While Gordon Ryan‘s recent comments about a loyalty crisis in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu have sparked heated debate across the grappling community, multiple-time world champion Ffion Davies offers a strikingly different perspective on what loyalty should mean in modern martial arts.
Davies, who recently signed with the UFC and headlined FPI 11 in Las Vegas on May 29th, challenges the traditional expectations that have long governed academy relationships. Her stance represents a fundamental shift from the territorial mindset that has historically defined jiu-jitsu culture.
“I would never want someone to feel loyal to me and they must just train with me,” Davies explained to John Gooden. “If that’s not what makes them happy, at the end of the day, especially in jiu-jitsu, where it is very much like, you know, you’re a paying customer to a gym and you need to be happy with that. Like you can’t be paying money and then being afraid to train elsewhere. I think that’s a little bit strange.”
Davies‘ open-minded approach stems from her background in judo, where cross-training was not only accepted but actively encouraged. This experience shaped her understanding of what healthy training relationships should look like.
“I came from a judo background,” she says. “And it was Monday in one place, Tuesday, another place, Wednesday in the sports center, like, the Welsh team. And it was very much you’d go to different gyms all the time.”
When she transitioned to jiu-jitsu, the sport’s more rigid territorial culture came as a shock.
“I came in jiu-jitsu and I was deeply confused when people were like, you can’t go to this gym because they’re 20 minutes away from us. And I’m like, and why else? Because it’s traitorous. You’re a traitor. And I’m like, okay. I don’t know if it’s that deep.”
Now training at Los Banditos in London under coach Joe, whom she describes as “really phenomenal” and “very technical,” Davies believes that healthy academy culture begins with leadership. Her current training environment exemplifies the open-minded approach she advocates.
“I think it trickles down from the person at the top,” Davies observes. “And I think a coach who is really open-minded isn’t just saying this is the way I like to teach or these are the techniques that I like or the methodology that I like to teach with and this is the best way and the only way. I think someone who has an open mind and is still eager to learn themselves is going to provide a good environment that kind of makes everyone else like that.”
This philosophy extends to recognizing that different teaching styles connect with different students.
“Because like I might have a style and I’m teaching and it may not mesh with everyone and that’s okay,” she says.
Davies‘ perspective stands in stark contrast to the concerns raised by Gordon Ryan about the current generation of grapplers “forgetting where they came from.” While Ryan sees disloyalty as a character flaw, Davies frames athlete mobility as a natural part of pursuing excellence and happiness in training.
Her viewpoint also differs from Garry Tonon‘s criticism of what he perceives as an overly transactional approach to gym relationships. Where Tonon argues that treating gyms “like any other business” diminishes the martial arts experience, Davies embraces the customer service aspect as a positive development that empowers students.
Davies‘ approach to loyalty and training methodology reflects what may be a broader evolution in the sport. As jiu-jitsu continues to grow and mature, the rigid boundaries between academies appear to be softening in some corners of the community, allowing practitioners more freedom to develop their skills across multiple training environments.
While voices like Ryan‘s express concern about the erosion of traditional values, Davies represents a different school of thought—one that sees this evolution as progress toward a healthier, more student-centered approach to martial arts training.
For Davies, loyalty shouldn’t be demanded as an unquestioned tribute but earned through quality instruction and genuine care for student development. In her vision of jiu-jitsu’s future, practitioners are free to pursue their goals without the weight of artificial constraints, creating a community built on mutual respect rather than territorial obligation.
