First he stole his truck, then he stole his crown.
Craig Jones changed the game.
Frustrated with the anemic pay scale at Abu Dhabi Combat Club (ADCC), which has the finances to secure big money venues like T-Mobile Arena — but not enough cash to increase its payouts — Jones bailed on this year’s competition to stage his own “Invitational” across town at Thomas & Mack Center.
Tournament competitors earned $10,001 apiece with division winners bagging $1 million. By comparison, the highest payout at ADCC 2024 is for the Absolute champion and “Super Fight” winners, who both take home $40,000. The lowest ADCC purse comes for competitors who finish fourth in their weight class at $1000.
That’s why so many top fighters bailed in ADCC in favor of Jones.
In addition, Jones put his two-day tournament on YouTube, allowing hardcore and casual fans, as well as interested observers, to check out all the action for free, in real-time. That includes his match against Gabi Garcia, which he won by submission, as well as Ffion Davies’ dismantling of former ADCC champion Mackenzie Dern.
And let’s not forget about the epic Invitational run from Nicky Rod.
The Craig Jones Invitational seemed like a wacky idea from the jump, when the Aussie first proposed the idea on Joe Rogan’s podcast. Then Jones did everything in his power to keep the buildup as tongue-in-cheek as possible, no doubt a reflection of his personality. Too WWE for some of the purists, no doubt, but it made jiu jitsu fun again.
And made Jones the new king of jiu jitsu.
“King” is the nickname for Gordon Ryan, who is unquestionably the best no-gi grappler in the world. Not even Jones, who lost to Ryan three times, would dispute that claim. Ryan was victorious in his first “Super Fight” at ADCC 2024 on Sat. night, defeating longtime rival Felipe Pena by points.
Yawn.
Fans were already checked out long before the bout took place, voicing their frustration over the “boring” matchups that hardly qualify as “Super” fights. To make matters worse, Ryan had only competed twice since 2022, prior to his ADCC return, and seemed content to spend his time on social media complaining about his monthly maladies.
And let’s not forget his fake retirement and frequent cancelations.
If the only thing that mattered in competition was winning, then Conor McGregor would not be the megastar he is today. “Notorious” elevates mixed martial arts (MMA) with his personality, pre-fight hype, and salesmanship. Jones has done the same for jiu jitsu, which is why his Invitational was the hottest ticket in town.
“Really, I don’t think it could have gone any better,” Jones said after the show. “I think all the matches were exciting, the crowd was intense. We went head-to-head with an event that’s been selling tickets for two years. We still did really good — sellout now for Saturday night. I think it will be the most viewed grappling event in history.”
King for a day? Time will tell…