The UFC has grand plans to expand their business and “take over jiu-jitsu like they have MMA,” with Mikey Musumeci being the “first of many” exclusively signed grapplers.
The promotion has been putting up stacked Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) cards, but outside these UFC Fight Pass Invitational events, not much has been officially revealed on their other expansion plans. The professional BJJ scene is still relatively small though, and word goes around quickly in those circles.
While talking about a completely different topic, ADCC and CJI champion Kade Ruotolo may have unintentionally leaked the UFC’s upcoming plans for jiu-jitsu. According to the BJJ star, the UFC’s expansion strategy could also unsurprisingly include their same old formula.
“Right now, I think (Gordon Ryan is) doing something with Mikey Musumeci. (They’re) possibly doing some sort of ‘Ultimate Fighter’ type thing for jiu-jitsu, I believe,” Ruotolo told MMA Fighting, while discussing Ryan’s PED use.
Ruotolo also implied that the two BJJ stars would just be the reality show coaches, with the often inactive Ryan unable to compete.
“(Gordon Ryan) can’t fight because of health issues. At the end of the day, he can never fight because of health issues,” Ruotolo said.
Musumeci and Ryan have repeatedly traded barbs recently, mainly stemming from their difference in philosophies surrounding performance enhancing drugs in jiu-jitsu. While the appeal of another reality show in 2025 is debatable, it would make sense that the UFC would want to use these big names and their public rivalry to promote their BJJ expansion.
The TUF format seems extremely dated at this point, but to their credit, tournaments do fit better in jiu-jitsu and it could still be interesting if they were able to actually sign the best grapplers in the world for it.
