Reinier de Ridder stoked about training with John Danaher and Gordon Ryan

Current ONE middleweight world champion Reinier de Ridder is known as one of the best grapplers competing in MMA today.

Of the 16 professional wins on his record, 11 have come by way of submission. That includes some huge victories that saw him become an undefeated two-weight world champion before losing his light heavyweight title to Anatoly Malykhin in December last year.

For his return to competition after tasting defeat for the first time in his career, de Ridder will put his grappling skills to the test against one of the best no-gi grapplers on the planet.

Tye Ruotolo is one of the best specialists competing in submission grappling right now. Both he and his brother Kade have hinted at competing against de Ridder for some time.

In order to prepare himself for this contest, ‘The Dutch Knight’ has been spending time on one of the best mats in the world for grappling. John Danaher is the most acclaimed jiu-jitsu coach in the world, with students like Gordon Ryan, Craig Jones and Garry Tonon regularly sharing the mats under his watch.

In an interview with The MMA Superfan, Reinier de Ridder reflected on his experience training with some of the best grapplers on the planet:

“Man, it’s the [craziest] and most humbling experience ever. For me, the guys I’ve always looked up to in the grappling world are them, especially John [Danaher] and Gordon [Ryan]. [Giancarlo] Bodoni, there’s a list of names there, it doesn’t end.”

Watch the full interview below:

De Ridder will face Tye Ruotolo at ONE Fight Night 10 on May 5. The entire event will air live and for free via Prime Video for North American viewers.