Gordon Ryan just got issued a huge challenge by Nicky Rodriguez, namely to undertake testing for steroids at the hands of USADA both before and after a match with him. It’s a bold proposition indeed, particularly because the vast majority of BJJ organizations don’t mandate any testing for PEDs at all. The challenge came about pretty much immediately after Rodriguez was done winning the absolute tournament at UFC Fight Pass Invitational 4, where he defeated Ryan’s teammate Dan Manasoiu in the final:
“You see this physique right? You’ve got this guy named Gordon Ryan, who keeps accusing me of being on steroids, right? So let’s do this. All the accusations, let’s go 10-minute match, EBI overtime, but with a catch. Let’s both pass USADA tests before and after competition. Pretty fair right? He’s accusing, I’m showing up and competing. Let’s get it done.”
Both Nicky Rodriguez and Gordon Ryan have frequently traded shots on social media in the past and both men have accused the other of using steroids, although USADA testing has never been proposed before. It’s understandable that Rodriguez would be willing to undergo testing himself too, as he’s previously submitted to testing for PEDs completely voluntarily and passed with flying colors. Ryan was in attendance at the event and dismissed the challenge pretty quickly:
“Everybody wants a payday. Me and Nicky Rod will compete again for sure, but it’s gonna be in a tournament where he gets no relevancy off my name and he doesn’t make any money losing to me for the third time in a row. He’s trying to make the rules. You’re a brown belt and you want a random tournament? You don’t call the shots and you’re not making any more money off my name. Nicky Rod literally has no money so calling me out is actually the easiest way to make some money and move out of my sauna and actually buy himself a house or rent an apartment.”
He’s not wrong on the pair’s record in fairness, he has beaten Rodriguez twice before in the past. The first time he beat him was in the final of the over 99kg division at ADCC 2022, and the second time was in the main event of the last UFC Fight Pass Invitational event. While the first time was a pretty quick submission finish with a heel hook, the second time was a significantly longer match that went to EBI overtime before Ryan was able to win by fastest escape. While it’s understandable that Gordon Ryan might not want to compete against the same opponent he’s already beaten twice in a superfight, he was also pressed on the issue of using USADA testing to ensure neither man was using steroids:
“First of all, no, because steroids are not illegal in jiu-jitsu. And number two, I actually have a contract coming to Nicky Rod from USADA and WADA testing from now until the next ADCC, it will be interesting to see if he’s gonna sign that. I make the rules, I name the time, I name the place, I name the ruleset because I’ve earned that. I can actually win matches. Nicky Rod winning three matches in a row is actually impressive because he’s literally never done it before. If you actually follow statistics, he sucks. If you actually look at his jiu-jitsu during regulation, he literally doesn’t know a single move.”
