Nick Rodriguez, also known as Nicky Rod, details his point of view about his intense rivalry with Gordon Ryan.
Over the past few years, submission grappling has rapidly grown due to significant contributions from the UFC, ONE Championship, IBJJF, and ADCC. As a result, the superstars of the sport have begun to receive more attention than ever.
Gordon Ryan is widely considered the greatest submission grappler of all time. In December 2022, Ryan faced off against Nicky Rod in the main event of UFC Fight Pass Invitational 3 following their match from three months prior, where Ryan submitted Rodriguez with a heel hook.
During the ten-minute rematch, Rodriguez locked in a toe hold and broke Ryan’s foot. Ryan bounced back and secured a win in overtime.
Nicky Rod recently went on the Jaxxon Podcast and explained his rivalry with Gordon:
“In the sport of jiu-jitsu, I feel like everybody has their own enemy that can help elevate them. Gordon [Ryan] just happens to be mine. We used to be training partners, we used to be friends.. I compete against Gordon in the finals ADCC, he submits me via heel hook.”
Rodriguez continued by discussing how he broke Ryan’s foot:
“Two months later, we get into a grappling match on UFC Fight Pass, and we get into another leg entanglement and I end up breaking his foot, snapping his foot on the mat. Immediately after it hit the mat, he had to like justify why I broke his foot, so he started accusing me of greasing.”
Nicky Rod followed up by addressing Gordon Ryan’s greasing and steroid allegations toward him:
“After the match, Gordon felt the need to justify why I broke his foot, and so he lied and told everybody that I greased up and that I abuse steroids…Never greased, never cheated. Even though steroids really aren’t that illegal, I’ve never even done any type of PED ever.”
Nicky Rod goes after Gordon Ryan for “abusing steroids”
Gordon Ryan has publicly stated that he utilizes performance-enhancing drugs. PEDs are not as overly forbidden in submission grappling compared to other sports, but Nicky Rod believes Ryan’s legacy should be tainted.
Rodriguez had this to say during the previously mentioned podcast appearance:
“I go on the Power Project, they ask me about the match. They’re like, ‘Why is Gordon so good?’ I just told them the truth. I was like, he’s only really good because he abuses steroids. It’s public information…That kind of ignited him to go off, and he immediately after posted 100+ [Instagram] stories about me. Just talking bad.”
Nicky Rod concluded by saying this about Gordon Ryan and what would happen if they faced off again:
“That is my enemy in the sport. I will submit him next time we grapple, and I’m very looking forward to. In addition, I broke his foot so bad, he retired. He’ hasn’t competed since. He pulled out of his matches he had afterward. So, not only did I break his foot physically, but I also broke him mentally. He’s a guy who’s been extremely dominate, he’s never even been in a bad position.”
Rivalries like Gordon Ryan vs. Nicky Rod are undoubtedly good for the growth of submission grappling. The question is, will they meet again on the mats, or will Ryan decide to remain inactive for various reasons? Only time will tell.
Watch Nicky Rod’s entire podcast appearance below:
