Fury Grappling 3: Nick Rodriguez To Face Undefeated Heavyweight Steve Mowry

Fury Grappling 3 on December 30 continues to add to its intriguing line-up of professional MMA fighters taking on professional grapplers. At the event, current undefeated Bellator MMA heavyweight contender Steve Mowry will take on 2019 ADCC silver medalist Nick Rodriguez. The promotion announced the match-up on Instagram.

Mowry sports a perfect 10-0 professional MMA record that includes seven first-round finishes. Six of his wins overall have come by way of submission. He is currently the no. 6-ranked heavyweight in Bellator, and with his recent first-round submission win over veteran Rakim Cleveland, is likely just one or two victories away from a shot at the Bellator title.

In November, Mowry was awarded his BJJ black belt by Gilbert Burns.

A former member of the Danaher Death Squad and current member of The B-Team, Rodriguez has competed in just three matches this year. In March, Rodriguez impressed with a dominant performance over Yuri Simoes at Who’s Number One. In June, Rodriguez returned to action at the Third Coast Grappling absolute grand prix, defeating Pedro Marinho before losing a decision to Victor Hugo.

As the professional grappler, Rodriguez will be a favorite over Mowry. However, at 6’8″ and a Gilbert Burns black belt, Mowry could pose some problems for Rodriguez. And with Mowry’s background in MMA, he’s likely to have strong takedown defense, perhaps negating Rodriguez’s best weapons.

How to watch: Fury Grappling 3 takes place on Thursday, December 30 and will air live on UFC Fightpass (subscription required).

Ben Coate

Ben has been involved with grappling, whether through wrestling or Brazilian jiu-jitsu, essentially his entire life. After wrestling throughout his childhood, Ben found Brazilian jiu-jitsu as a young adult and quickly fell in love. He has been training for over ten years and currently holds the rank of brown belt, and remains involved in both the MMA and BJJ scene. Ben has been writing about combat sports since 2017. He has interviewed and profiled some of MMA's biggest stars, including multiple UFC champions.

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