Nick Rodriguez

Rodriguez grew up in New Jersey and took up wrestling as a youth; after high school he joined the NCAA Division III wrestling team at Ferrum but competed for only one year before leaving to work as a male model.⁠[1]

In 2018, at a friend’s invitation, he took his first jiu-jitsu class at South Jersey BJJ; relying on his wrestling experience, he then entered the advanced heavyweight division of a tournament and won two gold medals.⁠[1]

That year he placed first in the male adult blue belt ultra-heavyweight division of the World IBJJF Jiu-Jitsu No-Gi Championship.⁠[2]

As a member of the Danaher Death Squad, he used his wrestling advantage to win his first two matches in the +99kg division of the 2019 ADCC World Championship by decision, then beat Roberto “Cyborg” Abreu by decision in the semifinal.⁠[3]

In the final, Kaynan Duarte beat him 3–0 on the strength of a back take; on his way there he had defeated a series of champions, including IBJJF world champion Mahamed Aly.⁠[4]

His wins over top competitors while still a colored belt earned him the nickname “The Black Belt Slayer.”⁠[5]

Shortly after ADCC he was promoted to purple belt; in October 2019 he took a freestyle-rules wrestling superfight against USA World Team member Pat Downey and lost by technical fall.⁠[6]

In November 2019 he replaced the withdrawn Gordon RyanGordon RyanGordon Ryan is an American submission grappler and Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt who won multiple ADCC World Championship titles and submitted André Galvão in the 2022 superfight, and is regarded by many as one of the finest no-gi grapplers; he announced the end of his competitive career in February 2026.Open the full entry in the BJJ Fanatics submission-only grand prix, beating Victor Silverio with a rear-naked choke in EBI overtime in the first round before losing to Lucas “Hulk” Barbosa in overtime in the next round.⁠[7]

In December 2020 he announced that he would follow training partners including Gordon Ryan and Craig Jones to Puerto Rico to keep training at the new gym led by John DanaherJohn DanaherJohn Danaher is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu and MMA coach who grew up in New Zealand, taught for many years at the Renzo Gracie Academy in New York, served as Georges St-Pierre’s jiu-jitsu coach, and is known for his leg-lock system and the “Danaher Death Squad” grappling team; from late 2021 he headed the New Wave Jiu-Jitsu team in Austin, Texas.Open the full entry.⁠[8]

In March 2021 he beat Yuri Simões by decision at a Who’s Number One event.⁠[9]

In April he beat Pedro Marinho by decision in the opening round of the Third Coast Grappling 6 absolute grand prix, then lost a decision to Victor Hugo.⁠[10]

After John Danaher announced in July 2021 that the Danaher Death Squad was splitting up, Craig Jones announced he would keep training with Rodriguez, Ethan Crelinsten and Nicky RyanNicky RyanNicky Ryan (born Nick Ryan) is an American Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt and submission grappler, the younger brother of Gordon Ryan and a student of John Danaher, who in 2017 became the youngest competitor in ADCC World Championship history as a late replacement and later became a founding member of B-Team Jiu Jitsu.Open the full entry, tagging his post in Austin, Texas.⁠[11]

In December 2021, ADCC announced his invitation to the +99kg division of the 2022 World Championship.⁠[12]

That month, at Fury Pro Grappling 3, he submitted UFCUFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship)UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) is a mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion based in Las Vegas, United States. It began in 1993 as a no-holds-barred fighting tournament and gradually entered the mainstream after the Fertitta brothers’ Zuffa bought it for $2 million in 2001; it was sold for about $4 billion in 2016 to a consortium led by WME-IMG, and in 2023 it merged with WWE to form the publicly traded TKO Group Holdings, where as of 2026 it is one of the largest businesses by revenue.Open the full entry veteran Steve Mowry with a rear-naked choke at 5:30.⁠[13]

In January 2022 he lost to Elder Cruz by split decision at a Who’s Number One event.⁠[14]

In June 2022 he became the first person to receive a brown belt at B-Team Jiu-Jitsu, the Austin gym he founded with Jones, Nicky Ryan and Crelinsten, and said he aimed to win gold in both the +99kg and absolute divisions at ADCC 2022.⁠[15]

In the +99kg division of the 2022 ADCC World Championship he beat Damon Ramos 8–0, submitted John Hansen with a rear-naked choke and beat Felipe Pena 3–0 in the semifinal.⁠[16]

In the final his former teammate Gordon Ryan finished him with a heel hook, leaving him with silver again.⁠[17]

On October 23, 2022, at EBI 20: The Absolutes, he submitted Ezequiel Zurita, Luke Griffith and Austin Baker and then forced Kyle Boehm to tap to a rear-naked choke in overtime in the final to take the title.⁠[18]

