In a wild interview on The Casuals podcast, rising jiu-jitsu star Nick “Nicky Rod” Rodriguez did not hold back when discussing his rivalry with grappling phenom Gordon Ryan.
Nicky Rod, the inaugural champion of the Craig Jones Invitational, claims he can tell when Gordon Ryan starts using PEDs. According to Nicky Rod, he starts receiving unsolicited negative messages from Ryan around the time he believes Ryan is cycling on PEDs.
Rodriguez, the inaugural champion of the Craig Jones Invitational, didn’t mince words in calling out Ryan’s character, accusing the dominant grappler of being “not a good person.”
“We used to be teammates, but we had to separate teams because of the kind of person he is. It’s just not a good environment,” Rodriguez explained.
“I know when he gets on ster*ids ’cause I’ll get like a random text like, ‘You suck, casual,'” Nicky Rod said. He alleges that these taunting texts from Ryan come in waves, going months without contact before the messages start when Ryan is seemingly bulking up for a competition.
Nicky Rod and Ryan have a storied history in the grappling world. Two years ago , Nicky Rod broke Ryan’s foot at UFC FPI, a match that Ryan ultimately won in overtime.
“I had him in a rear-naked choke and he tapped right as the bell rang, but they gave him the win by advantage,” Rodriguez said. “A lot of people thought I won that match.”
Nicky Rod claims this really got under Ryan’s skin, as he’s never been able to avenge that loss.
Now, Nicky Rod is calling Ryan out for a $1 million superfight. “I offered him $1 million, [but] he doesn’t say yes. It’s not going to happen,” Nicky Rod stated.
Nicky Rod believes the ball is in Ryan’s court, as he’s already put up a substantial monetary offer. When asked about the chances of the match happening, Nicky Rod was doubtful, saying “I think 40-60 he’s going to say no.”
“If he doesn’t respond, the internet will take care of that. I’m going to keep talking s*it,” he declared.
This potential grappling superfight has the potential to be one of the biggest events in the sport’s history. The bad blood and mutual dislike between the two athletes would only add to the intrigue. However, it remains to be seen if Ryan will accept Nicky Rod’s challenge, or if this matchup will fall through due to Ryan’s alleged reluctance.
