Who is Nicky Rod, the wrestler who became a grappling star and faces Nata Tenca at UFC BJJ 13
The 30-year-old American started Jiu-Jitsu in 2018, took ADCC silver as a blue belt, won $1 million at the Craig Jones Invitational and went to a draw in the last UFC BJJ title match
Nick “Nicky Rod” Rodriguez is the opponent of Nata Tenca at UFC BJJ 13, on October 29 in Las Vegas. At 30, the American is one of the best-known names in grappling. He reached the ADCC final with a little more than one year of training, won a $1 million prize and, in September, came one judges’ decision away from the UFC BJJ light heavyweight title.
From wrestling to the ADCC final in 15 months
Nicholas Pete Rodriguez was born in August 1996 in Clayton, New Jersey. He started wrestling at 12, competed for his local high school and spent one year at Ferrum College in Virginia. Jiu-Jitsu only came into his life in June 2018, at a gym in South Jersey, with coach Jay Regalbuto. A few weeks later he was already competing. In that same year, he got his blue belt on the podium of the ADCC trials and won the IBJJF No-Gi World Championship at blue belt.
In 2019, already training with John Danaher’s group in New York, he won the West Coast trials and went to the ADCC World Championship as a blue belt. He beat Roberto “Cyborg” Abreu in the semifinal and only lost to Kaynan Duarte in the final of the over-99 kg division. His nickname “Black Belt Slayer” comes from that time.
B-Team, another silver and the $1 million prize
In 2021, after Danaher’s team split, Rodriguez helped found B-Team in Austin, Texas, with Craig Jones, Nicky Ryan and Ethan Crelinsten. At ADCC 2022, he reached the final again. He beat Felipe Pena in the semifinal and lost the final to Gordon Ryan. He got his black belt in December 2023 from Craig Jones.
The biggest result of his career came in August 2024. At the first Craig Jones Invitational, he won the over-80 kg bracket and took home the $1 million prize, with every match ending by rear-naked choke: Max Gimenis, Owen Livesey, Adam Bradley and, in the final, Fellipe Andrew.
Wins and a loss before UFC BJJ
At the UFC’s grappling events, he beat Michael Pixley in October 2024 and was submitted by Brazil’s Victor Hugo in March 2025. One month later, in Austin, he beat Kaynan Duarte by judges’ decision.
Unbeaten in UFC BJJ, but with only one win
In UFC BJJ, Rodriguez has not lost yet, but he has only one win in three matches. In March, at UFC BJJ 6, he and Elder Cruz went to a draw. In June, at UFC BJJ 9, he made his light heavyweight debut and submitted Brazil’s Joao Nicolite in the first round. In September, at UFC BJJ 11, he challenged champion Mason Fowler, and the match ended in a split draw, which kept the belt with Fowler.
Nicolite is also on the UFC BJJ 13 card, and so is Liam Crelinsten, the brother of Ethan, Rodriguez’s teammate at B-Team. Days before UFC BJJ 12, the organization showed Ethan training with Nicky Rod for the title match he lost to Renato Canuto.
“A natural athlete”
Off the mat, Rodriguez makes a point of presenting himself as a natural athlete. In a post he keeps pinned on his profile, he wrote: “As a natural athlete in the world’s dirtiest sport I feel compelled to tell the younger generation to stay clean & chase technical superiority.”
What comes next
Against Tenca, he faces a new black belt who says he has followed him from the start. “It’s a huge honor to face Nick, someone I’ve watched compete since I started training Jiu Jitsu in 2019. Back then, he was already competing in ADCC finals,” the Brazilian wrote when he announced the match. UFC BJJ 13 streams on UFC Fight Pass on Thursday, October 29.
