"He's not the best wrestler" - Gordon Ryan gives honest opinion on training Jon Jones for Stipe Miocic showdown
Jon Jones is gearing up to put his heavyweight title on the line against Stipe Miocic in the main event of UFC 295, set to take place on November 11 at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
As he readies himself for his forthcoming match against one of the best 265-pound fighters, 'Bones' has sought the guidance of Gordon Ryan. 'The King' is seen as the world's premier No-Gi grappler in the jiu-jitsu community, with some considering him the best ever.
During a recent interview on Morning Kombat with Luke Thomas, Ryan disclosed that Jon Jones had reached out to him through Instagram to establish their collaboration.
Although the multiple-time ADCC world champion didn't exactly label himself as a "coach," Ryan acknowledged that he had been instructing the reigning heavyweight champion in the art of jiu-jitsu:
"I'm not a coach you know, I'm not like a full-time coach. But when I go there, I go to train with him obviously just so he feels what it's like to train with good grapplers. But most of what I do especially with his training regimen is teaching so I'll coach him."
Ryan also emphasized Jones' remarkable ability to acquire new skills and seamlessly incorporate them into his overall strategy:
"Jon Jones is a lot like GSP [Georges St-Pierre]. He's not the best wrestler, not the best striker in the world. But when it's time to put it all together, he does it better than anybody else in the world."
Check out Ryan's comments below (from 5:35):
Jon Jones discusses his preparation for UFC 295 with Gordon Ryan
Jon Jones recently turned to X (formerly Twitter) to share his thoughts on his training sessions with Gordon Ryan. 'Bones' revealed that the opportunity to train with the world's best submission grappler had been not only humbling but also precisely what he had been searching for in his journey:
"My boy, Gordon Ryan served me up a large hot piece of humble pie tonight. It was exactly what I was looking for, at the same time my emotions are all messed up. Going to have a hard time sleeping tonight.. expect singing videos at 2 AM."
Check out Jones' post below: