Nick Rodriguez | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Born | Nicholas Pete Rodriguez August 30, 1996 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Other names | Nicky Rod The Black Belt Slayer | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Residence | Austin, Texas, U.S. | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 6 ft 3 in (191 cm) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight | 220 lb (100 kg; 15 st 10 lb) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Team | B Team Jiu-Jitsu | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Rank | Black belt in BJJ[a][1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Wrestling | NCAA Division III wrestling | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Notable relatives | Jay Rodriguez (brother) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Nicholas "Nick" Rodriguez, commonly known as Nicky Rod (born August 30, 1996)[2] is an American professional submission grappler and Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) athlete.[a]
A former amateur wrestler, Rodriguez won in 2018 the ADCC West Coast Trials to qualify for the 2019 ADCC Submission Fighting World Championships, where he won silver, while still a BJJ blue belt.[3] He won silver again at the 2022 ADCC World.[4]
Nicholas Pete Rodriguez was born on 30 August 1996 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,[5] raised in Clayton, New Jersey, and attended Clayton High School.[6]
Rodriguez began wrestling in sixth grade.[7] He qualified for the NJSIAA championships as a senior but did not place.[8]
After high school, Rodriguez attended Ferrum College, that has an NCAA Division III wrestling program. In between his last match as a high school wrestler and his first match as a collegiate wrestler, he gained 50 pounds, going from 170 to 220 pounds. Rodriguez attended college for one year, during which he placed fourth at the East Regionals and had a record of 23 wins and 4 losses.[9] He decided to pursue modeling career with Wilhelmina Models.[10]
Rodriguez returned to wrestling on October 5, 2019, when he faced that year's USA Wrestling World Team Member Pat Downey in a super-fight under freestyle rules at Who's Number One.[11] He lost the match by technical fall.[12]
In 2018, Rodriguez was persuaded by a friend to attend his first jiu-jitsu class to stay fit. After two weeks of training, he attended his first submission wrestling competition[7] and went on to win the advanced 230 pounds and absolute brackets.[13][14] A few months later, he moved to Renzo Gracie Academy with coach John Danaher, who awarded him his blue belt later on.
After a failed attempt to qualify for the ADCCs, Rodriguez competed at the IBJJF World Championship in the blue belt division. He defeated all three of his opponents to win the championship.[15]
As a blue belt, Rodriguez qualified for the 2019 ADCC World Championships after winning the North American trials.[16] He defeated three notable jiu-jitsu black belts in Mahamed Aly, Orlando Sanchez, and Cyborg Abreu to make it to the finals,[17] where he lost to black belt IBJJF World Champion Kaynan Duarte on points, earning him 2nd place in the tournament.[18] He was promoted to purple belt on the ADCC podium by his coach Jay Regalbuto.[3] Rodriguez became known by the nickname "Black Belt Slayer".[19][20]
He competed against Duarte in a rematch at Fight 2 Win, which he lost.[21] He also competed at the BJJ Fanatics Grand Prix.[22]
After his bronze medal finish at the KASAI Pro 7,[23] Rodriguez was scheduled to face 2019 US World Team Member Pat Downey at Third Coast Grappling IV in a special ruleset match on March 14.[24] However, the event was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[25]
He then competed at Third Coast Grappling: Kumite IV on July 11. He was eliminated in the first round.[26]
In December, 2020, Rodriguez moved to Puerto Rico with the rest of his teammates to continue training under John Danaher.[27]
Rodriguez competed against Yuri Simões in the co-main event of Who's Number One on March 26, 2021.[28] Rodriguez won the match by decision.[29] He was then invited to compete in an absolute grand prix at Third Coast Grappling 6 on April 3, 2021.[30] Rodriguez defeated Pedro Marinho by decision in the opening round before losing a decision to Victor Hugo in the semi-final.[31]
