“King” says he’s done — again.
Seven-time ADCC champion and three-time IBJJF No-Gi World champion Gordon Ryan has endured several difficult years with his health, leading to multiple retirements and indefinite hiatuses. Now, after another downturn, the 30-year-old says he’s stepping away from competition for the foreseeable future.
In a lengthy Instagram post, Ryan announced that he is stepping away from competition — possibly for good.
“Today marks 10 years at black belt, 10 years on top of the sport,
and the probable end to my competitive career,” Ryan wrote. “As many of you know, I’ve had this debilitating and seemingly unfixable stomach issue since recurring staph infections/antibiotics wiped out my good gut biome. Without going into too much boring detail, the problem has gone through phases of better and worse over the years, and has now morphed into a multitude of new problems, including me just getting sick or staph whenever I train hard and compromise my immune system in any way.”
The 30-year-old explained that the situation has deteriorated to the point where hard training simply isn’t possible anymore.
“Because of these issues, I have not been able to train or lift hard since January of 2024, as I just begin dry heaving immediately when I do. I competed in ADCC with no camp, at 10% of how I should have been operating, and I have seen no improvement in my condition since.”
For Ryan, that physical limitation has been the most frustrating part.
“This, of course, has been immensely frustrating, as my technical skills are far better than ever, my body is otherwise very healthy, and I’m only 30 (10 years from my prime). I have so much more left to give if I could just fix this one issue. I’m still on the mats almost every day, but not able to do what my mind tells my body. Because of this, I believe it is best I put my focus elsewhere for now as I try to remedy my stomach, and possibly return one day, pending my health and assessment of relative physical skills at the time, as my knowledge is unmatched. For now, I can confidently say, I am done.”
Instead of chasing competition, Ryan says he will shift his focus to expanding Kingsway Jiu-Jitsu — his gym, launching a global affiliation program, and coaching the next wave of talent — though he notably left the door slightly open for a return.
“I will spend the next few years building Kingsway Jiu-Jitsu to its student capacity, opening a global affiliation program, helping the athletes achieve all of their goals and dreams, and sharing all of my knowledge with the world. After that, who knows?” Ryan concluded. “There are far too many people involved to thank, but you know who you are. To the fans, thank you. The thought of selling out T-Mobile Arena for a jiu-jitsu event was unheard of when I started training. We truly made this sport something great, and you all have made me genuinely wealthy along the way. This wouldn’t have been possible without you all and your constant support. Thank you to everyone involved, and I hope to be back… especially for 2 matches with Vinny and a last dance with Felipe. Until the time comes.”
Due to ongoing stomach and immune complications, Ryan has competed just a handful of times over the last few years. He fought once in 2023, once early in 2024, and three times at ADCC 2024 — which now stands as his most recent appearance.
Ryan’s last loss in a grappling/BJJ match occurred in 2018, against Vinny Magalhaes at ACB JJ 13. He was scheduled to rematch him in the main event of UFC Fight Pass Invitational 3, but the fight was canceled due to Maglhaes pulling out of the match just one day prior.
Controversial? Absolutely. Polarizing? Without question.
But if this truly is the end for one of the most dominant No-Gi competitors ever at just 30 years old, it leaves a massive hole in the jiu-jitsu landscape.
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