I am trying constantly to develop my game, selecting techniques that really work for me and practicing them in a competition setting.
When I look at techniques that I really want to use, I look for two kinds of factors. i) how much they put me at risk i.e. if I fail to carry out a technique, what will this lead to? will I get submitted myself if I fail? will I get mounted?
The reasons why I love the back grab from north south is because it is effective, it gives me plenty of choices and a chance to get another 4 points in a match. If I fail, I still have a decent chance securing the mount or at least the cross body.
ii) the second thing is of course how effective the technique is. Of course if you practice a single technique over and over, you will get better, but I prefer to have a set of techniques for every position which I are already well-practiced by me. You don't want to try a new technique in competition.
There are techniques which are more effective for you. I personally love going for the kimura, especially from the guard but also from cross body or north south. Very often I can recover my position from the kimura and there is very little I lose.
Now one technique that I recently been thinking about however is the wristlock from the guard. The closed guard is kind of a safe place to be if you are on the bottom as long as you can keep your opponent off balance and from passing your guard. There are some moves that really expose you while others are really safe.
Moves that I consider relatively safe and want to develop are things like the basic cross choke. You don't open your guard and if you can secure the under arm hold or a brabo choke, you are safe if your opponent powers out because you are still in guard and you start over trying something else.
To add to this one, I am thinking about the wristlock. Of course I think it takes a lot of practice but it is worth exploring. The opponent very often does not expect it and in many schools the wristlocks are very often overlooked.
At the same time wristlocks in the adult divisions are permitted from white belt level unlike leg locks for example so you can start developing wrist locks from your closed guard right from the beginning.
Wednesday, 26 May 2010
Tuesday, 25 May 2010
Scissor Sweep
The scissor sweep is probably the first sweep from the guard that every beginner learns when he first comes to a bjj academy.
I have to say I love this move because it is so effective against most beginners and sometimes intermediate level guys.
Often of course it does not work perfectly since the guys often have a very good base and understand this move very well. Opponents that are heavy are of course good at using the opportunity to pass the guard.
The scissor sweep I understand is always criticized for being one of these moves that only works on beginners, but I think it is always worth exploring your opponents base and taking advantage when he is off balance to try to go for a submission like the triangle from there.
My personal favourite is kind of a modified scissor sweep where you try to push away your opponent's leg which he uses to stabilize himself. Alternatively you can underhook your own leg under his and take advantage to take him off balance to the other side. I have found that this one does not always work however.
If you have a great defensive guard then I think you should always be able to recover your guard if the move does not work and then go for something else.
The hip bump sweep and the flower are two alternative sweeps which I try to use but these are harder to implement in my personal experience. The hip bump depends on how tied up you are and you really need to find the timing. In a no-gi situation I have had better success with the hip bump becuase your opponent cannot control you as much and make sure your back remains on the ground.
Judo and jiu jitsu are similar I think in one thing. Both standing and on the ground, your opponent will proceed to try to defend against any technique you will do and therefore it is a combination of techniques and how well you can do it that is going to make the difference.
The scissor sweep on its own may not work but if this is your position from which you regularly work from, then you will practice regularly a combination of moves which will give you a game that will allow you to be prepared from any situation.
If you take the scissor sweep, all too often your opponent will try to defend by stabilizing his base and then trying to pass your guard. Consider how you would counter this situation and practice it over and over again.
One option could be to stay in control and proceed to pull your opponent into a loop choke as you can see below:
Too many times you see the loop choke being performed with rolling but this is a more simple variation which is more practical I think and has been performed successfully at a higher level. The key I understand is not to make the grip too deep as this will not allow you to gain the appropriate position to make the hold tight enough to submit your opponent.
I have to say I love this move because it is so effective against most beginners and sometimes intermediate level guys.
Often of course it does not work perfectly since the guys often have a very good base and understand this move very well. Opponents that are heavy are of course good at using the opportunity to pass the guard.
The scissor sweep I understand is always criticized for being one of these moves that only works on beginners, but I think it is always worth exploring your opponents base and taking advantage when he is off balance to try to go for a submission like the triangle from there.
My personal favourite is kind of a modified scissor sweep where you try to push away your opponent's leg which he uses to stabilize himself. Alternatively you can underhook your own leg under his and take advantage to take him off balance to the other side. I have found that this one does not always work however.
If you have a great defensive guard then I think you should always be able to recover your guard if the move does not work and then go for something else.
The hip bump sweep and the flower are two alternative sweeps which I try to use but these are harder to implement in my personal experience. The hip bump depends on how tied up you are and you really need to find the timing. In a no-gi situation I have had better success with the hip bump becuase your opponent cannot control you as much and make sure your back remains on the ground.
So go for the scissor sweep first. If it does not work and your opponent keeps his base, look for the submission. Check out the armbar here http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=9042427621842584977#
If that fails recover back to closed guard and try something else.
Judo and jiu jitsu are similar I think in one thing. Both standing and on the ground, your opponent will proceed to try to defend against any technique you will do and therefore it is a combination of techniques and how well you can do it that is going to make the difference.
The scissor sweep on its own may not work but if this is your position from which you regularly work from, then you will practice regularly a combination of moves which will give you a game that will allow you to be prepared from any situation.
If you take the scissor sweep, all too often your opponent will try to defend by stabilizing his base and then trying to pass your guard. Consider how you would counter this situation and practice it over and over again.
One option could be to stay in control and proceed to pull your opponent into a loop choke as you can see below:
Too many times you see the loop choke being performed with rolling but this is a more simple variation which is more practical I think and has been performed successfully at a higher level. The key I understand is not to make the grip too deep as this will not allow you to gain the appropriate position to make the hold tight enough to submit your opponent.
Taking the Back
Reaching the back mount is a really important part of my game. Position before submission is my moto as well and if you can pass the guard and then achieve back mount that really puts you in the lead for points.
The back mount for me is also a great position to be in terms of attack vs defense. You can continue looking for the submission and rest while your opponent is a bit demoralized. When you lose the position, very often you still achieve mount, which is a great place to be for a down-side scenario.
There are many ways of achieving back mount from a whole variety of positions: from cross body, guard, half guard... to name a few.
Below is a video that I have found on youtube with the new generation of Gracies demonstrating another variation of achieving back mount from the closed guard.
(well, it seems to me if you can't secure the arm at the last moment, this one maybe quite difficult to accomplish but a Gracie from the academy replied to my post on youtube that it can be done effectively so I will just have to practice it more and see) If I am not mistaken, Rener Gracie is demonstrating the technique in this video.
Taking the back is an important element of the positional game and in my opinion it is also worth thinking about how you can transition to the back from the half guard, perhaps one of the most common positions which you typically end up in, trying to defend so your guard is not passed.
Below is one of the best videos I have seen on this subject.
Of course the video also shows quite a few other ways to reverse the position and attack your opponent which need to be mastered. Right now I am working on trying out some of the Rigan Machado techniques he demonstrates in one of his DVD sets and really enjoying it.
As I train with guys that I close to my level in terms of technical knowledge of jiu jitsu, the more I see that I need to improve my technique and think about where the holes in my game are which I need to improve in order to win fights. Very often I actually find myself in the half guard either on the bottom struggling to defend or on top struggling to pass and this is what I am working on now. The gi game is so technical and allows you to use so many different techniques that it takes a lot of mat time to master but this is what everyone of us has to give in order to gain the knowledge and grow.
Check out the detail in transitioning to the back from half guard here from the Yamasaki BJJ school.
Lastly, Rubens Charles Cobrinha (4x BJJ World Champ) and Romero Jacare Cavalcante demonstrate how to take the back. Instructions from the greatest stars from Alliance
The back mount for me is also a great position to be in terms of attack vs defense. You can continue looking for the submission and rest while your opponent is a bit demoralized. When you lose the position, very often you still achieve mount, which is a great place to be for a down-side scenario.
There are many ways of achieving back mount from a whole variety of positions: from cross body, guard, half guard... to name a few.
Below is a video that I have found on youtube with the new generation of Gracies demonstrating another variation of achieving back mount from the closed guard.
(well, it seems to me if you can't secure the arm at the last moment, this one maybe quite difficult to accomplish but a Gracie from the academy replied to my post on youtube that it can be done effectively so I will just have to practice it more and see) If I am not mistaken, Rener Gracie is demonstrating the technique in this video.
Taking the back is an important element of the positional game and in my opinion it is also worth thinking about how you can transition to the back from the half guard, perhaps one of the most common positions which you typically end up in, trying to defend so your guard is not passed.
Below is one of the best videos I have seen on this subject.
Of course the video also shows quite a few other ways to reverse the position and attack your opponent which need to be mastered. Right now I am working on trying out some of the Rigan Machado techniques he demonstrates in one of his DVD sets and really enjoying it.
As I train with guys that I close to my level in terms of technical knowledge of jiu jitsu, the more I see that I need to improve my technique and think about where the holes in my game are which I need to improve in order to win fights. Very often I actually find myself in the half guard either on the bottom struggling to defend or on top struggling to pass and this is what I am working on now. The gi game is so technical and allows you to use so many different techniques that it takes a lot of mat time to master but this is what everyone of us has to give in order to gain the knowledge and grow.
Check out the detail in transitioning to the back from half guard here from the Yamasaki BJJ school.
Lastly, Rubens Charles Cobrinha (4x BJJ World Champ) and Romero Jacare Cavalcante demonstrate how to take the back. Instructions from the greatest stars from Alliance
Finally I found this video as well about taking the back from the guard which looks very good. Taking the back from the guard is not an easy task when you are fighting against an experienced opponent with a good base but I think this one is doable if you can stay really tight and focus on not allowing the guy to get back upright.
Journey to Blue Belt
The Blue Belt is the first grade in jiu jitsu and perhaps one of the most sought after. One of the first things white belts aim to get is not success in competition but the blue belt actually. Of course it is not the belt itself that people seek but the level of technical proficiency that the blue belt represents.
What I think is important however is to focus first on being a great white belt. First try to be the best white belt that you can be.
At the start of your journey you will tap and lose to everyone. Even white belts that have gone to a few classes, but with time this will change. The initial improvement in jiu jitsu can be very quick and soon you will tap newcomers to the sport with armbars and triangles yourself, passing their guard and mounting them since they do not even have a vague understanding of the concepts.
Once this stage has passed, there will be a group of guys that have been going to classes for several months now, all still white belts but already dedicated to develop the skills further.
You should focus on developing your technique and at some stage you see that your technique allows you to overcome these beginners who already know something about the basics of jiu jitsu.
Once you are regularly tapping many of the newcomers, its time to test yourself in competition. You may have six months or more experience on the mat nad this time you get to test yourself against similar white belts in a competition setting.
Winning in a division with 20 or so guys demonstrates that you are a quality white belt, that you have mastered well the techniques of jiu jitsu.
The last test at white belt once you have accomplished something in competition is to test yourself against bigger guys. At your academy you are bound to find guys that are bigger than you and are still at white belt. Choose some guys that maybe 15-20 pounds heavier than you and test your skills in this case.
You will be at a weight and size disadvantage but this is exactly what you want. You want to test not you strength or athletic ability but your jiu jitsu. If you can sweep several guys that are 20 pounds heavier than you, then this should tell you that your technique is working.
This is a way of progression that I see in jiu jitsu. It is based on where you are relative to fighters of the same grade. The more often you train, the faster you will progress and develop you defensive and attacking game.
Friday, 21 May 2010
UFC 116 - Terrible card apart from the main event
They have got to be kidding us if they think we are going to pay for such a card. Brock Lesnar and Carwin everyone wants to see, but Wandy does not qualify for a co-main event. The rest of the fights are for the undercard. Seriously, well done to Scott Coker. Strikeforce does make better cards and the fights are far more exciting. No one wants this garbage.
Preliminary Bouts:
Jon Madsen vs. Karlos Vemola
Daniel Roberts vs. Julio Paulino
Julio Paulino vs. Daniel Roberts
Jacob Volkmann vs. Paul Kelly
Goran Reljic vs.Kendall Grove
Brendan Schaub vs. Chris Tuchscherer
Main Bouts:
Kurt Pellegrino vs. George Sotiropoulos
Krzysztof Soszynski vs. Stephan Bonnar
Matt Brown vs. Chris Lytle
Wanderlei Silva vs. Yoshihiro Akiyama
Shane Carwin (UFC Interim Heavyweight Champion) vs. Brock Lesnar (UFC Heavyweight Champion)
Preliminary Bouts:
Jon Madsen vs. Karlos Vemola
Daniel Roberts vs. Julio Paulino
Julio Paulino vs. Daniel Roberts
Jacob Volkmann vs. Paul Kelly
Goran Reljic vs.Kendall Grove
Brendan Schaub vs. Chris Tuchscherer
Main Bouts:
Kurt Pellegrino vs. George Sotiropoulos
Krzysztof Soszynski vs. Stephan Bonnar
Matt Brown vs. Chris Lytle
Wanderlei Silva vs. Yoshihiro Akiyama
Shane Carwin (UFC Interim Heavyweight Champion) vs. Brock Lesnar (UFC Heavyweight Champion)
Thursday, 20 May 2010
How long to get a BJJ Blue Belt?
Enjoy the grade you are at, and be the best! train hard, and if you are that good, go compete and bring back the gold. worry about improving your game, not about the colour of your belt. You will attain respect by showing great technique
Brazilian jiu jitsu is a martial art that takes a lot of practice and a lot of dedication. Unlike many other martial arts where you go to a grading and just display some techniques, in jiu jitsu you really have to earn your belt with plenty of hours on the mat.
The more often you train the faster you will likely progress. With 2 sessions a week it will probably take you over two years to get it but if you train say 4-5 times a week, you progress will be much faster.
BJJ blue belts vary in skill level enormously. Some guys on the mat will be the newly graduated, 2-years into jiu jitsu guys with plenty of holes still to get rid of.
On the other hand there are some guys who have spent years and years as blue belts, perfecting their technique, competing regularly and training intensively in order to perfect the skills. Some of these guys may already be at a purple belt level but are still training and competing under blue.
Draculino talks a bit about this. When he was winning and competing with his blue belt, he was already beating brown belts in his academy and I think this just shows how varied the skills levels can be.
Brazilian jiu jitsu is a martial art that takes a lot of practice and a lot of dedication. Unlike many other martial arts where you go to a grading and just display some techniques, in jiu jitsu you really have to earn your belt with plenty of hours on the mat.
The more often you train the faster you will likely progress. With 2 sessions a week it will probably take you over two years to get it but if you train say 4-5 times a week, you progress will be much faster.
BJJ blue belts vary in skill level enormously. Some guys on the mat will be the newly graduated, 2-years into jiu jitsu guys with plenty of holes still to get rid of.
On the other hand there are some guys who have spent years and years as blue belts, perfecting their technique, competing regularly and training intensively in order to perfect the skills. Some of these guys may already be at a purple belt level but are still training and competing under blue.
Draculino talks a bit about this. When he was winning and competing with his blue belt, he was already beating brown belts in his academy and I think this just shows how varied the skills levels can be.
There are two other things I wanted to mention about promotion:
1. Being a Fresh Blue Belt - Basically means you are a Target!
When you do get the next belt, especially blue belt, it becomes a time when all the white belts focus on you, focus on beating you. Yesterday I went to a different BJJ club and literally there were 30 or 35 white belts and no one else. I was the only blue belt there and since no one knew me, they all wanted to try sparring with me.
When you do get the next belt, especially blue belt, it becomes a time when all the white belts focus on you, focus on beating you. Yesterday I went to a different BJJ club and literally there were 30 or 35 white belts and no one else. I was the only blue belt there and since no one knew me, they all wanted to try sparring with me.
When you become blue belt, every white belt wants to try and win in sparring so I think it changes everything for you. When I was a white belt, I loved sparring with blue belts and submitting them. When I became the blue belt, I became the target of the white belts.
2. Competing sucks if you've just been promoted, because really you are no longer that good for your grade!
When you become a great white belt, this is the time for competition. Any time soon you are going to be promoted to blue belt and once you get the blue belt, its going to be much harder for you to compete because the blue belts competing have years and years of experience and likely far more technical skill than you at this point. So take your time with each belt, first enjoy sparring in class, sparring against guys your level now, above and below and once you feel that you are up for promotion again, go compete and prove your are great at the belt you are at before you go up!
When you become a great white belt, this is the time for competition. Any time soon you are going to be promoted to blue belt and once you get the blue belt, its going to be much harder for you to compete because the blue belts competing have years and years of experience and likely far more technical skill than you at this point. So take your time with each belt, first enjoy sparring in class, sparring against guys your level now, above and below and once you feel that you are up for promotion again, go compete and prove your are great at the belt you are at before you go up!
Enjoy the belt you have and your time will eventually come when you will be promoted. In the end, it is your skills that matter so focus on perfecting them but investing in mat time.
Jiu Jitsu - Train More
The thing with jiu jitsu is that the only way to get better is to train more. Training more though does not mean violently sparring with everyone in your gym three times a week and getting injured every other month.
The way to train is to train often, focus on technique and add weight training when possible. You want to train your cardio as much as possible but also you have got to focus on stay away from injury and on the mats practicing as much as possible.
When sparring, I think it is optimal to give it your 60% of strengh and effort. Focus on technique though. Look for openings and go for a better position. Look to take the back of your opponent, look for the submission but in any case control the fight.
The thing I hate the most is those crazy sparring fights when the whole fight is just scrambling from one position to the next. Avoid this. I enjoy the gi game. Securing some nice grips and working to pass the guard, but then also controlling the opponent and not letting him do what he wants.
When you see the big jiu jitsu guys at the worlds, you notice how calm and calculated they are. Speed is good but you want to focus on control and technique.
The way to train is to train often, focus on technique and add weight training when possible. You want to train your cardio as much as possible but also you have got to focus on stay away from injury and on the mats practicing as much as possible.
When sparring, I think it is optimal to give it your 60% of strengh and effort. Focus on technique though. Look for openings and go for a better position. Look to take the back of your opponent, look for the submission but in any case control the fight.
The thing I hate the most is those crazy sparring fights when the whole fight is just scrambling from one position to the next. Avoid this. I enjoy the gi game. Securing some nice grips and working to pass the guard, but then also controlling the opponent and not letting him do what he wants.
When you see the big jiu jitsu guys at the worlds, you notice how calm and calculated they are. Speed is good but you want to focus on control and technique.
Tuesday, 18 May 2010
Fedor vs Werdum
ground. The guy has really improved his striking since fighting Nogueira and on the ground I think he could really control the fight.
People keep saying that noone can submit Fedor and that Fedor can submit anyone, but really who has he submitted that was so amazing? Randelman, Coleman, Hong Man Choi, Sylvia ... all guys who are blue belts at best in BJJ.
Fedor is good on the ground, but when you have a guy on par with the skills of Ricardo Arona, you will see Werdum taking Fedor's back, taking mount and in these situations Fedor is going to use all his skills.
The other thing is that if you look at the photos, Fedor is not in the best shape of his life. He visibly is slower then three years ago and I think the Brett Rogers fight showed a lot of wholes where Werdum could play.
Fabricio is also taller and a very well conditioned fighter. He can go the full three rounds and unless Fedor pulls out another KO which I think would be hard to do, then the fight is going to the ground.
For Werdum, I can see him working on putting Fedor on his back and from there it could get really interesting.