In July, news broke that the Danaher Death Squad were splitting up.[32] Rodriguez elected to continue training with Craig Jones, Ethan Crelinsten, and Nicky Ryan.[33] The four grapplers opened up a new gym in Austin, Texas under the name B-Team Jiu-Jitsu in August, 2021.[34] Shortly afterward, Rodriguez was invited to compete at the 2022 ADCC World Championship.[35]
On December 30, 2021, Rodriguez competed against UFC veteran Steve Mowry at Fury Pro Grappling 3 and submitted him with a rear-naked choke at 5:30.[36]
Rodriguez faced Elder Cruz at Who's Number One: Jones v Marinho on January 21, 2022, and lost the match by split decision.[37] Shortly after this, Rodriguez was promoted to brown belt in BJJ.[38] Rodriguez competed in the over 99kg division of ADCC 2022, defeating Damon Ramos on points and submitting John Hansen with a rear-naked choke on the first day. On the second day he defeated Felipe Pena on points in the semi-final, but was submitted by Gordon Ryan in the final and came away with a silver medal.[39]
He was then invited to compete at EBI 20: The Absolutes on October 23, 2021.[40] Rodriguez won the tournament by defeating Ezeqiual Zurita, Luke Griffith, Austin Baker, and Kyle Boehm in one night.[41] On December 15, 2022, Rodriguez was scheduled to compete in another absolute tournament at UFC Fight Pass Invitational 3.[42] However, Vinny Magalhães withdrew from the main event match against Gordon Ryan and Rodriguez agreed to step in to replace him instead.[43] Neither man could finish the fight in regulation time and the match went to EBI overtime, where Gordon Ryan won by fastest escape time.[44] Ryan would accuse Rodriguez of 'greasing' during their match. Rodriguez denied that accusation on an episode Mark Bell's Power Project Podcast in February 2023.[45]
Rodriguez stepped in on two days' notice to replace Gordon Ryan against Felipe Pena in the main event of Who's Number One on February 25, 2023.[46] He lost the match by unanimous decision.[47] Rodriguez was then invited to compete in an openweight tournament at UFC Fight Pass Invitational 4 on June 29, 2023.[48] He defeated Roberto Jimenez, Vagner Rocha, and Dan Manasoiu to win the tournament.[49]
Rodriguez then competed at Quintet 4 on September 10, 2023 as part of The B-Team Bulls.[50] Rodriguez drew both of his matches but his team won the tournament.[51] Rodriguez was scheduled to compete against 3 competitors: Jake Lowry, Cody Gamble, and Zack Humbertson, in a series of matches at Sprawl in the Burgh 2 on October 20, 2023.[52] He won all three. Rodriguez then competed against Yuri Simões at UFC Fight Pass Invitational 5 on December 10, 2023.[53] He won the match on points.[54]
Rodriguez competed against Victor Hugo in the main event of Who's Number One 22 on February 9, 2024.[55] He lost the match by decision.[56]
Rodriguez competed against Roberto Jimenez in the co-main event of UFC Fight Pass Invitational 6 on March 3, 2024.[57] He won the match on points.[58]
Rodriguez is scheduled to compete against Mason Fowler in the main event of UFC Fight Pass Invitational 7 on May 15, 2024.[59]
On April 24, 2023, Rodriguez revealed that he had attended a WWE tryout and had been accepted along with several other athletes.[60]
Rodriguez's younger brother Jacob, known as Jay or J-rod, is a B Team jiu jitsu competitor.[61] A former two-time state and regional champion in wrestling, he's the winner of the 2022 ADCC North American West Coast Trials in the -88kg division.[62][63]
Main Achievements[3]
Main Achievements (Colored Belts)[3]
42 Matches, 37 Wins (17 Submissions), 7 Losses (1 Submission), 2 Draws | ||||||||
Result | Rec. | Opponent | Method | Event | Division | Type | Year | Location |
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2021 3CG Grand Prix DNP at +99 kg | ||||||||
Loss | 37–7–2 | Victor Hugo | Referee Decision | 2021 Third Coast Grappling VI Grand Prix | +99 kg | Nogi | April 4, 2021 | Houston, TX |
Win | 37–6–2 | Pedro Marinho | Referee Decision | |||||