In December 2022, after Vinny Magalhães withdrew from the UFC Fight Pass Invitational 3 main event, he stepped in on short notice to face Gordon Ryan, leaving the eight-man absolute tournament he had been entered in.⁠[17]

Ryan narrowly won the match.⁠[19]

On February 25, 2023, he replaced Gordon Ryan, who had withdrawn through illness days earlier, against Felipe Pena in a Who’s Number One main event; after thirty minutes the judges gave Pena the decision, leveling their record at 1–1.⁠[20]

On March 6, 2023, he appeared with Craig Jones and Nicky Ryan on episode #363 of the Lex FridmanLex FridmanLex Fridman is a Soviet-born, US-raised computer scientist and podcast host who works as an MIT research scientist on human-AI interaction and autonomous driving. His Lex Fridman Podcast is known for hours-long conversations with guests including heads of state and technology leaders.Open the full entry Podcast; topics included B-Team, the Danaher Death Squad, his match with Gordon Ryan, steroids, training and injuries, and advice for beginners.⁠[21]

In April 2023 he revealed that he had attended WWE tryouts twice, the latest lasting three or four days with a different promo filmed each day.⁠[22]

In June 2023 he won the UFC Fight Pass Invitational 4 absolute tournament, beating Roberto Jimenez, Vagner Rocha and Dan Manasoiu.⁠[23]

In September 2023 he competed as a member of the B-Team Bulls at the team event Quintet 4, which the team won by beating Team 10th PlanetPlanet LabsPlanet Labs (brand name Planet) is a San Francisco-based Earth observation satellite company founded in 2010 by three NASA scientists; it designs, builds and operates a constellation of imaging satellites and provides daily imagery data and analysis of Earth. The company is a public benefit corporation listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker PL.Open the full entry 2–0 in the final.⁠[24]

In December 2023 he beat ADCC absolute champion Yuri Simões 3 to −2 on points at UFC Fight Pass Invitational 5.⁠[25]

That month he was promoted to Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt by his three longtime training partners at B-Team, Craig Jones, Nicky Ryan and Ethan Crelinsten.⁠[5]

On February 9, 2024, he lost to Victor Hugo by unanimous decision in the main event of Who’s Number One 22.⁠[26]

In March 2024 he beat Roberto Jimenez on points in overtime at UFC Fight Pass Invitational 6.⁠[27]

In May 2024 he beat Mason Fowler 6–0 in the main event of UFC Fight Pass Invitational 7, a meeting of the promotion’s two absolute grand prix champions.⁠[28]

That month he announced he was giving up his invitation to the +99kg division of ADCC 2024 to compete instead at the first Craig Jones Invitational, held the same weekend, which offered $1 million to each division winner and paid every athlete $10,000 to compete.⁠[29]

In the over-80kg division of the first Craig Jones Invitational, he submitted Max Gimenis and Owen Livesey with rear-naked chokes, beat Adam Bradley and submitted Fellipe Andrew with a rear-naked choke in the final.⁠[30]

With the win, he and Kade Ruotolo each took home a $1 million prize.⁠[31]

In October 2024 he submitted Michael Pixley with a rear-naked choke in overtime in the main event of UFC Fight Pass Invitational 8.⁠[32]

On March 6, 2025, Victor Hugo submitted him with a rear-naked choke in the main event of UFC Fight Pass Invitational 10.⁠[33]

On April 18, 2025, he beat two-time ADCC champion Kaynan Duarte by unanimous decision in the main event of Who’s Number One 27, spending almost half the match in mount.⁠[34]

The Craig Jones Invitational 2 was held at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas on August 30–31, 2025, with him listed at −99kg on the B-Team roster for the team event; the team final took place on August 31.⁠[35]

In the team final, B-Team narrowly beat New Wave to win the $1 million prize; the duel was decided on the score of the last bout, his match with Luke Griffith, and he also submitted Brandon Reed with a rear-naked choke and drew with Michael Pixley and Kenta Iwamoto.⁠[36]

In March 2026 he was preparing for his first UFC BJJ appearance at UFC BJJ 6; at the time he trained at Simple Man Martial Arts in Austin and is a black belt under Craig Jones.⁠[37]

On March 12, 2026, at UFC BJJ 6 in Las Vegas, he fought Elder Cruz to a majority draw; Cruz had the better of the first two rounds before he rallied in the third and locked on a heel hook in the final seconds.⁠[38]

In July 2026 he was booked to challenge light heavyweight champion Mason Fowler at UFC BJJ 11 on September 24, at a lower weight than he usually competes at.⁠[39]

The match ended in a split draw, with Fowler keeping the title.⁠[40]

Instagram: Public account: https://instagram.com/nickyrod247/ (opens in a new window)⁠[21]

B-Team Jiu Jitsu: Official website: https://bteamjj.com/ (opens in a new window)⁠[21]