Spent the evening taking in The UFC Fight Pass Invitational 3, a grappling event that was initially going to showcase the must-happen rematch between Gordon Ryan and Vinny Magalhães. This rematch did not happen due to a medical issue for Vinny. So we got a new main event with Ryan rematching his ADCC victory against former teammate Nicky Rodriguez.
As for the event overall, I very much enjoyed the performance of Mason Fowler in the eight-person tournament. I tend to think that whenever you see a professional grappler win off their back, you've got to take special notice. The fact that Fowler was able to secure submissions from the guard in his first two matches is the kind of thing worth celebrating. Also interesting that Fowler faced off against two very different competitors in the long and lanky Haisam Rida and the short and thick Pat Shahgholi - and finished both.
Also impressed by the incomparable Beatriz Mesquita. Michael Chiesa referred to her match against Meisha Tate as "tough," which is not exactly how I would describe the contest. But the match showcased essentially what you'd expect from a matchup between one of the world's best grapplers and one of the world's grittiest MMA fighters.
With regard to the main event, it's notable that "The Toehold" that NickyRod attacked Gordon with late in the match was immediately referred to as a moral victory by the commentary team. There are some great lessons in the way that Ryan dealt with Rodriguez in the OT, realizing that this was one of those "position before submission" moments and leveraging his superior technical skill to manage his opponent's athletic advantage.
