In a recent Instagram post, grappling superstar Gordon Ryan responded to Craig Jones’s announcement of a second CJI event, while making surprising revelations about ADCC’s financial situation.
Ryan challenged Jones’s previous statements about athlete compensation being the primary motivation for scheduling the first CJI event on the same day as ADCC. According to Ryan, Jones had claimed on Joe Rogan’s podcast that he would have chosen a different date if ADCC had increased prize money. However, Ryan disputes this, stating that Jones “never told ADCC or made it public that those were the conditions.”
The multiple-time ADCC champion also criticized the absence of women’s divisions in the first CJI event. “He thinks so little of the women’s half of the sport that he didn’t even have a place for them,” Ryan wrote. “He could have easily added 2 women’s divisions and split the prize, but didn’t.”
With CJI 2 scheduled for August, Ryan questioned why Jones isn’t targeting the IBJJF Gi Worlds instead. “If you’re doing this bec you care so much about the athletes, why wouldn’t you do this event on the same day as worlds?” Ryan argued, pointing out that ADCC has consistently paid athletes despite significant losses.
In a notable revelation, Ryan disclosed that ADCC has lost “10s of millions of dollars in the last 30 years” while maintaining athlete compensation. He contrasted this with the IBJJF, claiming they “has only recently started paying athletes and has been making millions, if not 10s of millions a year for decades.”
Ryan concluded his post by suggesting Jones’s motivations were personal rather than athlete-focused: “because you never gave a f*ck about the athletes in the 1st place and this event was for your own selfish reasons to (attempt to) get at people you don’t like because they’re way more successful than you.”
The post received a lot of backlash but Ryan wisely shared with comments disabled.
Gordon fails to remember that the whole thing started after over 6 months of Jones criticizing ADCC and asking for the athletes to receive basically anything.
To recap a short history of the origin of CJI:
In March 2024, Craig Jones addressed the stagnant growth of prize money in grappling, despite the sport’s rising popularity. Jones highlighted how inflation has diminished the real value of payouts, pointing out that ADCC prizes, such as $10,000, are worth significantly less today. Criticizing the lack of financial support for athletes, Jones humorously suggested that most grapplers couldn’t even spell “union,” casting doubt on collective bargaining as a near-term solution.
Despite ADCC’s status as the premier no-gi grappling competition, Jones argued its financial incentives remain inadequate, with no appearance fees and only prize money at stake.
In April 2024, Craig Jones made waves in the grappling community by announcing a seminar in Las Vegas to support athletes competing in the ADCC World Championships. Acknowledging that only winners receive financial compensation at ADCC—a prestigious but financially stagnant tournament—Jones pledged 100% of the seminar’s profits to competitors eliminated on the first day, ensuring they wouldn’t leave empty-handed.
This initiative followed public discussions about the need for ADCC to update its prize money, with promoter Mo Jassim admitting payouts have remained unchanged since 1998. Despite grappling’s growth, efforts to increase financial incentives have seen little progress. Jones also questioned ADCC’s venue choices, suggesting more cost-effective options.
In May 2024, Craig Jones escalated his critique of ADCC by announcing the BDCC, a competing grappling tournament set to rival the iconic event. Backed by a multi-million-dollar donation, Jones promised unprecedented payouts, including a $10,001 show-up purse for the 32 invitees and a massive $1 million prize for the champion.
ADCC promoter Mo Jassim questioned the motives behind the new promotion, suggesting it might be driven by spite rather than genuine intent to elevate the sport.
At the end of May 2024, Craig Jones made waves on The Joe Rogan Experience by explaining his controversial decision to schedule the Craig Jones Invitational (CJI) on the same day as the prestigious ADCC World Championship. Far from an act of rivalry or malice, Jones framed the move as a strategic effort to spotlight the issue of athlete compensation in grappling. Jones emphasized that his goal was to create a platform that offered better financial opportunities for athletes, adding that he would have reconsidered the date clash if ADCC had doubled its prize money from $10,000 to $20,000.
Exodus of athletes followed with sparring reactions.
In June 2024, the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu community was rocked by a development when Craig Jones revealed he had received a death threat from Seth Daniels, a promoter affiliated with ADCC.
The feud between Jones and ADCC escalated when Jones posted a screenshot of the threatening message from Daniels, which read, “I will end your f***ing life.” Jones responded with typical irreverence, mocking Daniels and suggesting he try journaling or taking a bath to calm his anger. Despite the flippant tone, the message raised serious concerns about the growing tensions within the sport. Daniels later admitted to sending the message on Instagram before deactivating his account.
ADCC offered secret show money quickly. In June 2024, Craig Jones took to social media to criticize athletes who accept undisclosed “show money” payments, claiming it undermines efforts to improve compensation for future generations. In a video, Jones argued that accepting secret payments perpetuates the status quo rather than pushing for transparency and better pay.
In August 2024, both the Craig Jones Invitational (CJI) and ADCC 2024 took place, but the outcomes were starkly different. While CJI was hailed as a resounding success, drawing large public viewership numbers and exciting matches, ADCC fell short of expectations. The event largely relied on Gordon Ryan, who was hampered by health issues, leading to a lack of excitement and energy throughout the competition.
Amidst this backdrop, ADCC competitor Brandon Reed publicly expressed his gratitude towards Craig Jones for his relentless efforts to push the ADCC organization toward better compensating its athletes. Reed, who received $2,500 just for showing up at ADCC 2024 despite losing in the first round, acknowledged that such compensation would not have been possible without Jones’ influence.
In a video post, Reed praised Jones for creating a ripple effect across the grappling world, one that directly benefited ADCC athletes. Reed shared how the CJI treated athletes fairly, ensuring even first-round losers were compensated—a sharp contrast to the traditional ADCC format where many competitors leave without a paycheck. “That was not going to happen if it wasn’t for Craig Jones,” Reed remarked, adding that while he had no personal issues with ADCC, it was nice to receive payment for his participation.
