Every sport operates in cycles. Every timeline has its end and beginning. As a new dawn starts, a superstar is always born to take the lead toward the quest for greatness. Gordon Ryan is currently the face and the king of the sport of No-Gi grappling.
It’s not only the athlete’s dominance in the game that puts them on top. For the most part, a competitor’s impact on the development of the sport and the community built as a result separates the good from the great. Today, we’ll talk about the king of No-Gi Grappling, Gordon Ryan, and his rise to greatness.
Who Is Gordon Ryan?
Gordon Ryan, also known as “The King,” is an American grappler and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt under Garry Tonon. Born on July 8, 1995, in New Jersey, United States, Gordon began training in Jiu-Jitsu under the guidance of Tom DeBlass and Miguel Benitez. To expand his network in the grappling world early, he moved on and trained within the Renzo Gracie circle and met John Danaher.
John, together with Tom and Garry, the three Jiu-Jitsu masters, helped Gordon become a grappling phenom, and later ruled over the submission grappling world. A significant part of Gordon’s development early in his grappling career can be traced to his connection and mentorship with Tom DeBlass and Garry Tonon, guiding him on and off the mats. Garry was one of the best and most exciting grappling competitors to watch at the time, while Tom is highly respected as both a fighter and coach in the grappling community, guiding Jiu-Jitsu practitioners worldwide.
In 2015, Gordon made his presence known as one of the top brown belts in the grappling world by winning the IBJJF No-Gi World Championship, as well as the Newaza challenge. These two milestones led to his black belt promotion in 2016 under Garry Tonon, becoming Garry’s first student to receive the rank. Gordon’s frequent visits to the Renzo Gracie Academy in New York, also known as the Blue Basement, under John Danaher, has elevated his game further, which significantly helped with his success in the ADCC and other tournaments with the submission-only grappling ruleset.
This further catapulted his social success. He, alongside an elite team of grapplers under John Danaher, became known then as the Danaher Death Squad, and now as New Wave Jiu-Jitsu. New Wave is one of the hubs of today’s grappling scene, based out of Austin, Texas.
Rise To The Top
Gordon has been competing for many years, and to be at his level, one could hardly imagine what coming up from his path would look like. He said the most matches he had in a day was 19. Too much is an understatement, but Gordon competed a lot in his come-up days.
He mentioned that coming from white to black belt, Gordon competed at least three times a month, every weekend. In each competition, he would compete in both the Gi and No-Gi divisions in his weight and the absolutes and under the teen and adults division, all on the same day. While there are no recorded statistics, Gordon guessed that his total competition matches would be around 1,500, with less than 20 losses.
The EBI (Eddie Bravo Invitational) was one of the initial significant tests that Gordon and his teammates, the then DDS members had, and it showcased their advanced talents in the grappling limelight. Alongside Gordon are Garry Tonon and Eddie Cummings, key figures in the leg lock revolution several years ago. Gordon won the EBI four times throughout 2016-2017, and most of his matches ended via submissions. Throughout their EBI circuit run, his teammates Garry and Eddie dominated their matches via leg locks, which introduced a new pattern for grapplers to follow. Many grappling fans remember the EBI as the first breakthrough for many of today’s grappling starts.
2018 was the year Gordon last competed under the IBJJF ruleset. This year, he won the Pans No-Gi World Championship by submitting all his opponents and the No-Gi World Championship in his weight class and the absolute division. Winning both in the same year is a feat only the best of grapplers will achieve. He also led Team Alpha Male’s victory run in Quintet 3, submitting Craig Jones and Vitor Ribeiro in the finals.
Gordon first competed in ADCC in 2017 and has been at the top since then. ADCC is the toughest submission grappling tournament and is widely known as the Olympics of grappling, held only once every two years. Winning the ADCC is never an easy feat, and unlike other prestigious grappling tournaments, you have to earn your spot by getting a direct invite or by winning the ADCC regional qualifiers (North & South American, European, and Asia & Oceania trials).
In his first ADCC appearance, Gordon won gold in his division (-88kg) and silver in the absolute, falling a match short against his rival, Felipe Pena. In 2019, he came up a weight class heavier (-99kg) and ended up winning the gold both in his division and the absolute, beating Buchecha in the finals. Outside ADCC, Gordon competed with a decorated U.S. wrestler, Bo Nickal, to spice things up. The match was conducted in a hybrid rules fight, with the first round fought under wrestling rules and the second round under grappling rules. Gordon submitted Bo in the second round via triangle choke.
The ADCC resumed in 2022, and Gordon entered to take the ADCC throne in a highly anticipated match against the long-time ADCC Superfight champion Andre Galvao. Gordon was still unstoppable in his division and submitted Galvao via rear naked choke in their match. Before the year ended, Gordon was initially scheduled to fight Vinny Magalhaes in the main event of the UFC Fight Pass Invitational 3, but Vinny withdrew from the match and was replaced by his former teammate, Nick Rodriguez. The match was regulated under EBI rules, and Gordon won in overtime with the fastest escape time.
