Super-prospect Gordon Ryan wins the Sapateiro Invitational in spectacular fashion.
The world of professional grappling is evolving at an unbelievable rate. It seems like just yesterday that Garry Tonon was heralded as the next big thing and while he has arrived as the premier star in the sport, he has also transitioned capably into the role of mentor and coach. Tonon’s protege Gordon Ryan has been making waves in jiu-jitsu for the last few years. In 2014, Ryan shot to fame as a purple belt when he tapped numerous black belts out at the PGL tournament, but it wasn’t until this weekend that he got to show his skills to the masses.
On Saturday, Ryan competed at the Sapateiro Invitational and was faced with a difficult lineup of adversaries. On the opposite side of the bracket to Ryan stood Enrico Cocco. Cocco is among the most capable grapplers in the world; over the years he has won the ADCC trials on 3 different occasions, beaten Eddie Cummings and almost heel hooked Kron Gracie. When both fighters breezed through their respective sides of the bracket, Ryan and Cocco were pitted against each other in the finals.
In the finals Ryan looked more than capable to trade leglocks with the more experienced Cocco. Ryan’s coach and leglock impresario, Garry Tonon, offered Ryan step-by-step instructions throughout and Ryan followed studiously, eventually locking in an inverted-heelhook to get the tap.
At 20 years old, Gordon Ryan is a scary prospect and given the fact that he trains alongside Tonon and Cummings at Renzo Gracie’s, it is likely that his skills will continue to grow at a staggering rate. Ryan isn’t only a prospect for BJJ – the Jersey native has spent a lot of time at Tristar training extensively with Tom Breese and Georges St-Pierre. Like his coach, Ryan plans to transition over into MMA sooner rather than later and could be a force to be reckoned with if brought along slowly.
It is expected that Ryan will push to qualify for 2017’s ADCCs before he considers a switch to MMA and if Ryan does switch early, BJJ fans will be pleased to know that Gordon has a younger brother named Nick, who is 13 and has already began competing in and winning adult divisions at reputable tournaments.