patrick Gaudio at WNO 20: Night of Champions.
FloGrappling shared the news on their social media:
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Details about the rest of the WNO 21 card remain undisclosed. However, the face-off between Ryan and Barbosa is set to be the main match.
Barbosa has a point to prove, too; especially after a loss to Giancarlo Bodoni, Ryan’s teammate, in ADCC 2022.
This isn’t new ground for Ryan and Barbosa either, as they’ve met twice before. Ryan has the lead – after winning at Fight 2 Win 30 in 2017 and outscoring Barbosa 3-0 at ADCC 2019.
Despite a year-long absence from the mats due to health issues, Ryan returned with top form in 2023.
In the headline match of WNO 20, Gordon Ryan retained his heavyweight title against Patrick Gaudio.
He dominated for 15 minutes of the match, and tapped Gaudio with an Armbar in the end.
After the win, Ryan opened a trunk which contained a bottle of “Proper 12” (Conor McGregor’s whiskey) and a note which predicted an Armbar finish.
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