A couple days before Gordon Ryan and Keenan Cornelius were set to clash in a no time limit, submission only match in New York, I received a text asking if I thought the stage presented by Grappling Industries might be too small to watch these two giants compete.

After all, we're not just talking about two ordinary competitors, we're talking about two certifiable superstars. Two perfect narratives (a budding young superstar who's racked up an impressive array of wins in a relatively short amount of time taking on another prodigy who seems like he's just hitting the stride of his already-incredible BJJ career) that seemed ripe for spectator interest.

Two athletes who are so revered by the community that they could pull and Oprah and just go by their first names (though, gents, if you read this and actually do that, I expect residuals).

The concern here, of course, being: would two of the sport's most recognizable athletes be too super for a super match that was likely going to be streamed via Facebook live?

My answer is the same now (having seen the match) as it was when I texted back to my friend.

"No," I responded, "it's the perfect stage. No show with production and time constraints is going to give us the finality of a no time limit, submission only match." Not only does it give grappling enthusiasts the type of match that has a definitive finish, but it's also a gesture that's gift wrapped to them. A free, guerrilla-style production of a match everyone wants to see.

And yet, yesterday afternoon, Keenan and Gordon gave us a show that was every bit as captivating as it was fun to watch (yes, I hear you haters, and will address you individually in just a moment).

The match has stayed with me so much, I felt the need to put several of my initial thoughts and reactions in written form.

Here are a few of the takeaways I had from yesterday's epic encounter: