Marcelo Garcia – “If someone has used [steroids] once, he’s already contaminated”

Marcelo Garcia, a legendary Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu competitor, will come of retirement in January 2025 to compete in ONE Championship’s submission grappling competition.

Regarded by many as the single greatest BJJ athlete in history, the 41-year-old’s return to competition after a bout with stomach Cancer.

In speaking with MMA Fighting ahead of his return, Garcia addressed a hot topic in the sport of submission grappling: steroid use. At the center of the focus is arguably the most talented and decorated no-gi competitor, Gordon Ryan.

“He’s at the top right now, but it’s hard to say he’s the greatest of all-time,” Garcia told MMA Fighting. “I don’t want to be a hypocrite here. I know I’ve done a lot. I’ve done a lot being the size I am, 170 pounds, and facing the best in my weight class and the absolute, guys that were bigger than me, and imagining that many people were using steroids. And I imagine many of this new generation out there are using steroids.”

Ryan is a seven-time ADCC Submission wrestling world champion, three-time IBJJF No-Gi World champion and a four-time Eddie Bravo Invitational champion.

“If he continues to compete and no one beats him, and continues to have the performances he’s putting on, you can’t say [he’s not the GOAT],” Garcia said. “And he’s young, too, of course he can be that guy. But I can say all I’ve done was steroid-free. I don’t know that’s the case with Gordon [laughs]. To me, that’s a decisive point, if someone needed extra help or not. Like people say, ‘that person didn’t come alone’ [to compete]. I was alone every single time, only with my training and my technique. And when people say, ‘Oh, but everybody uses it.’ Not to me. That excuse doesn’t make sense to me.

“And that’s one of the reasons why I’m coming back to fighting because I want to prove you don’t need that. And how do we prove that? To me, if someone has used [steroids] once, he’s already contaminated. You’ve cheated the game. I have to defend that because that’s how it always was for me. I wish the young ones — my children, if one day they decide to compete and be successful, I don’t want them to depend on that.”

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