A heavily anticipated combat jiu-jitsu matchup between one-time ADCC world champion Gordon Ryan and former UFC heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum has been rescheduled for later this year, and the inaugural EBI Combat Jiu-Jitsu heavyweight title will be on the line.
EBI Combat Jiu-Jitsu officials announced the plans during Friday’s Combat Jiu-Jitsu Fight Night event, which streamed live on UFC Fight Pass from Florentine Gardens Incas in El Monte, Calif. An exact date for the clash has yet to be determined.
JUST ANNOUNCED! The fight we were all hoping to see tonight will happen later this year as former @UFC champ @FabricioWerdum meets Gordon Ryan for Combat Jiu-Jitsu Heavyweight Title! pic.twitter.com/o32rVj9foh
— UFC FIGHT PASS (@UFCFightPass) February 23, 2019
“It’s going to be really exciting,” Ryan said after the announcement. “This is the most accomplished person I’ve ever competed against, so it should be really fun.”
Ryan and Werdum were initially expected to meet in the opening round of Friday’s four-man, absolute division combat jiu-jitsu tournament, but injury forced Ryan to withdraw from the field. Werdum was later pulled in favor of preserving the matchup for a later date.
Now, however, the contest will not be part of a tournament pairing but rather a single match with a belt on the line.
Werdum will make his combat jiu-jitsu debut in the appearance and said he respects Ryan’s grappling accomplishments but believes the New Jersey native only earned his laurels on the mat because of his unwillingness to make a much-discussed transition to MMA.
“He’s showed before that he’s the best in grappling, but I think he’s the best because he didn’t want to do MMA,” Werdum said. “I have a couple of belts in my home. I need one more in my home.”