Win | 36–6–2 | Yuri Simões | Referee Decision | 2021 Who's Number One | +99 kg | Nogi | March 26, 2021 | Austin, TX |
Loss | 35–6–2 | Roberto Jimenez | Referee Decision | 2020 Third Coast Grappling: Kumite IV | +99 kg | Nogi | July 11, 2020 | Houston, TX |
2020 KASAI Pro 7 at +99 kg | ||||||||
Win | 35–5–2 | Kyle Boehm | Points (5–0) | 2020 KASAI Pro 7 | +99 kg | Nogi | February 1, 2020 | Dallas, TX |
Win | 34–5–2 | Bruno Bastos | Submission (heel hook) | |||||
Draw | 33–5–2 | Cyborg Abreu | Draw | |||||
Draw | 33–5–1 | Vinny Magalhães | Draw | |||||
Loss | 33–5 | Victor Hugo | Referee Decision | Fight 2 Win 135 | +99 kg | Nogi | January 18, 2020 | California, CA |
Win | 33–4 | Luke Rockhold | Referee Decision | Polaris 12 | 104.3 kg | Nogi | November 30, 2019 | Newport, WA |
2019 BJJ Fanatics Grand Prix at +99 kg | ||||||||
Loss | 32–4 | Lucas Barbosa | Overtime (riding time) | 2019 BJJ Fanatics Submission Only Grand Prix | +99 kg | Nogi | November 15, 2019 | Beverly, MA |
Win | 32–3 | Victor Silverio | Overtime (rear–naked choke) | |||||
Loss | 31–3 | Kaynan Duarte | Submission (heel hook) | Fight 2 Win 128 | +99 kg | Nogi | October 19, 2019 | Philadelphia, PA |
2019 ADCC World Championship at +99 kg | ||||||||
Loss | 31–2 | Kaynan Duarte | Points (0–3) | 2019 ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championships | +99 kg | Nogi | September 29, 2019 | Anaheim, CA |
Win | 31–1 | Cyborg Abreu | Referee Decision | |||||
Win | 30–1 | Orlando Sanchez | Referee Decision | |||||
Win | 29–1 | Mahamed Aly | Referee Decision | |||||
Win | 28–1 | Jason Reyes | Points (15–0) | 2019 JitzKing Tampa | +99 kg | Nogi | July 6, 2019 | Tampa, FL |
Win | 27–1 | Quentin Rosenzweig | Submission (rear–naked choke) | Sub Stars: Nicky Rod Challenge | Absolute | Nogi | June 19, 2019 | Miami, FL |
Win | 26–1 | Ashley Amos | Submission (rear–naked choke) | Polaris 10 | +105 kg | Nogi | May 25, 2019 | Poole, UK |
Win | 25–1 | Walker Madden | Referee Decision | Fight 2 Win 108 | 240 lbs | Nogi | April 12, 2019 | Philadelphia, PA |
Win | 24–1 | Tyler King | Referee Decision | Fight 2 Win 107 | 240 lbs | Nogi | April 5, 2019 | Tyngsborough, MA |
2019 High Rollerz Open: Pittsburgh at Absolute | ||||||||
Win | 23–1 | Caleb Crump | Submission | High Rollerz Open: Pittsburgh | Absolute | Nogi (blue) | March 30, 2019 | Cheswick, PA |
Win | 22–1 | Jeric Fry | Submission | |||||
Win | 21–1 | Brandon Moran | Disqualification | |||||
Win | 20–1 | Joshua Lorton | Submission | |||||
2019 ADCC North American Trials at +99 kg | ||||||||
Win | 19–1 | John Hansen | Submission (rear–naked choke) | 2019 ADCC North American Trials | +99 kg | Nogi | February 9, 2019 | Burbank, CA |
Win | 18–1 | Casey Hellenberg | Points (6–0) | |||||
Win | 17–1 | James Friedrich | Submission | |||||
Win | 16–1 | Fernando Iraheta | Submission (kimura) | |||||
Win | 15–1 | Michael Egley | Points (2–0) | |||||
2018 IBJJF World Nogi Championships at +99 kg | ||||||||
Win | 14–1 | Jureall Simmons | Submission (kimura) | 2018 World IBJJF Jiu-Jitsu No-Gi Championship | +97 kg | Nogi (blue) | December 14, 2018 | Anaheim, CA |
Win | 13–1 | Erick Hastings | Submission (armbar) | |||||
Win | 12–1 | William Matheus | Submission (arm–triangle choke) | |||||
2018 ADCC North American Trials at +99 kg | ||||||||
Win | 11–1 | Andrew Tevay | Points (2–0) | 2018 ADCC North American Trials | +99 kg | Nogi | November 3, 2018 | Bayville, NJ |
Loss | 10–1 | Hudson Taylor | Points (0–5) | |||||
Win | 10–0 | Billy Brown | Submission (rear–naked choke) | |||||
Win | 9–0 | Dylan Rankin | Submission (kimura) | |||||
Win | 8–0 | Dylan Rankin | Submission (kimura) | 2018 RISE Submission Invitational 5 | 215 lbs | Nogi | September 29, 2018 | Long Island, NY |
2018 Grappling Industries: Wildwook at +99 kg & Absolute | ||||||||
Win | 7–0 | Joe Baik | Points (12–0) | Grappling Industries: Wildwood | Absolute | Nogi | June 2, 2018 | Wildwood, NJ |
Win | 6–0 | Steven Tongur | Points (9–0) | |||||
Win | 5–0 | Gal Telem Goudsmit | Submission | |||||
Win | 4–0 | Nick Van Wattingen | Submission | +99 kg | ||||
Win | 3–0 | Peter Mattoccia | Points (16–0) | |||||
Win | 2–0 | Chris Baldino | Submission | |||||
Win | 1–0 | Eric Silverman | Points (2–0) |