Last night, the UFC Fight Pass Invitational 3 took place, and to say it was epic would be an understatement. Overall, there was a great show of grappling which ended the year nicely as far as Jiu Jitsu is concerned.
In the Absolute Tournament, the eventual winner was Mason Fowler who defeated New Wave’s Luke Griffith in the final by having a faster escape time (as per EBI rules). On his way to the final, Fowler submitted Patrick Gaudio with a beautiful triangle from rubber guard, whilst Griffith successfully hit a rear naked choke on his teammate Oliver Taza in the second round.
In fact, the Absolute bracket had plenty of regulation time submissions which would have pleased fans who have previously been critical of EBI rules which some claim causes stalling to get to the overtime rounds.
As for the superfights, Bia Mesquita beat Miesha Tate in overtime whilst Dan Manasoiu defeated Ricardo Evangelista after the referee stopped the match. However, in true Gordon Ryan fashion, it was The King who took the headlines – albeit for reasons he may not have liked before the event.
In his superfight against ex-teammate Nicky Rodriguez, Gordon Ryan would go on to win by having a faster escape time. However, during the 20 minute bout, Ryan couldn’t submit Rodriguez. This was significantly different from their ADCC fight where Ryan heel hooked Rodriguez. During one leg lock exchange, Rodriguez even put a toe hold on Ryan, which looked painful, and Ryan had to escape the position.
Nonetheless, it was still a successful night for Ryan who achieved his 61st consecutive win in grappling. He would eventually win in overtime after escaping the back quicker. Previously, he did ‘tap’ the knee of Rodriguez which caused some confusion. In fairness to Ryan, the timer had passed and he was legitimately telling the referee who was unaware.
Overall, this made for an exciting night and improved the reputation of both Gordon Ryan and Nicky Rogriguez in the process. On a similar note, it also proved successful for John Danaher’s New Wave gym, with Gordon Ryan and Dan Manasoiu winning their matches, whilst Luke Griffiths got to the Absolute final and Oliver Taza scored a heel hook on Richie Martinez.
Absolute Tournament ($25,000 prize money)
First Round
Patrick Gaudio beats Haisam Rida (Triangle)
Mason Fowler beats Pat Shahgholi (Armbar)
Luke Griffith beats Andy Varela (Overtime Read naked choke)
Oliver Taza beats Richie Martinez (Heel Hook)
Second Round
Mason Fowler beats Patrick Gaudio (Triangle)
Luke Griffith beats Oliver Taza (Rear naked choke)
Final
Mason Fowler beats Luke Griffith (Faster Overtime escape time)
Superfight matches
Women’s Featherweight
Bia Mesquita beats Miesha Tate (Overtime Armbar)
Men’s Heavyweight
Dan Manasoiu beats Ricardo Evangelista (Referee Stoppage)
Main Event
Gordon Ryan beats Nick Rodriguez (Faster overtime escape time)