There is so much media attention out ther about Fedor not fighting the top competition and they are right. Fighting Werdum is really a waste. If Fedor wants to fight two time a year, he has to fight only the best.
However looking at Fedor's conditioning and at Werdum's skill on the ground, I believe people are in for a surprise. I am going to really enjoy Fabricio both in striking and on the
Fedor is not really a guard player and I have always noticed that his ground game is very judo-like. He has excellent submissions but his positional game is not good. Fedor passes the guard mainly using his effective ground and pound but you could see that he has trouble taking the mount. (look at Cro Cop or Mark Hunt fights).
I think it is still a decent fight, just not for a fighter who is ranked #1 thats all. I think the poll supports my view.
People keep saying that noone can submit Fedor and that Fedor can submit anyone, but really who has he submitted that was so amazing? Randelman, Coleman, Hong Man Choi, Sylvia ... all guys who are blue belts at best in BJJ.
Fedor is good on the ground, but when you have a guy on par with the skills of Ricardo Arona, you will see Werdum taking Fedor's back, taking mount and in these situations Fedor is going to use all his skills.
The other thing is that if you look at the photos, Fedor is not in the best shape of his life. He visibly is slower then three years ago and I think the Brett Rogers fight showed a lot of wholes where Werdum could play.
Fabricio is also taller and a very well conditioned fighter. He can go the full three rounds and unless Fedor pulls out another KO which I think would be hard to do, then the fight is going to the ground.
For Werdum, I can see him working on putting Fedor on his back and from there it could get really interesting.
There is so much media attention out ther about Fedor not fighting the top competition and they are right. Fighting Werdum is really a waste. If Fedor wants to fight two time a year, he has to fight only the best.
However looking at Fedor's conditioning and at Werdum's skill on the ground, I believe people are in for a surprise. I am going to really enjoy Fabricio both in striking and on the
Fedor is not really a guard player and I have always noticed that his ground game is very judo-like. He has excellent submissions but his positional game is not good. Fedor passes the guard mainly using his effective ground and pound but you could see that he has trouble taking the mount. (look at Cro Cop or Mark Hunt fights).
I think it is still a decent fight, just not for a fighter who is ranked #1 thats all. I think the poll supports my view.
Monday, 17 May 2010
Strikeforce Heavy Artillery - Great Success
I don't think there is an event this year that can even compare itself with Strikeforce Heavy Artillery. The fight card was great, the action was great, the commentary was poor as tradition but then you can't have it all.
Overeem is a beast, he looks on top form, at his peak and Vadim should be even more afraid then he was before. They don't want him to fight Fedor because look at him. He made Brett Rogers look like a child.
Respect to Brett Rogers, but he really needs to get in the gym. He has been exposed as a novice and he really needs to get his wrestling going and submissions too. He seemed to just collapse and then on the ground he looked even worse. Hard training is the only way to get better.
Jacare is the new golden boy of Strikeforce and he really deserves to be. He is such a great talent but also a really hard worker. He is really getting those takedowns but also landing the accurate strikes.
Andrei Arlovski just does not look like himself anymore. He did look slow and not controlling the action at all. Antonio Silva was not threatened even for a minute there. Something needs to change.
I like Andrei, but all this stuff on youtube he does it is just over the top. You look the way he trains and then you look how Brock Lesnar trains. You can then see why Brock is the HW UFC Champion and Andrei is on the way down in Strikeforce.
Roger Gracie I enjoyed a lot in the cage. The guy basically didn't do much MMA preparation, just jiu jitsu but I loved the way he delivered those jabs on Kevin. In the end I would have loved to see some more ground work but still it was cool. Kevin did the right thing trying to avoid going to the ground but it was going to happen eventually.
Great event, thank you Scott Coker!
Saturday, 15 May 2010
Shogun, is he one of the top pound for pound fighters?
I think the thing is that MMA especially at the top level is extremely demanding and not only physically. Guys like Anderson Silva, GSP, Fedor and BJ Penn indeed have managed to accumulate great records but there are many explanations. There are so many factors are at work.
The important thing is that Shogun took the UFC LHW title. He is no doubt the number 1 light heavyweight in the world. The pound for pound rating has no value in reality. Shogun accomplished an enormous amount and will now make a lot of money for sure.
What is now interesting is how well his career is going to go. He has some very tough competition in his own division including Rashad Evans and Rampage coming up. Shogun does not need to use much jiu jitsu, striking will make the difference here. Couture I don't think is any threat either.
The really exciting fight that it would be really exciting to see is the fight with Anderson Silva. Shogun is one of the few that has the stand up to take Silva on. UFC should really make this fight happen.
The important thing is that Shogun took the UFC LHW title. He is no doubt the number 1 light heavyweight in the world. The pound for pound rating has no value in reality. Shogun accomplished an enormous amount and will now make a lot of money for sure.
What is now interesting is how well his career is going to go. He has some very tough competition in his own division including Rashad Evans and Rampage coming up. Shogun does not need to use much jiu jitsu, striking will make the difference here. Couture I don't think is any threat either.
The really exciting fight that it would be really exciting to see is the fight with Anderson Silva. Shogun is one of the few that has the stand up to take Silva on. UFC should really make this fight happen.
Wednesday, 12 May 2010
Strikeforce Heavy Artillery Showcase for Brazilian Jiu Jitsu
Wrestling has really done so well in the UFC, particularly with the dominance of powerful wrestlers in the heavyweight division, that some have even started to discount brazilian jiu jitsu in favor of boxing and wrestling.
This weekend we will have an opportunity to see some huge BJJ stars, demonstrating what they are capable of in the cage.
Firstly we will see Roger Gracie, perhaps the best grappler and jiu jitsu player ever, testing himself against the well-known but at the end of his career Kevin Randelman.
Roger will have to make sure he does not get knocked out by "the Monster" who is known to be a hard puncher, knocking out Mirko Cro Cop back in the days of Pride.
Nevertheless, it is certain that Kevin will be no match for Gracie on the ground. I can see Roger going for the RNC choke after taking the back or doing his classic armbar from the guard which he used to submit Ron Waterman.
The fight really puts Roger on the map in Strikeforce and I agree with observers who see Roger on a fast track to meet with Mousasi, Sobral and King Mo Lawal.
Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza, who is scheduled to meet the very tough Joey Villaseñor will likely be no less exciting and I can see this fighting being more competitive.
Joey has good hands and it will be a task for him to keep the alligator at bay which may be tough to do considering Souza's great takedown ability both from the top and bottom.
On the ground, there is no doubt that Jacare will dominate anyone in his division and I think it is only time before he comes in to face Henderson or Mayhem Miller.
One of the main reasons in fact for Jake Shields to leave the UFC right now is Ronaldo Jacare. Following the win over Henderson, Jake Shields is in a great bargaining position with the UFC. Better than every before.
At the same time in Strikeforce there is a high probability that Shields will lose. Having delivered a less than stellar performance against Miller, nearly getting submitted in the process, Jake Shields will most likely have difficulty delivering a win against Ronaldo Jacare. Jake is simply not at this level in grappling. He has great takedowns, but once he is on the ground, he will likely get submitted by a guy that has overwhelming technique from the top and bottom.
This weekend we will have an opportunity to see some huge BJJ stars, demonstrating what they are capable of in the cage.
Firstly we will see Roger Gracie, perhaps the best grappler and jiu jitsu player ever, testing himself against the well-known but at the end of his career Kevin Randelman.
Roger will have to make sure he does not get knocked out by "the Monster" who is known to be a hard puncher, knocking out Mirko Cro Cop back in the days of Pride.
Nevertheless, it is certain that Kevin will be no match for Gracie on the ground. I can see Roger going for the RNC choke after taking the back or doing his classic armbar from the guard which he used to submit Ron Waterman.
The fight really puts Roger on the map in Strikeforce and I agree with observers who see Roger on a fast track to meet with Mousasi, Sobral and King Mo Lawal.
Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza, who is scheduled to meet the very tough Joey Villaseñor will likely be no less exciting and I can see this fighting being more competitive.
Joey has good hands and it will be a task for him to keep the alligator at bay which may be tough to do considering Souza's great takedown ability both from the top and bottom.
On the ground, there is no doubt that Jacare will dominate anyone in his division and I think it is only time before he comes in to face Henderson or Mayhem Miller.
One of the main reasons in fact for Jake Shields to leave the UFC right now is Ronaldo Jacare. Following the win over Henderson, Jake Shields is in a great bargaining position with the UFC. Better than every before.
At the same time in Strikeforce there is a high probability that Shields will lose. Having delivered a less than stellar performance against Miller, nearly getting submitted in the process, Jake Shields will most likely have difficulty delivering a win against Ronaldo Jacare. Jake is simply not at this level in grappling. He has great takedowns, but once he is on the ground, he will likely get submitted by a guy that has overwhelming technique from the top and bottom.
Watch the trailer below:
Sunday, 9 May 2010
Shogun Rua Defeats Machida!
Shogun is an incredible fighter. His jiu jitsu is great, he did amazing things in Pride and now he has taken the UFC belt after such a struggle with health.
Having gone through some ups and downs with health myself, I really see how well he has done and I see that he has put in a lot of work to get back in the ring. Mr. Anderson Silva should be the next opponent. Thats what everyone wants to see. Well done to him!
Having gone through some ups and downs with health myself, I really see how well he has done and I see that he has put in a lot of work to get back in the ring. Mr. Anderson Silva should be the next opponent. Thats what everyone wants to see. Well done to him!
Thursday, 6 May 2010
How Many Lessons a Week Does Your Academy Offer?
A real issue I think for many training a bit more seriously in BJJ is how many sessions per week does you academy offer. My BJJ academy for example only offers 3 lessons per week which for some may be fine but for many this may not be enough.
