A rundown of the biggest headlines and news from the world of competitive grappling.

Joe Rogan’s love of BJJ is well-known but he really stepped his support of the community up a notch this year when he decided to sponsor both ADCC 2022 and Gordon Ryan himself. This week he decided to show even more love to the world’s most prestigious no gi grappling competition by having the head organizer Mo Jassim and it’s most popular star Gordon Ryan on the Joe Rogan Experience.

The pair discussed several issues and there was a huge amount of Jiu-jitsu discussion between the three men over the two-hour podcast. One part in particular saw Ryan decide to discuss the stomach issues that stopped him competing for a large part of 2021. According to him, he’s significantly better after meeting Jassim’s doctor and is in great shape to perform at ADCC 2022 this year.

Nate Diaz confirms he’s leaving the UFC at UFC 279

The younger Diaz brother is one of the most popular fighters in UFC history but he’s been eager to see out the final fight of his contract for quite some time. He was originally booked to take on an incredibly tough challenge in the form of rising star Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 279 but things took a turn for a worse immediately before the event when Chimaev missed the welterweight weight limit by 7.5lbs.

UFC matchmakers adapted at the last second though and shuffled the card around so that Chimaev would fight Kevin Holland and Diaz would take on fellow veteran Tony Ferguson instead. Diaz went on to win his fight by submission in the fourth round and confirmed that he isn’t re-signing with the UFC any time soon, hinting that he’ll be transitioning to boxing instead in order to ‘take over another sport’.

Full results for the event can be found here.

IBJJF Masters World Championships delivers plenty of action

While the ADCC and IBJJF world championships are the most prestigious BJJ tournaments, the IBJJF Masters world championships is routinely one of the most fun to watch. The event is only open to athletes over the age of 30 but it gives older grapplers the opportunity to still compete at a high level and it gives fans the chance to see legends of the sport who might otherwise have retired completely.

Wellington ‘Megaton’ Dias is an almost permanent fixture on the podium at the event, but this year he was joined by a number of high-profile names who can still compete with younger athletes like Maria Malyjasiak and Pati Fontes. Gabriel Almeida, Joao Miyao, Arnaldo Maidana all won gold in their respective divisions, as did Emily Kwok, who remains undefeated in competition in the Masters division.

Full results for the event can be found here.

Renzo Gracie filmed in New York City subway altercation

Renzo Gracie is an incredibly accomplished competitor and was even inducted into the ADCC Hall of Fame earlier this year thanks to his performances. He hasn’t just been content with putting in work in Jiu-Jitsu competition though, or even MMA for that matter. Over the years Renzo has gotten into a number of fights on the street as well.

In 2012 he live-tweeted and detailed how he hunted and badly beat up two alleged muggers, and then in 2014 he was arrested and pled guilty for misdemeanor assault on a nightclub bouncer. Now he has been caught on camera fighting with a man in a New York City subway station at the age of 55, with him claiming that it was as allegedly a result of racist comments.

Quick Hits

• A qualified nutritionist took the time to evaluate the legendary ‘Gracie Diet’ in order to determine whether or not it actually works.
• The freestyle wrestling world championships kicked off this weekend and will see non-stop elite action over the next week.
• With just a week to go before the 2022 ADCC world championships, fans and journalists alike have been making their predictions for the event.
• Nate Diaz has already started planning for his career after retirement as he has just launched a fight promotion, Real Fight Inc.

Technique Corner

Helicopter Armbar

Single-leg X to Straight ankle-lock

Lapel arm-trap to Triangle choke

Meme of the Week