5-time ADCC champion Gordon Ryan is back. He recently shared a post about his return to training after facing a major medical setback that almost ended his grappling career. However, ‘The King’ prevailed and shared pictures of him training with legendary Japanese judoka, Satoshi Ishii.

Satoshi Ishii is not your average mixed martial artist. He is a highly decorated athlete who won the Gold Medal in Judo in the 100 kg category at the 2008 Olympics held in Beijing. Ishii also boasts an MMA record of 25 wins and 12 losses. Moreover, he fought the likes of Jiri Prochazka and MMA legend Quinton Jackson. Recently, he found himself on the mat with Gordon Ryan.

Gordon Ryan trains with Japanese legend

‘The King’ shared a few pictures from his training session with Satoshi Ishii on Instagram recently. He seemed to be in good spirits and also shared a message for his fans and followers on social media. Ryan said, “Standing rounds with Olympic and all Japan heavyweight gold medalist and all-time judo great [Satoshi Ishii].”

Gordon Ryan was happy to have gotten the opportunity to train with a highly decorated Olympic athlete. He also expressed his happiness with the fact that he has someone like Ishii in his team, whose hard work and loyalty are second to none. Ryan stated that such athletes are hard to find in today’s world.

He further added, “It is such a pleasure to have a loyal and hard-working person on the team. They’re hard to come by these days.” Besides, it is a welcome sight to see one of the best BJJ athletes back in his prime state after what he had to endure months ago. Let us take a look at what happened to Gordon Ryan that almost ended his grappling career.

‘The King’ suffered from a debilitating illness

Not too long ago, Gordon Ryan shared a picture on Instagram that left fans worried about his well-being. The 5-time ADCC champion suffered from streptococcal pharyngitis, which left him unrecognizable to some extent. Moreover, the buffed Ryan lost all his gains because of his illness.

Furthermore, Ryan mentioned that he had lost almost 20 lbs in a week because of his strep throat. His condition deteriorated over time and he noted on social media that he had been taking antibiotics for an extended period, which had a severe impact on his health. However, now, things seem to have a right turn as he finds himself training once again.

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‘The King’ would seek to make an impactful return when comes back to active competition. He has achieved a lot of accolades at just 28 years old and has a lot more to offer to the world of jiu-jitsu. We will have to wait and see how Ryan’s return pans out in the days and months to come.

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