Unless you are studying at a really big jiu jitsu academy which has five or more sessions per week, you may want to or have to cross train.
Right now I am cross training in Judo (2 sessions per week) in addition to my jiu jitsu/grappling (3 sessions per week). Three sessions a week is kind of the minimum I think if you want to progress reasonably fast and therefore I think this is a real issue for some of us.
What worries me is in fact that too many academies now look to satisfy not high level jiu jitsu fighters but MMA fans. They add boxing and muay thai instead of adding more hours for BJJ guys devoted to instruction. Unfortunately this is an issue. Some of the guys could devote more time to BJJ but the academy does not offer this and private lessons may be expensive or not convenient. This is I think a problem bearing in mind.
Devoted BJJ guys that want to grow need long sessions, lots of technical practice and sparring and more hours on the mats. Academies cannot afford to instead opt to offer other martial arts just because its suits better the demand. My opinion
Unless you are studying at a really big jiu jitsu academy which has five or more sessions per week, you may want to or have to cross train.
Right now I am cross training in Judo (2 sessions per week) in addition to my jiu jitsu/grappling (3 sessions per week). Three sessions a week is kind of the minimum I think if you want to progress reasonably fast and therefore I think this is a real issue for some of us.
What worries me is in fact that too many academies now look to satisfy not high level jiu jitsu fighters but MMA fans. They add boxing and muay thai instead of adding more hours for BJJ guys devoted to instruction. Unfortunately this is an issue. Some of the guys could devote more time to BJJ but the academy does not offer this and private lessons may be expensive or not convenient. This is I think a problem bearing in mind.
Devoted BJJ guys that want to grow need long sessions, lots of technical practice and sparring and more hours on the mats. Academies cannot afford to instead opt to offer other martial arts just because its suits better the demand. My opinion
Tuesday, 4 May 2010
Grappling Proves MMA Wrong
While it has been virtually accepted that to win an MMA fight against the best you have to be a well-rounded fighter, today guys with great grappling continue to prove people wrong.
Grappling is a difficult and sophisticated art to master. The ADCC, the Abu Dhabi Submission Wrestling World Championships is the biggest event in the sport so far but it is clear that there are few who can deliver an all rounded game in grappling.
Grappling seems to have two crucial elements. The first is takedowns. Takedowns are critical in an MMA fight, but in grappling they can mean the difference between winning and losing against a strong jiu jitsu player. Freestyle wrestlers perhaps have the best takedowns in the sport. UFC fighters like Brock Lesnar, Velasquez, Matt Hughes, GSP and many others have shown that their ability to take down their opponents makes them superior fighters.
Jiu jitsu is the second part of grappling however. If you have great takedowns, you also need to pass the guard and submit your opponent. Most wrestlers who for the first time meet a jiu jitsu fighter struggle here. Jiu jitsu guys are phenomenal fighting from the guard and their amazing guard retention makes it difficult not only to escape every submission attempt but also to get anywhere from there.
Judo is a great takedown martial art but it is mainly a gi-focused art. Judo without the gi can be difficult to do when you have a freestyle wrestler facing you who is looking for a single or double leg.
Don't get me wrong. I am a great fan of the gi game and Judo, but to be successful in grappling you need to have a great takedown defense. You have to defend a single leg and counter yourself and I think Judo does not prepare you in this case.
Jake Shields is a great example of a guy that is not the king of grappling but has mastered it well enough to cause trouble for guys even as good as Dan Henderson. You can't submit Henderson but he has shown that you can consistently take him down, pass his guard and cause trouble. This is something that GSP has managed to do in his division as well.
Other guys like Frank Mir and even Shinya Aoki have shown the opposite. Their wrestling is poor and they try to rely on unorthodox and less effective takedowns . Once they are on the ground, they can do their magic, but without a good takedown they are not going to win the match against a great striker and here is the great flaw.
Jake Shields I think just proves how effective grappling is though. Dan Henderson was so much better at the strand up striking game but by setting up his takedowns and getting the fight to the ground Shields managed to defend his title against a guy that was highly favoured to win and who seemed a lot bigger and more powerful than him.
Grappling is a difficult and sophisticated art to master. The ADCC, the Abu Dhabi Submission Wrestling World Championships is the biggest event in the sport so far but it is clear that there are few who can deliver an all rounded game in grappling.
Grappling seems to have two crucial elements. The first is takedowns. Takedowns are critical in an MMA fight, but in grappling they can mean the difference between winning and losing against a strong jiu jitsu player. Freestyle wrestlers perhaps have the best takedowns in the sport. UFC fighters like Brock Lesnar, Velasquez, Matt Hughes, GSP and many others have shown that their ability to take down their opponents makes them superior fighters.
Jiu jitsu is the second part of grappling however. If you have great takedowns, you also need to pass the guard and submit your opponent. Most wrestlers who for the first time meet a jiu jitsu fighter struggle here. Jiu jitsu guys are phenomenal fighting from the guard and their amazing guard retention makes it difficult not only to escape every submission attempt but also to get anywhere from there.
Judo is a great takedown martial art but it is mainly a gi-focused art. Judo without the gi can be difficult to do when you have a freestyle wrestler facing you who is looking for a single or double leg.
Don't get me wrong. I am a great fan of the gi game and Judo, but to be successful in grappling you need to have a great takedown defense. You have to defend a single leg and counter yourself and I think Judo does not prepare you in this case.
Jake Shields is a great example of a guy that is not the king of grappling but has mastered it well enough to cause trouble for guys even as good as Dan Henderson. You can't submit Henderson but he has shown that you can consistently take him down, pass his guard and cause trouble. This is something that GSP has managed to do in his division as well.
Other guys like Frank Mir and even Shinya Aoki have shown the opposite. Their wrestling is poor and they try to rely on unorthodox and less effective takedowns . Once they are on the ground, they can do their magic, but without a good takedown they are not going to win the match against a great striker and here is the great flaw.
Jake Shields I think just proves how effective grappling is though. Dan Henderson was so much better at the strand up striking game but by setting up his takedowns and getting the fight to the ground Shields managed to defend his title against a guy that was highly favoured to win and who seemed a lot bigger and more powerful than him.
Monday, 3 May 2010
Taking the Back
One of the major principles of brazilian jiu jitsu is position before submission. Your ability to take the back of your opponent from different positions can mean all the difference in sparring and competition.
There are so many ways of taking the back of your opponent and sometimes he may give his back to you especially if you have already mounted him, but most of the time you have to work to get it.
Below are some clips that I found on youtube on taking the back. The first one, taking the back from north south is a move that I think is fundamental to BJJ.
Now check out this video of a gi match between a judoka and Leo Viera (BJJ World Champ). Watch the beautiful back take by Viera 1:00.
There are so many ways of taking the back of your opponent and sometimes he may give his back to you especially if you have already mounted him, but most of the time you have to work to get it.
Below are some clips that I found on youtube on taking the back. The first one, taking the back from north south is a move that I think is fundamental to BJJ.
Now check out this video of a gi match between a judoka and Leo Viera (BJJ World Champ). Watch the beautiful back take by Viera 1:00.
Saturday, 17 April 2010
Watch Mundials Live For Free
Check it out. Budovideos.com give us the BJJ Worlds 2010 live. This is the most important jiu jitsu event of the year and you have to be there, watch it and experience it. More to follow
Friday, 16 April 2010
Blog Poll Results Review - Who Fedor Should Fight
It looks like out of the 58 votes made so far, the result is obvious. Even though some of us truly believe that Fedor does not have to join the UFC and trade Vadim Finkelstein for Dana White, 50% of you believe Fedor should fight Brock Lesnar.
Brock Lesnar is the #2 fighter in the world. He is the UFC champion, champion of the organization that has four out of five top heavyweights in the world. Brock is also as many say a great big threat to Fedor and M1 Global/Vadim Finkelstein.
The second most popular vote is Alistair Overeem and I am not surprised. Overeem is in Strikeforce and wants to fight Fedor. He also challenges Fedor and says his management have been evading him. Why? Because they are genuinely worried Fedor may actually lose to this guy vs. Fabricio Werdum who most agree does not have the skill set to defeat Fedor.
If you try to be objective about this, the following logic clearly does not work. Vadim Finkelstein keeps saying that he would rather have Fedor fight Barnett then Overeem. Why? Because Overeem is a "steroid bully". But the argument breaks down when he says that he would rather have Fedor face Barnett. But Barnett can't fight in the US because of steroid abuse. It is very convenient also because this way Fedor can't fight neither Barnett or Overeem. Huh!
The truth is though, if Overeem is not a candidate, then Fedor will fight someone not in the top-10. Antonio Silva does not deserve to fight Fedor and there is no one else. All the top fighters are in the UFC and Fedor has to go there.
Brock Lesnar is the #2 fighter in the world. He is the UFC champion, champion of the organization that has four out of five top heavyweights in the world. Brock is also as many say a great big threat to Fedor and M1 Global/Vadim Finkelstein.
The second most popular vote is Alistair Overeem and I am not surprised. Overeem is in Strikeforce and wants to fight Fedor. He also challenges Fedor and says his management have been evading him. Why? Because they are genuinely worried Fedor may actually lose to this guy vs. Fabricio Werdum who most agree does not have the skill set to defeat Fedor.
If you try to be objective about this, the following logic clearly does not work. Vadim Finkelstein keeps saying that he would rather have Fedor fight Barnett then Overeem. Why? Because Overeem is a "steroid bully". But the argument breaks down when he says that he would rather have Fedor face Barnett. But Barnett can't fight in the US because of steroid abuse. It is very convenient also because this way Fedor can't fight neither Barnett or Overeem. Huh!
The truth is though, if Overeem is not a candidate, then Fedor will fight someone not in the top-10. Antonio Silva does not deserve to fight Fedor and there is no one else. All the top fighters are in the UFC and Fedor has to go there.
