In the latest chapter of jiu-jitsu’s most entertaining rivalry, Craig Jones has partnered with premium footwear brand Toehold on a humorous collaboration that takes aim at Gordon Ryan amid the latter’s public sponsorship dispute.
Jones unveiled the “Traveling C*ck Chair” – a luxury seat priced at $1,500 featuring “100% American Made Full Grain Veg Tan Leather” and an “Aluminium Frame.” The product, branded as the “World’s Best c*ck chair” and designated as the “official chair of the CJI” (Craig Jones Invitational), reportedly sold out immediately upon release.
The collaboration comes as a surprise to many in the BJJ community, as Jones had previously criticized Toehold for their use of exotic animal skins in their products. However, closer examination reveals the chair actually uses vegan leather rather than the stingray skin Toehold employs in their signature flip-flops.
The timing of the collaboration appears deliberately provocative, coming amid Ryan’s ongoing public dispute with Toehold over a failed sponsorship deal. Ryan has recently shared text messages and audio recordings that he claims vindicate his position in the disagreement.
According to released messages, Ryan was set to receive $5,000 monthly for exclusively wearing Toehold gear. The company, known for selling premium flip-flops priced between $500-$1,000, allegedly faced legal delays and financial challenges that contributed to the partnership’s collapse.
Ryan responded to Jones’ collaboration with a Charles Barkley meme suggesting he’s “not part of a frat house,” adding:
“Being fun and making jokes is cool. Being a professional and winning at everything is 1000x cooler.”
The comment appeared to reference Jones’ competitive career, where he earned multiple silver medals in major tournaments.
The dispute has revealed interesting behind-the-scenes details about BJJ sponsorships, with former ADCC promoter Seth Daniels disclosing that Toehold received a $25,000 sponsorship to ADCC “for FREE” – notable given that ADCC’s compensation practices reportedly influenced Jones to create his own invitational event.
Ryan has defended his value to the brand, claiming he personally intervened with Mark Zuckerberg when Toehold faced social media restrictions, facilitated partnerships with celebrities including Jon Jones and Mario Lopez, and secured substantial business opportunities including “a 50k dollar sponsorship for ADCC for nothing.”
“I guess im not that valuable, seeing at they ‘meticulously track every transaction,’ even though they cant even meticulously track where their own lawyer is to finish writing out my contract after a year,” Ryan posted.
Jones’ satirical collaboration demonstrates how the sport’s biggest personalities continue finding creative ways to leverage their rivalries into attention-grabbing business opportunities.
