- Katie Hooven, a brown belt under Garry Tonon, shares her candid experience training at New Wave/Kingsway Jiu-Jitsu.
- She pushes back on the “Gordon Ryan show” narrative and emphasizes the gritty, team-first culture behind closed doors.
- John Danaher remains the driving force behind the room, despite recent surgeries and reduced mobility.
- Hooven’s story offers rare insight into the real structure, sacrifice, and culture behind the rebranded powerhouse team.
New Wave’s Katie Hooven: “It’s Not the Gordon Ryan Show”
When a gym houses names like Gordon Ryan and John Danaher, outsiders tend to picture a spotlight-driven, superstar-only dojo. But for Katie Hooven, a New Wave brown belt who trains daily under Garry Tonon at Kingsway Jiu-Jitsu, that assumption couldn’t be further from the truth.
“The room is not the Gordon Ryan show. He’s a part of it, but everybody there contributes to the room.”
– Katie Hooven
In a recent statement, Hooven details a culture that values hard work over hype—one where every belt, every round, and every voice matters. The reality behind Kingsway’s rebrand is less about aesthetics and more about identity: a team trying to evolve, rebuild, and stay brutally sharp in a post-DDS landscape.
Rebranding to Kingsway: A New Name, But Not a New Ethos
For Hooven, being part of the New Wave team is a journey of self-discovery and growth in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
Earlier this year, New Wave officially rebranded as Kingsway Jiu-Jitsu, distancing itself from the marketing-heavy shadow of its past and embracing a broader, more inclusive identity. Internally, the core team remained intact: Danaher still oversees daily instruction, Tonon still leads by example, and Gordon Ryan remains a part of the room when health allows.
But for athletes like Hooven, the rebrand meant something more: a signal that the team is bigger than any one name.
“There’s no music. There’s no timer. Sometimes we’re doing 15- or 30-minute rounds. It’s just us and the mats.”
– Katie Hooven
Every day, Katie Hooven embodies a commitment to excellence and perseverance that inspires her teammates.
Danaher Doesn’t Sit Back — Even When He Can’t Stand Up Straight
Though John Danaher is undergoing multiple surgeries and walks with notable difficulty, his impact in the room remains undiminished. According to Hooven, he teaches multiple sessions daily and still reviews positional concepts with the same intensity that made him legendary.
This grit isn’t lost on his students. Despite declining physical mobility, Danaher’s brain is still running at world-champion pace—and his instruction remains foundational.
“You see the toll it takes on his body. He moves slowly. But he never misses teaching. He’s always analyzing, always thinking.”
– Katie Hooven (paraphrased from context)
Danaher’s ongoing health battles don’t soften the room—they sharpen it. His presence commands respect, not because of what he can do on the mats, but because of what he refuses to stop doing despite it.
“We Train Like Savages, Then We Barbecue Together”: The Team Beyond the Grind
The New Wave/Kingsway Jiu-Jitsu training structure is unforgiving. No music, no timers—just long, high-intensity rounds that often push past the 30-minute mark. While some see that as a badge of honor, others simply can’t take it.
“We’ve had people show up, train a few days, and say, ‘It’s too hard. I’m not staying.’”
– Katie Hooven
But for Hooven and others who’ve lasted, that difficulty breeds something special. It filters for resilience. It builds a team where even the brown belts don’t just survive—they teach, lead, and shape the culture from within.
It’s not all pressure. Behind the intensity is a community. Hooven describes a team that trains hard but shows up for holidays, celebrates birthdays, and supports one another far beyond what the public sees.
“Especially when we first moved there… it was a small group, and we didn’t know anybody. So literally it was like, ‘Fourth of July at my house, come on over.’”
– Katie Hooven
This human side of Kingsway often goes unnoticed—but it’s what holds the room together when things get hard, when injuries sideline stars, or when the cameras turn elsewhere.
Katie Hooven’s leadership and dedication not only enhance her skills but also uplift those around her.
A Culture Built on Sweat, Not Status
As Kingsway Jiu-Jitsu settles into its new identity, stories like Hooven’s help peel back the curtain. It’s not just the Gordon show. It’s a training room built on structure, pain, mentorship, and camaraderie—held together by a coach who’s still showing up hurt, and a team willing to meet him there.
In a sport that celebrates highlight reels, Hooven’s view from the trenches reminds us: what makes a great team isn’t what happens on the stage—it’s what happens on the mat, after the rounds, and in the silence.
In sharing her experiences, Hooven highlights the true essence of training in a supportive environment.