Thursday, 15 April 2010
BJJ Belts
For those that love jiu jitsu, belts are not so important I think. It takes time and hard work and eventually we may get there. Progress is the most important and if you are doing well on the mats, then you are getting better. If you are winning competitions in your category, this means you are training hard and are making progress. Belts themselves is just appreciation from your teacher I guess.
I like the statistic or guesstimate from the Draculino blog though:
"Of all the white belts that start 15-20% of those will make it to the blue belt.
Of that 15-20% that make it to blue, about 10% will stay until purple.
Those people that make it to purple, 15-20% will go on to brown.
If you make it brown most of those people reach the black belt."
So there you have it. If you take the lower figures, you get 15% x 10% x 15% = 0.2% make it to brown belt and probably black belt. So for every 1000 people that walk in to the gym and take some training, only 2 guys make it to brown or black belt. That just shows how much dedication is required.
I like the statistic or guesstimate from the Draculino blog though:
"Of all the white belts that start 15-20% of those will make it to the blue belt.
Of that 15-20% that make it to blue, about 10% will stay until purple.
Those people that make it to purple, 15-20% will go on to brown.
If you make it brown most of those people reach the black belt."
So there you have it. If you take the lower figures, you get 15% x 10% x 15% = 0.2% make it to brown belt and probably black belt. So for every 1000 people that walk in to the gym and take some training, only 2 guys make it to brown or black belt. That just shows how much dedication is required.
BJJ Training Injuries
When you start training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, you feel like you can sprint it. I am sure that some of us really can do it. I tried to do it myself. Training six-seven times a week will benefit your skills no doubt and there is nothing that will improve your technique more than mat time.
Neverthless I recommend to all to supplmenent your jiu jitsu with weight training and rest. Your body (at least mine) cannot take so much exercise without take risk of injury and injury can really hurt.
I had surgery on my shoulder. The total time away from training was about 10-11 months. If only I did more exercises and strengthened my shoulders, I feel that there was no need for this injury to happen in the first place.
If you are in pain, don't go training. Rest, take time off. If the pain stops, go to the gym and do some passive exercises to strengthen areas of your body. If you shoulder is in pain, the worst thing you can do to it is to go training and tear something in a sparring match. There is no need for this. If you have to train and the pain is minimal, train gently, focus on technique. If you have to do sparring, do it in a controlled manner, lose if you have to but don't use your strength.
There are some exercises like the omoplata and kimura that can get your shoulder injured if it was in pain before you even came to training. Be aware of this. Injury is something that can be avoided.
There are also some creams that I can recommend you use. They basically warm up the muscles of your body and help prevent injury.
The only person that can help prevent injury is you. Wear knee pads when training. I wear gum shield as well. You don't want to go to the dentist and it is expensive. It is no likely that you will hurt your teeth but it can happen.
Neverthless I recommend to all to supplmenent your jiu jitsu with weight training and rest. Your body (at least mine) cannot take so much exercise without take risk of injury and injury can really hurt.
I had surgery on my shoulder. The total time away from training was about 10-11 months. If only I did more exercises and strengthened my shoulders, I feel that there was no need for this injury to happen in the first place.
If you are in pain, don't go training. Rest, take time off. If the pain stops, go to the gym and do some passive exercises to strengthen areas of your body. If you shoulder is in pain, the worst thing you can do to it is to go training and tear something in a sparring match. There is no need for this. If you have to train and the pain is minimal, train gently, focus on technique. If you have to do sparring, do it in a controlled manner, lose if you have to but don't use your strength.
There are some exercises like the omoplata and kimura that can get your shoulder injured if it was in pain before you even came to training. Be aware of this. Injury is something that can be avoided.
There are also some creams that I can recommend you use. They basically warm up the muscles of your body and help prevent injury.
The only person that can help prevent injury is you. Wear knee pads when training. I wear gum shield as well. You don't want to go to the dentist and it is expensive. It is no likely that you will hurt your teeth but it can happen.
Wednesday, 14 April 2010
Vadim Finkelstein and MMA
There are many controversial personalities in the young sport of MMA that is only starting to evolve and is growing in many countries from
Tuesday, 13 April 2010
My Top 10 To Beat Fedor in MMA
1. Brock Lesnar - the guy is too big and too fast. Lesnar will take Fedor down with ease and deliver damage that will be difficult to recover from. M1 are scared of this dude.
2. Shane Carwin - Fedor has fought none that have his style. Fedor fought Mark Coleman but I challenge anyone to say that Mark Coleman can be compared with Shane Carwin in anything other than wrestling abilities.
Carwin will push Fedor against the cage and knock him out within the first round. He is a walking nightmare for M1 Global
3. Junior Dos Santos. The heavyweight with nuclear charged hands that are faster than lightening. Junior Dos Santos is quick and is probably the best striker in the heavyweight division in the world. No one seems to be able to take this guy down.
4. Cain Velasquez. Cain is one of the most hungry MMA fighters of all time. He wants to take the guy down and beat him bad but also can stand and fight with anyone.
5. Lyota Machida - the guy has an awesome stand up. He has also fought at heavyweight and would no doubt give Fedor a lot of trouble.
6. Alistair Overeem. The guy fights weak fighters but is dangerous no doubt. Finkelstein is afraid of this steroid abuser. His face has more muscle than an average man has on his body.
7. Josh Barnett - tough, tough guy who has the tools to take on Fedor.
8. Frank Mir - arrogant but talented. On the ground, I would love to see this fight happen. Frank has little else going for him in the UFC. How about joining Strikeforce and testing himself against Fedor.
9. Roger Gracie - Roger is the greatest submission fighter and jiu jitsu player alive now. If Fedor had trouble against Arona, what would happen if he was to face the best ever.
10. Anderson Silva - he is tall. He cuts from 230. Time to see the idiot Spider face some real competition and make his legacy. I would love to see this fight.
2. Shane Carwin - Fedor has fought none that have his style. Fedor fought Mark Coleman but I challenge anyone to say that Mark Coleman can be compared with Shane Carwin in anything other than wrestling abilities.
Carwin will push Fedor against the cage and knock him out within the first round. He is a walking nightmare for M1 Global
3. Junior Dos Santos. The heavyweight with nuclear charged hands that are faster than lightening. Junior Dos Santos is quick and is probably the best striker in the heavyweight division in the world. No one seems to be able to take this guy down.
4. Cain Velasquez. Cain is one of the most hungry MMA fighters of all time. He wants to take the guy down and beat him bad but also can stand and fight with anyone.
5. Lyota Machida - the guy has an awesome stand up. He has also fought at heavyweight and would no doubt give Fedor a lot of trouble.
6. Alistair Overeem. The guy fights weak fighters but is dangerous no doubt. Finkelstein is afraid of this steroid abuser. His face has more muscle than an average man has on his body.
7. Josh Barnett - tough, tough guy who has the tools to take on Fedor.
8. Frank Mir - arrogant but talented. On the ground, I would love to see this fight happen. Frank has little else going for him in the UFC. How about joining Strikeforce and testing himself against Fedor.
9. Roger Gracie - Roger is the greatest submission fighter and jiu jitsu player alive now. If Fedor had trouble against Arona, what would happen if he was to face the best ever.
10. Anderson Silva - he is tall. He cuts from 230. Time to see the idiot Spider face some real competition and make his legacy. I would love to see this fight.
Monday, 12 April 2010
Fedor Emelianenko Ranked Number Four Heavyweight in the World
Fedor Emelianenko and his M1 friends have been picking fights for years. After a scare with Brett Rogers last November, we have not seen any action apart from endless renegotiating for more money and marketing.
At the end of the day, its not just whether you win or not, but who you fight. You can't just avoid fighting the best for five years and then say you are the best in the world. Hell, I could go and fight some people who have never trained a day in their life and win every time. That does not make me the best in the world.
Look at the poll I have running so far. We have 25 votes of which 60% are for Lesnar and only two votes for Fabricio Werdum. Now I am a huge Fabricio Werdum fan and I would rather see this fight than have Fedor do sparring in Stariy Oskol all summer, but beating Werdum does not make Fedor the best in the world.
You have to fight top-5 ranked fighters regularly to be called the best. I don't care if Fedor fights twice or even once a year. I don't like it but at the end of the day thats what he may want, but to say this crap that the guy is the best in the world when he fights guys like Werdum is still not good enough. Sherdog and other guys must realize this now and make an adjustment. The ratings must not be biased and we need to be fair to every fighter. There must be a fair system based on which a fighter is ranked at a certain spot. If he does not get so many points over a certain period but still wins the fights, he should be moved down.
Say Tim Sylvia was winning each fight but was fighting guys outside the top five all the time. Then you had guys like JDS, Carwin, Lesnar and Velsaquez all winning their fights. Tim Sylvia would still have been champion of UFC if he did not face tough guys like MIr and Fedor included. He stepped up and fought top-5 fighters.
M1-Global can shut up about Fedor being the best if he does not fight the best. When Sherdog and others do move Fedor down, this will benefit MMA enormously. M1 would realize that they cannot carry on the way they do marketing to fans over the world that they have the best fighter. They will have to make a deal. Everyone wants a deal. Dana White does. Vadim does not and this is the problem.
Sherdog Move Fedor Down!!!
Friday, 9 April 2010
SENI 2010 Promotional Videos
Guys, SENI 2010 promises to be one of the most exciting events that you have to go to if you have a chance. Royce Gracie and Ronaldo Jacare will be there and many more. I am going to go to the Ronaldo Jacare seminar and compete in the Gracie Invatational as well. This is going to be a busy weekend for sure.
Tuesday, 6 April 2010
Strikeforce Nashville April 17 2010
Whether you love or hate Strikeforce, there is one thing that one has to admit and that is that they put on great fights. Strikeforce Nashville is going to be one of the most spectacular shows this year with three championship bouts between some of the top rated fighters in the world.
Dan Henderson will have a chance to prove that he is one of the greatest still facing Jake Shields who has been on a winning streak for years, overcoming his opponents with great wrestling and jiu jitsu.
Shinya Aoki will face Gilbert Melendez and here again we will have to see how Aoki can take a well-rounded fighter with striking ability in Melendez. Aoki's judo takedowns and awesome bjj will however no doubt put Melendez in danger.
It is always exciting to see the great champion Gegard Mousasi in action especially against such an athletic and big mouthed US wrestler in Lawal. King Mo will have to show that he is not just a great wrestler with some striking skills but that he can deliver the real deal from all angles of the MMA game.
The bes part about the show of course is that it is actually free on CBS. Watch it live and enjoy the best fighters in the world go head to head.
Here is the trailer below:
Dan Henderson will have a chance to prove that he is one of the greatest still facing Jake Shields who has been on a winning streak for years, overcoming his opponents with great wrestling and jiu jitsu.
Shinya Aoki will face Gilbert Melendez and here again we will have to see how Aoki can take a well-rounded fighter with striking ability in Melendez. Aoki's judo takedowns and awesome bjj will however no doubt put Melendez in danger.
It is always exciting to see the great champion Gegard Mousasi in action especially against such an athletic and big mouthed US wrestler in Lawal. King Mo will have to show that he is not just a great wrestler with some striking skills but that he can deliver the real deal from all angles of the MMA game.
The bes part about the show of course is that it is actually free on CBS. Watch it live and enjoy the best fighters in the world go head to head.
Here is the trailer below:
Balancing Your Time
When my Girlfriend/Wife/Partner insists that you make a choice between training 5 times a week or her what is a good way to break the bad news to her?
The Fightworks Podcast guys have done really well to cover this subject. Here are some of the relevant links:
Most of us face this problem during some point in your jiu jitsu career. Many of us find it difficult and frustrating, trying to explain why we have to train so much and develop all the time. BJJ is a demanding activity particularly in terms of time. Some of us train a lot but also have other things in life like a full time job and a family and it can be tricky to balance the three.
In my opinion you have to do your best to explain that this is an integral part of your life. The only way to fix the problem is to make compromises. You and your partner may have a lot in common but at the same time there are a lot of interesting things that you may want to do apart.
Both of you will have to make compromises. If you have to go to a competition while on holiday, then pick a good location and take her to the ballet which she would really enjoy too. If you have to go somewhere for BJJ reasons, if you have the option, choose a good location that she would like to visit, in Europe if you don't know they are Paris, Lisabon, Barcelona, London etc ( in this order).
ADCC 2009 in Barcelona was the kind of event which you could go with your family and enjoy the weather, the beach and the attractions. Something for everyone but at the same time you got to see guys like Robert Drysdale, Jacare and Marcelo Garcia in action.
Monday, 5 April 2010
Fedor No Longer Relevant
Fedor no longer relevant among the top MMA heavyweights! Brock Lesnar #1, Shane Carwin #2, Junior Dos Santos #3 and Cain Velasquez. By deciding to fight fighters outside the top-5 for five years, he has made himself irrelevant in the MMA Heavyweight Division.
Strikeforce's Fabricio Werdum is the last real challenge for the fighter many called the best ever. Fedor could retire today and will probably be called the greatest MMA fighter ever but if he wants to be rated above the fighters mentioned above, he needs to fight top level talent who have both great striking skills and ground game.
The whole world is baffled by Fedor's willingness to stay with M1 Global and not sign with the UFC, an organization that has signed all the top talent that is around today with perhaps the only exception being Gegard Mousasi and Shinya Aoki.
The story with Gegard Mousasi and the visible interaction between Strikeforce and M1 has done a lot to expose Vadim Finkelstein and M1 Global. Many say that Dana White is the most hated personality in mixed martial arts. I strongly disagree. Both Fedor fans, Fedor haters and all the other fans in MMA unite under one flag. They want Fedor to sign with the UFC and they hate M1-Global and its head, Vadim "The Evil" Finkelstein AKA Frankenstein.
Gegard Mousasi is a great fighter who has been missled by the people around him. The most baffling story was him being paid I think like a total of $4000 for his work in the Fedor vs Rogers show. Amazing. You can see that he was not comfortable to discuss this on youtube and was angry with his managers.
Gegard signed up with Red Devil and M1 because he was interested to learn from the best fighter in the world, Fedor Emelianenko. But while he got the benefit of learning from Fedor's experience, he was also taken on by Vadim who knew how to extract the benefit from Mousasi while not paying him what he was due.
Appy Echteld (M1-Global) it turned out, appears to have lied to Gegard about the offer UFC proposed which led him to sign with Strikeforce. The refusal of M1 to give Mousasi a stake in the promotion, led him further away from the Russians and the lies and underpayment in the end pushed him to find another great fighter to learn from and get the true story about the UFC and what they are.
Gegard Mousasi turned to Georges St. Pierre to get his help and advice, not only in training but also in the management side. It is good timing that after spending time with GSP's camp and training with these guys, he decided to leave M1. No more brainwashing for fighters, its time to join the UFC to meet the best.
Who does Mousasi have left to fight after Lawal? The answer is Dan Henderson and then nobody. Even if he does not fight Hendo, it was not like Hendo was in the top-10 in the LHW division. Good choice to join the UFC then where you have Shogun, Machida, Rashad Evans and lots of other worthy competition with a diverse range of skills.
I think Gegard made the right decision. He went to the GSP camp, benefitted from the training and its true that Gegard really needs to develop his wrestling further. He also had a chance to hear the real story about what the UFC are and how they treat fighters. Fedor needs to listen and make a decision based on hearing both side and not one. If he fights for the fans, he should do what the fans want from him, which is to fight the best. Its getting ridiculous. Its like having Brazil national soccer team pick matches that they could easily win like playing soccer against India or maybe some small island. Great fighters need to be well paid for their hard training and work they put in but make fights that people want to see.
Check out the poll on who should Fedor fight and lets find out who the fans really want. Maybe Fedor will pay attention and I will send the result to Fedor's website.
Saturday, 3 April 2010
Exercises for BJJ
Martin Rooney is the expert in physical conditioning for BJJ. Here are some tips I have remembered from his BJJ radio interview. Martin publishes his articles in the GracieMag, so subscribe now.
Train the Neck
Back and front bridges and any other relevant exercises. The neck is critical as it is one of the focuses. The neck takes on a lot of pressure during training and you have to prepare for this. BJJ veterans know this well.
Pulling strength - chin-ups and pull-ups
Some of the least enjoyable exercises but also some of the most useful. Pulling is one of the most important strengths in jiu jitsu and you use these muscles all the time during sparring.
Train the Neck
Back and front bridges and any other relevant exercises. The neck is critical as it is one of the focuses. The neck takes on a lot of pressure during training and you have to prepare for this. BJJ veterans know this well.
Pulling strength - chin-ups and pull-ups
Some of the least enjoyable exercises but also some of the most useful. Pulling is one of the most important strengths in jiu jitsu and you use these muscles all the time during sparring.
Abdominal muscles - train your stomach.
Use a medball, look at some of the exercises on the web. These are the crucial muscles you are using all the time. They are very important.
Groin muscles
Work on these for your guard. This exercise prevents injuries and develops these muscles. Roger Gracie trains these muscles.
Hamstring
If you play a lot of half guard, train some hamstring curls.
Train the upper body, lower body and then cardio. Without cardio you have nothing but all these are vital. Leave some time to heal but all of these exercises are important to help your BJJ conditioning.
Martin Rooney recommends at least three work outs a week but doing five works is ideal. My opinion is that you want to work three times a week well rather than doing a little five minute session at home. Do the 45 minute intense session, make it happen and then get out.
Check out Martin Rooney's book, "Training for Warriors: The Ultimate Mixed Martial Arts Workout" or look on the website http://www.trainingforwarriors.com/
Friday, 2 April 2010
Renzo Gracie Movie
Alright guys, just heard on BJJ radio from Fightworks podcast about the Renzo Gracie movie. Renzo really is a great guy and although I have not seen the Renzo Gracie Legacy DVD, this is definitely something to buy if you are a jiu jitsu fan.
For those who have never heard of Renzo, check out the videos below. For those who don't know Renzo, he is one of the biggest BJJ legends today. Not only is he one of the most active members of the Gracie family promoting the sport, he is also an MMA veteran having competed both in the UFC and Pride and now looking to return to competition signing a six-fight deal with the UFC.
Renzo is fighting Matt Hughes, the UFC champion, in April at UFC 112 Invincible and this is a match that you really should not miss.
Renzo Gracie is also one of the most respected fighters and professors. Coming from Gracie Barra he is really doing a lot to promote BJJ. I saw him at ADCC 2009 myself! Also check out RenzoGracie.com
Grappling Open Moscow Competition in May 2010
Lion Sports Club will hold an open grappling competition for all in Moscow, Russia in the middle of May this year. I understand there will be teams from across the country competing from a whole range of disciples including jiu jitsu, sambo, judo and wrestling.
Here is the link for more information: http://sportclublion.ru/portal2/component/content/article/19-introscroller/126-announce
More news to follow, stay here
More news to follow, stay here
Back to Training
There is nothing more exciting and enjoyable than getting back into training after a long break. Myself, I have been out due to injury for over nine months and its been a real shame to miss so much training.
BJJ is not a rough sport and is good on your body if you take care. Judo I think is more rough and injuries can occur from standing in my opinion of course depending on your sparring partner.
One injury that I got in Judo was from a throw which made be land incorrectly and hit my head on the mat. That was some years ago but I think if you know how to breakfall it is not guaranteed what can happen if your partner does something different. Some throws can cause injury and I have seen it happen over and over again.
