Dillon Danis shoots down Gordon Ryan and Nicky Rodriguez’s budding rivalry: “When you’re 0-8 against someone"
Gordon Ryan and Nicky Rodriguez may have beef, but according to former Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion Dillon Danis, the pair do not share a rivarly whatsoever. The BJJ heavyweight stars have traded words several times, with 'NickyRod' adamant he will defeat Ryan.
But as of now, 'The King' holds a winning record of 2-0 over Rodriguez, with Ryan regarded by many as the greatest no-gi grappler in the world. His unbeaten streak stretching all the way to 2018 would support that argument.
Rodriguez began training alongside Ryan as part of the Danaher Death Squad (DDS) team, which also featured Craig Jones in 2018.
The DDS split in 2021, with Rodriguez and 'The King' heading in opposite directions. Following his win at the Craig Jones Invitational to secure a $1 million first-place prize, 'NickyRod' called out his former teammate to a bet-match.
His sensational performance at the CJI has seen the BJJ star appear on several podcasts since, including The Fighter & The Kid, hosted by Brendan Schaub and Bryan Callen.
During the 28-year-old's appearance, they discussed the beef with Ryan, with Schaub believing their rivalry to be great for the sport. A clip of the former UFC fighter discussing the rivalry was posted to Instagram, where Danis commented the following:
"Not a Gordon fan, but it's not a rivalry when you 0-8 against someone."
See Danis' comment on Gordon Ryan's beef with Nicky Rodriguez below:
Watch Rodriguez discuss his beef with Ryan below:
Gordon Ryan responds to Nicky Rodriguez's callout
Nicky Rodriguez secured a life-changing $1 million prize money after submitting four opponents in a row at the Craig Jones Invitational. After winning his final match, the BJJ heavyweight was interviewed at the arena, where he challenged Gordon Ryan to a bet-match.
Rodriguez proposed that they each put $1 million on the line, with the winner walking away with the money.
'The King' has now responded to his foe, writing this on Instagram:
"I will say this once and only once. To Nicky fraud and can’t win a comp Craig- since you both have my [eggplant emoji] in your mouth 24/7, I have a few proposals for you. We either do 2 matches on 1 night, both of you either put up 500k or 1 million each, and I’ll put up 1-2 million, depending. We both compete in the same night,and winners take all...I am the king, you follow my rules, or you shut up."
See Gordon Ryan's response to Nicky Rodriguez below: