ADCC typically books the super-fight champion against the previous absolute champion, but for this iteration, they made an exception (and another medal) for their superstar in Gordon Ryan by putting him in two matches.
Gordon Ryan beats Yuri Simoes, Felipe Pena at ADCC 2024
In the traditional super-fight against 2022 ADCC absolute champ, Gordon Ryan just slowly controlled Yuri Simoes en route to a pretty wide win. He gamed the ADCC rules for a bit as well, going from mount and repeatedly putting his foot back into Simoes’ quarter guard to keep passing and racking up points.
While down 21-0, Simoes managed to eventually get a reversal and have top control for a few minutes but he couldn’t really do much to overcome the deficit. It wasn’t exactly the most entertaining match, but Gordon Ryan managed to win two super fights in two days at ADCC 2024.
The first super fight a day prior was a pretty lackluster rematch against longtime rival Felipe Pena, who also had to compete twice earlier in the day before their super fight. In a slow and relatively uneventful match that went into overtime, Gordon Ryan was able to land on top in a scramble to score the only points and win the rematch.
Ryan has been more risk averse in recent years, both in choosing opponents and his approach to matches. It’s certainly understandable as the mystique of his long unbeaten streak matters more for his career — and sales of instructionals — but it’s not exactly the best for viewers.
Gordon Ryan sets ADCC record?
After the second super-fight win, commentators immediately announced that Gordon Ryan now holds the record for most gold medals in ADCC history with seven, four of those coming in the last two years alone. Interestingly enough, they counted the other medal that they just created outside of the traditional tournament and super fight rules. This broke his tie with the legend Andre Galvao, who had to win single super fights every other year.
Kaynan Duarte won double gold earlier in the day, meaning he should have earned a super-fight against Gordon Ryan for the next world championships at ADCC 2026. Ryan hasn’t been interested in facing Duarte in recent years, so it’ll be curious to see if Ryan actually takes him on.
Ryan is still just 29-years-old and would only be 31 by the next ADCC, but he has already hinted at retirement recently.
Gordon Ryan super-fight video highlights
Below are highlights for Gordon Ryan’s two super fights. Check here for full ADCC 2024 results and highlights that saw two standouts win double gold.