BJJ is not a rough sport and is good on your body if you take care. Judo I think is more rough and injuries can occur from standing in my opinion of course depending on your sparring partner.
One injury that I got in Judo was from a throw which made be land incorrectly and hit my head on the mat. That was some years ago but I think if you know how to breakfall it is not guaranteed what can happen if your partner does something different. Some throws can cause injury and I have seen it happen over and over again.
I enjoy training. Learning new techniques and getting myself fitter for competition. Hard training and light training are both great and actually have their advantages and disadvantages.
At some point I was training around 5-6 times a week and it is then that I got my shoulders injured. Slowly this deteriorated into more and more pain especially at night and in the morning when you can't sleep on either side.
I took some breaks to let it heal but it did not seem to do anything. I wait a week and then train and it is back to where I started. The more I trained the worse it got and it seemed like nothing can be done.
First of course I took a more conservative approach, physiotherapy, so pills they game me, hot water and compressors. Nothing like this helped.
After some injections did not help surgery turned out to be the only option. SLAP lesion was diagnosed and basically this put me out of training for another seven months unfortunately as it takes a lot of time to heal up and rehabilitation can last upto a year.
Certainly this is something you never wish that will happen again. After a few months I started to go to the local fitness gym. Training my back, stomach muscles and the shoulders of course. Unfortunately I also managed to catch mononucleosis, something Brock Lesnar actually got I understand which put me out of the sports world for another two months with severe fever and endless headeaches as well as a feeling of complete exhaustion.
Finally today I am back training. With my second training session behind me and the first sparring session for so long, I feel unfit but getting ready for Monday's session once some of the muscles I have no used for for so long have recovered.
Some pain is still there of course but you try to get over it and train with care. After all for me it is all about technique and learning to be a better jiu jitsu fighter and grappler.
It is great to be on the mats with the guys though. Sparring was great and I even had a chance to do some submissions myself as well as playing for positions. We are currently practicing for the upcoming no-gi contest and it is great to practice some takedowns for this that can really improve the stand up game and help you put your opponent on his back.
Watching a lot of tapes, I have really become a great fan of the wrestling part. I prefer to put my opponent on his back and pass his guard. If I can't I will play guard and I prefer to win the takedown and I believe I should be able to do this in most cases unless the guy has a strong wrestling background himself.
Jiu jitsu is truly a beautiful sport. Really enjoy it. Keep training and check out some of the fightworks podcasts on Itunes. Check it out.
Wednesday, 31 March 2010
Train Hard and Be Persistent
Hard training and being persistent is important to grow in jiu jitsu. You cannot train 20 hours in one week and then not train for two weeks. You have to train regularly and focus on technique.
I believe time and time again that the guy with the better technique will always defeat the strong and bigger guy unless the weight difference is more than 15 pounds. 15 pounds does not make a big difference and even at 30 pounds, you can still defeat your opponents if your skills are substantially higher.
Focus on all the positions and my personal view is to grow from submission defense and into to getting skilled at winning a good position. Only once you can escape every submission of your opponent should you focus on winning good positions such as the side mount and the mount.
Once you can do this easily, then I believe you should focus on submitting your opponent yourself. This is the way Saulo suggests to progress. You can't just attack all the time but you should also be focused on having a good submission defense.
I think it is better to lose some of the positions but escape every submission then winning a bunch of positions and then get submitted several times in a row.
It takes many years to master bjj and you should not think about the time but the development. Focus on who you are fighting in training and practice with different people at your academy, people of different skill level, size and also style.
At my academy I think there are two major styles at work. Those that started from BJJ or from Judo, focus on playing the guard, on sweeps and passing the guard and on the mount.
Others however are very focused on leg locks and winning by submission without valuing the positions they achieve.
Both of these styles I believe I have to get used to and learn how to fight. I have to be able to escape any leg lock attempt they make and then pass their guard. Before trying any submission.
I try to be as relaxed as possible during sparring in my Academy. It does not make sense using strength as many say but I also try to be calm. I think about what submission my opponent is trying to do. As soon as he tries to secure the guillotine choke, I already have my chin down and my shoulder up to make sure he does not get it.
It does not make sense to use so much energy if you can wait, assess the situation, look for an opening in the opponents game and then take advantage of it at the precise moment when he makes the mistake.
I believe this is the essence of jiu jitsu. The youtube match between Bruno Bastos and Lagarto Rodriguez I think best illustrates my point. Rodriguez is calm, looking for the mistake and not spending energy trying to do some fancy techniques.
I believe time and time again that the guy with the better technique will always defeat the strong and bigger guy unless the weight difference is more than 15 pounds. 15 pounds does not make a big difference and even at 30 pounds, you can still defeat your opponents if your skills are substantially higher.
Focus on all the positions and my personal view is to grow from submission defense and into to getting skilled at winning a good position. Only once you can escape every submission of your opponent should you focus on winning good positions such as the side mount and the mount.
Once you can do this easily, then I believe you should focus on submitting your opponent yourself. This is the way Saulo suggests to progress. You can't just attack all the time but you should also be focused on having a good submission defense.
I think it is better to lose some of the positions but escape every submission then winning a bunch of positions and then get submitted several times in a row.
It takes many years to master bjj and you should not think about the time but the development. Focus on who you are fighting in training and practice with different people at your academy, people of different skill level, size and also style.
At my academy I think there are two major styles at work. Those that started from BJJ or from Judo, focus on playing the guard, on sweeps and passing the guard and on the mount.
Others however are very focused on leg locks and winning by submission without valuing the positions they achieve.
Both of these styles I believe I have to get used to and learn how to fight. I have to be able to escape any leg lock attempt they make and then pass their guard. Before trying any submission.
I try to be as relaxed as possible during sparring in my Academy. It does not make sense using strength as many say but I also try to be calm. I think about what submission my opponent is trying to do. As soon as he tries to secure the guillotine choke, I already have my chin down and my shoulder up to make sure he does not get it.
It does not make sense to use so much energy if you can wait, assess the situation, look for an opening in the opponents game and then take advantage of it at the precise moment when he makes the mistake.
I believe this is the essence of jiu jitsu. The youtube match between Bruno Bastos and Lagarto Rodriguez I think best illustrates my point. Rodriguez is calm, looking for the mistake and not spending energy trying to do some fancy techniques.
British Open
Looks like the British Open held brought to all of us by the triple BJJ World Champion and ADCC 2009 Absolute Champion Braulio Estima in Birmingham.
Fightworks podcast discusses this one but in general I think the tournament shows that the sport is growing rapidly and I am sure in the coming years they may need to hold a three day or even four day event to get through all the matches.
Fightworks podcast discusses this one but in general I think the tournament shows that the sport is growing rapidly and I am sure in the coming years they may need to hold a three day or even four day event to get through all the matches.
Check out the results here: http://www.bjjbritishopen.com/results.html
Tuesday, 30 March 2010
Monday, 29 March 2010
Strikeforce Challengers 7 - Andre Galvao vs Luke Stewar
Andre Galvao fighting at Strikeforce Challengers 7 and securing a narrow split decision victory of Luke Stewart, tough Ralph Gracie BJJ black belt himself. Still, I expected more from Andre in this fight.
Check out the videos below:
Check out the videos below:
Thursday, 25 March 2010
Strikeforce Heavy Artillery May 15
Tickets on sale now for one of the most exciting MMA events in may featurying some of the best heavyweights in MMA outside of the UFC today including Alistair Overeem, Brett Rogers, Antonio Silva and Andrei the Pitbull Arlovski.
Roger Gracie is also making his Strikeforce debut on the card against Kevin "The Monster" Randelman which should also be an exciting and fun fight to watch.
Wednesday, 24 March 2010
Weight Training Exercises for the Shoulders
There are many opinions on this subject. There a high level jiu jitsu players who do fine without spectacular strength and weight training. Good examples are Roger Gracie, Marcelo Garcia and Demian Maia. I am not saying they don't train conditioning but their exercises clearly are less strength oriented than you would expect.
On the other hand there are fighters that are extremely strong as well as technical. Jeff Monson is an obvious example and Pablo Popovitch (ADCC Champion 2009) is an awesome sight, but there are also guys like Xande Ribeiro and Ronaldo Jacare Souza, who you do not immediately notice how strong they are, but they are incredibly strong as well.
One of the most important areas of your body to exercise for BJJ I believe are the shoulders. As I have founded out through painful experience, during training you apply a lot of force on your shoulders and if the muscles are not strong enough to withstand this wearing effect, you end up with a variety of injuries over time. Weight training for the shoulders helps prevent this and below I add a youtube video with some exercises that I believe could be beneficial for these purposes.
Apart from these I do also recommend the resistance bands. There is a variety of exercises that you can select from here and I recommend it. There are many more exercises that you can do to strength both your arms and shoulders with these that you could not do with simple weights. Many wrestlers also train with these and you can even see Alexander Karelin the great Greco Roman Wrestling Champion using these for training.
On the other hand there are fighters that are extremely strong as well as technical. Jeff Monson is an obvious example and Pablo Popovitch (ADCC Champion 2009) is an awesome sight, but there are also guys like Xande Ribeiro and Ronaldo Jacare Souza, who you do not immediately notice how strong they are, but they are incredibly strong as well.
One of the most important areas of your body to exercise for BJJ I believe are the shoulders. As I have founded out through painful experience, during training you apply a lot of force on your shoulders and if the muscles are not strong enough to withstand this wearing effect, you end up with a variety of injuries over time. Weight training for the shoulders helps prevent this and below I add a youtube video with some exercises that I believe could be beneficial for these purposes.
Apart from these I do also recommend the resistance bands. There is a variety of exercises that you can select from here and I recommend it. There are many more exercises that you can do to strength both your arms and shoulders with these that you could not do with simple weights. Many wrestlers also train with these and you can even see Alexander Karelin the great Greco Roman Wrestling Champion using these for training.
2010 Pan Ams Jiu Jitsu Live Stream Trailer
Live stream for all is going to be great. Sign up for this and take a look at the trailer below. Thanks to www.Budovideos.com
Monday, 22 March 2010
Sambo Super Cup in Moscow 24-27 March 2010
For those interested, the Sambo Super Cup will be held in Moscow this year on the 24-27 March 2010. The event will be held in memory of Kharlampiev and is one of the biggest international sambo tournaments in the world. With over 300 athletes and 30 national teams present, this event will include some of the strongest athletes in the world competing in both Sport Sambo and Combat Sambo.
10.00-15.00 : Preliminary fights
Mens: 52, 62, 74, 90, +100 kg
Womens: 48, 56, 64, 72, +80 kg
10.00
Preliminary fights
Mens (sport sambo): 57, 68, 82, 100 kg
Mens (combat sambo): 68, 74, 90 kg
Womens: 52, 60, 68, 80 kg
18.00 Finals and Awards
More information if you follow this link: http://www.sambo.ru/events/worldcup/harlampiev_moskow/
Time table:
24 March : Introductions, judge seminar and weigh-ins
25 March:
Mens: 52, 62, 74, 90, +100 kg
Womens: 48, 56, 64, 72, +80 kg
15.00-16.00: weigh-ins
18.30 - finals
26 March:
Preliminary fights
Mens (sport sambo): 57, 68, 82, 100 kg
Mens (combat sambo): 68, 74, 90 kg
Womens: 52, 60, 68, 80 kg
18.00 Finals and Awards
Generally looks like 25-26 March are the days you want to go to this. Address is Варшавское шоссе, д.118, кор.1. (Varshavskoe shosse, building 118)
Whether Fedor Emelianenko is participating? I doubt it but it is possible. I heard in his latest interview he was talking about this.
For the calendar on future sambo events check out http://www.sambo.com/index-en.html
Friday, 19 March 2010
Dream 13 and UFC Live this Weekend
Some more MMA for those that love the sport. We have two good events that feature some of the top grapplers in the world including Josh Barnett, Vladimir Matyushenko, Gabriel Gonzaga.
The highlights for me on both cards are going to be of course Junior Dos Santos vs Gabriel Gonzaga and Josh Barnett vs Mighty Mo and while the second fight has a predictable outcome, Junior Dos Santos could have his hands full with Gonzaga who will certainly put JDS's ground game to the test, that has not yet been really tested to date. Nevertheless JDS is one of the most exciting prospects in the UFC Heavyweight Division today.
Stay in touch for more.
The highlights for me on both cards are going to be of course Junior Dos Santos vs Gabriel Gonzaga and Josh Barnett vs Mighty Mo and while the second fight has a predictable outcome, Junior Dos Santos could have his hands full with Gonzaga who will certainly put JDS's ground game to the test, that has not yet been really tested to date. Nevertheless JDS is one of the most exciting prospects in the UFC Heavyweight Division today.
Stay in touch for more.
Fedor vs Hidehiko Yoshida
This is the latest rumor about Fedor Emelianenko competing in Japan on New Years Eve. Fedor is named the likely opponent for Yoshida who is preparing for the last MMA fight of his career.
Yoshida is a well known Pride veteran and one of the most popular fighters in Japan. Since winning the 1992 Olympic medal in Judo, he participated successfully in MMA with wins against Maurice Smith, Royce Gracie and many others.
An exciting match for the Japanese fans who are always keen to see a matchup between the famous sambo champion and the judo champion. Certainly an exciting clash of styles. To make the fight even more exciting for the fans they should both wear the gi I think.
Yoshida is a well known Pride veteran and one of the most popular fighters in Japan. Since winning the 1992 Olympic medal in Judo, he participated successfully in MMA with wins against Maurice Smith, Royce Gracie and many others.
An exciting match for the Japanese fans who are always keen to see a matchup between the famous sambo champion and the judo champion. Certainly an exciting clash of styles. To make the fight even more exciting for the fans they should both wear the gi I think.
Tuesday, 16 March 2010
Shinya Aoki Phenomenon
Shinya Aoki is a grappling phenomenon in mixed martial arts. He is the first guy to carry out the Gogoplata submission successfully in an MMA competition. He is credited by Eddie Bravo it be the only MMA star to be able to successfully use the "Rubber Guard". He is the Dream Lightweight Champion but relies almost entirely on his judo/wrestling/bjj in order to overcome his opponents rather than focusing on being a well-rounded fighter like his UFC counterpart are (Anderson Silva/GSP/BJ Penn/Machida).
Aoki is a blackbelt both in Judo and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, and a top level guy in both. He has won many smaller tournaments both in Judo and grappling but clearly had a harder time competing at the top level in ADCC. Clearly his style relies on his size and of course grappling with Roger Gracie showed how extreme the size difference was. (Roger Gracie easily overcame and submitted Aoki in the ADCC Absolute category)
His most recent performance has been in Dynamite!! on New Years eve and the performance he delivered against the lightweight Sengoku champion is more than impressive. Check out the video below.
This technique (hammer lock) I really learn't myself in Judo a few years back and have used it ever since with moderate success. I have always used it as a technique when you are passing the guard. It creates an element of surprise for most bjj and judo players as they are normally not used to defending against this move. Once you have secured the hand under the back, it is very difficult to get out unless you power through it and convince the guy on top that it is not worthwhile to keep the hold any longer. If you do manage to get this move and secure the hand and the guy fails to defend, it can be quite useful for control in my opinion and Shinya really seems to have taken it to another level. Great performance.
Now he is set to fight in Strikeforce in April against his long time rival Gilbert Melendez who has recently taken the Strikeforce Lightweight title from Josh Thomson. It will no doubt be once again a battle of "well-rounded fighter" vs "grappling freak" and no one can really say what will happen. This fight has been long overdue and the winner is surely the #1-#2 fighter in the world today. (and of course should take on BJ Penn)
If Shinya Aoki wins, he together with Kazushi Sakuraba go into the hall of fame of skilled grapplers making it in MMA without much striking game along with the likes of Royce Gracie. Amazing! All I can say.
Monday, 15 March 2010
Eddie Bravo - a different perspective
This article really gives you a different perspective of Eddie Bravo, recognized as an innovator of brazilian jiu jitsu. His books are well-known and many bjj fans are buying them with the hope of improving their bjj and mma.
Of course, you have to give him credit. The guy beat the best jiu jitsu player of the 90s. Eventually he was going to lose of course and the triangle is such a universal technique that can catch anyone.
The famous match with Royler is well publicized but the guy is also really strange. He does give some negatives to the sport that I don't think he should. Draculino is right about that. Guys that have such high profile and that should develop the sport, can't afford to have associated with things like illegal drugs. These things have nothing to do with jiu jitsu.
Check out this article, it really describes the who 10th Planet phenomenon at what it is all about.
The fact that the guy never fought in MMA but claims to develop jiu jitsu for MMA is not right though. You have MMA legends like Sakuraba, Nogueira and many others who should have more to say on the subject. How can one develop an MMA oriented jiu jitsu system having never fought in the cage?
Braulio Estima vs Rick Hawn
Braulio Estima, last year's under 88kg and Absolute ADCC Champion is set to meet Rick Hawn at Shine Fights III sometime this year, most likely in April or May.
This is a fight that few keen grapplers will want to miss when the ADCC and BJJ World Champion will meet one of the most exciting MMA prospects in Rick Hawn who himself has a background in Olympic Judo.
Rick Hawn is far more experienced in MMA, having already three MMA wins and no losses under his belt, finishing all his opponents by TKO despite the grappling background. His next opponent in Braulio Estima will surely prove a vastly tougher match and if Estima is allowed to take advantage of his incredible submission skills, this should be a short affair.
Many submission grapplers and BJJ fighters have entered the MMA arena recently but with mixed success. On the one hand there is Demian Maia and Jacare Souza who have shown that they are also willing to learn the striking game in order to compete at the elite level. They have used their incredible submission skills to get great MMA records and are fighting now top fighters in the world. Anderson Silva will face Demian Maia at UFC112 while Ronaldo Jacare is to fight for the Middleweight belt at Strikeforce against either Dan Henderson or Jake Shields. Roger Gracie, Andre Galvao and Xande Ribeiro are also exciting prospects but they have not fought at the top yet.
There are however many cases when Judo and jiu jitsu fighters have failed to make a name for themselves in MMA. Everyone remembers how Marcelo Garcia struggled in his debut despite securing a rear naked choke early on in the first round. Fabio Gurgel lost in UFC 11 likewise, Saulo Ribeiro struggled and really even Royler had a hard time in his own weight division which you would expect he would dominate.
There are of course naturals like Shinya Aoki on the other hand who managed great success without much striking prowess, relying instead on incredible Judo and BJJ. Set to debut this April in Strikeforce, the phenomenon seems to defy the logic that all-rounded fighter skills are crucial to success in the sport.
Too many other factors come in to play in MMA that are not important in grappling. One of these is the ability to take a punch. Something that can't be taught and plays no part in BJJ, Judo or grappling matches becomes very important. The old saying goes that "if you punch a bjj blackbelt once, he becomes a brown belt, punch him twice, he becomes a purple belt...". Antonio Rodrigo Minotauro proved this saying during his amazing career in mixed martial arts. This is something that we see over and over again whether it is Sakuraba losing to Melvin Manhoef or Renato Sobral getting KOed by the talented striker Gegard Mousasi.
Some people are not giving Braulio a chance and this is a very tough first fight for him but you can never discount one of the best grapplers in the world today.
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