2023 was a tough year for Gordon Ryan’s competitive career because of health problems. After signing a seven-figure multiple-fight contract with FloSports in January, he was scheduled to fight Felipe Pena at Who’s Number One. Gordon withdrew from the fight due to his stomach problems and was replaced by Nick Rodriguez.
In October, he returned to the competition mats to defend his WNO title against Patrick Gaudio, submitting him via armbar. This was the only match Gordon had in 2023.
In the most recent ADCC, Gordon was only allowed to compete in two super fights, not in his division and the absolute. In the first super fight, Gordon competed against Yuri Simoes, the 2022 ADCC absolute champion, and defeated him on points. The deep rivalry is what inspired the second super fight, which was against Felipe Pena. Pena is the only grappler to defeat Gordon twice (via rear naked choke in a super fight and points in the 2017 ADCC finals), dated back to 2017.
After a well-contested match in 2022, which went above overtime, Gordon beat Pena via technical submission. In the 2024 ADCC super fight with Pena, Gordon beat him again via points after a long and grueling match to avenge his record against him, now tied at 2-2. Gordon now has the most ADCC gold medals (7) in the history of the ADCC World Championships.
The Mentality Of A King
A telltale sign that an athlete is at the top is when many supporters (and critics) discuss every move one makes. Gordon’s competitive career so far has been filled with both. His grappling legacy is one of the best, if not the best we’ve seen in the modern grappling scene and perhaps in the history of No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu.
Gordon’s stoic demeanor when competing helped him to defeat even the strongest opponents despite the adversity and toughness of competing. He seems to have no trouble competing in overtime or for extended periods and can probably do it for hours. This allows him to outlast his opponents as he slowly wears them down physically and mentally, which separates him from the best of the best competitors.
He’s very well-rounded and highly technical in all positions, both in offense and defense. From time to time, Gordon has shown that he can win from all positions and submit his opponents with upper and lower body submissions, or even by applying pressure by putting them in unconventional positions to force the tap.
Many grappling fans consider him the best grappler of all time, and his decision to primarily focus on No-Gi grappling, which he completely dominated and revolutionized, separates him from the rest of the greats. His technical understanding and application of the techniques are levels ahead of the competition, and even while suffering from health-related problems, he still manages to dominate the competition.
Encountering opponents that may beat him gets more serious as time passes by, and efficiently, his decision to dedicate his time solely to No-Gi grappling is a smart move that allowed him to advance further and much faster than his competitors.
As they say, when you want to get ahead of the competition, you must be willing to do what others won’t. Gordon built his confidence from the ground up, allowing him to predict what submission he would win his matches with regardless of the situation. His strict schedule includes teaching while being able to compete at the highest level, and this is because he gave his all, basically living inside the training grounds for years, even before the breakout of his success.
His coach, John Danaher, believes in the idea of Kaizen (small incremental improvements in a day, when compounded, result in something significant in time), and Gordon is a true testament to this. His success is not considered an accident or a fluke but simply an outcome of his daily hard work throughout the years.
Remember that, like Gordon, everyone experiences setbacks in life and career. What matters most is that we keep going and rise against challenges, even when all the odds seem to be against us. Regardless of what the critics may say about Gordon, he kept on grinding until he reached the pinnacle, which is always admirable. A perfect example of coming from nothing and turning into something.
What’s Next For The King?
As champions say, staying at the top is more challenging than getting to the top. This is because everyone else is studying your game and is constantly finding flaws to beat you. Being at the top means there’s always an inherent threat that the competitions want to take you off the throne.
Health-related problems may seem like the only thing holding Gordon back from being active in the competition. Gordon explicitly said that if any of his training partners can catch up and start dominating the competition as he did and eventually take the ADCC absolute division throne, he may give way, which is likely to prevent the possibility of a super fight.
While Gordon is the face of the New Wave Jiu-Jitsu crew, other members, like Giancarlo Bodoni and Nicholas Meregali, are also building their competitive paths. On the competitive side, Nick Rodriguez, Gordon’s former teammate, is looking to challenge Gordon, even putting up a million dollars at stake.
With Kaynan Duarte winning the recent ADCC absolute division, we will see him against Gordon in the 2026 ADCC World Championships. Regardless of what happens now and in the future, we are excited to witness the best of the best these grapplers have to offer.
Conclusion
While Gordon is still physically in his prime and evolving technically in Jiu-Jitsu, he has already cemented a legacy that will indeed last generations. At the relatively young age of 29, it is without a doubt that we’ll see The King compete for years to come. One of his goals is to increase the competitive pay for Jiu-Jitsu athletes, and we are thrilled that the sport is slowly making its way to the limelight!
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