Another bout – another belt: Gordon Ryan won the 205 pound division belt at Fight to Win 30 last night in a very tightly contested match against Lucas Barbosa last night New Jersey. It was not the decisive result that our team always strives for. Mr Barbosa fought with an intelligent tactical strategy of snatching at two submissions along with some late attempts to pass. Neither the pass or the submissions were close. Mr Ryan looked to engage from bottom. He came close to nice reversal from bottom. The judges appeared to conclude that this was the only move of the match that came close to completion and so scored it in Mr Ryan's favor. Any time a match is that close there will always be controversy as to the result- usually the opinions are split according to team affiliation, personal like or dislike or one's general beliefs about the nature of the sport. There are several things that I believe all side will agree on. First, the two athletes are very evenly matched. Second, the match would have been much more satisfying if it was twenty minutes long rather than ten. I know Mr Ryan would be very enthusiastic about a rematch. Perhaps it could be done as a first defense of the belt with 20 minutes duration. Or if The organization is reluctant to opt for a longer match, at another venue without a belt. I felt that perhaps sacrificing just one of the many preliminary matches to create a longer main event would be a good idea. Well done to both athletes for a tight match. As always we are very proud of Mr Ryan's performance and his preparation. Here, Mr Ryan warms up for the event with Garry Tonon and tom deblass. Now the squad will prepare for adcc trials in California and fight to win 31 featuring eddie cummings vs the great Shamir Chantre next weekend in Philadelphia.
