Key Takeaways
- A 4-part No-Gi BJJ DVD instructional covering a very versatile back control game.
- You’ll learn how to control the back from different positions and capitalize using various retention methods.
- Features a huge array of submission finishes from unorthodox back positions.
- BJJ World Expert Rating: 8 out of 10.
BACK CONTROL AND SUBMISSIONS FELIPE PENA DVD HERE:
How far are you willing to go for a submission when you’re controlling the back? Would you give up hooks for a choke? How about giving up on the seatbelt entirely to finish an armlock? If the answer is that you don’t feel comfortable doing it, you’re in desperate need of a guide such as the Back Control and Submission Felipe Pena DVD.
Even if you’re not afraid to mess around with the different types of back control out there, and you prefer submissions over collecting and keeping points, you’ll find this Felipe Pena instructional very useful. With a strong focus on submitting form positions that you use to retain back control when people escape, it offers more in terms of efficiency than all of Gordon Ryan’s back controls DVDs put together.
Finishing From the Back
You might be an expert at taking the back in BJJ, and that is certainly a smart tactical approach, which may even win you plenty of fights. However, when it comes form finishing form the position, I find that nobody is as good as they think they are. Except for maybe a few giants of back control, such as Marcelo, Gordon, and Felipe Pena.
Getting to a submission form back control is not an easy task, and finishing a submission you managed to open up is even less of a straightforward thing. As dominant as the back position is, it is also highly predictable – people controlling it don’t want to sacrifice control, so that means they can only threaten with certain moves that the defender can focus on blocking.
So how do the top guys manage to finish from the back so frequently and reliably? The answer lies in threatening with much more than just rear naked chokes and armbars and utilizing every possible back control variation at their disposal. If you take a careful look at the Back Control and Submission Felipe Pena DVD, you’ll understand exactly what I mean.
Felipe “The Sloth” Pena
Even though Gordon Ryan is doing a good job of painting himself as a trash-talking bad boy, the real villain in his story is Gracie Barra’s, Felipe Pena. The Brazilian is the only man to convincingly beat Gordon twice, finishing him once with a choke, and once dominating by a big points margin.
The 33-year-old grappler has been training BJJ for 20 years, starting his journey in the same academy he still represents – Gracie Barra Belo Horizonte. Pena got his black belt from Marcelo Azevedo in 2012 at a promotion that also featured Draculino.
Since then, Pena has conquered the ADCC twice, the IBJJF worlds three times (two Gi and one No-Gi title) the Europeans, AHP grand slam, and Brazilian Nationals. He also had a world title stripped after USADA found him positive for PEDs, which resulted in a year-long suspension.
Although he made his name mostly as a Gi grappler, Pena is just as versatile in No-Gi, as proven by his ADCC conquests. He is one of the rare back position specialists these days, so picking up his Back Control and Submission Felipe Pena DVD is a smart move for anyone looking to improve No-Gi back control.
Detailed Back Control and Submission Felipe Pena DVD Review
The four-part Back Control and Submission Felipe Pena DVD offers a very useful gameplan for finishing from different variations of back control, specifically tailored for No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu. Felipe Pena offers just over two hours of super valuable material in this instructional.
Part 1 – Controlling the Back
The progression of the material in this Back Control and Submission Felipe Pena DVD is one of the things I enjoyed the most while watching it. Pena is going to teach you everything you need to stay on the back and finish, but you need to go through the material in the order it is presented.
Initially, Felipe talks a lot about how to control the back position and not lose any of the angles that are mandatory for submission finishes. What you’ll learn from this part is to be patient and how to establish more and more control by gauging the opponent’s reactions and capitalizing on them.
Part 2 – Staying on the Back
Part two is where the magic happens. This is where Pena starts talking about keeping back control when people manage to disrupt your optimal positioning, which is also known as back retention.
The second volume of the Back Control and Submission Felipe Pena DVD explores counters to common escape such as the arm over escape, hook stripping, and turtling. Pena sticks to submissions as his counters, not afraid to leave the back position if it means a tap – his Guillotine setup against a turtle is the best example.
There is a lot of emphasis on diagonal control throughout the DVD, with Pena not shying away from the Twister as one of the most logical follow-ups to many back escapes. Even when he doesn’t finish the Twister, Felipe uses it to set up subs like Kimuras or get back to choking from the back.
Part 3 – Alternative Back Control Options
Speaking of using the Twister and alternatives to the classic back control, Pena has a whole host of follow-ups we rarely see in modern BJJ. The third part of the Back Control Felipe Pena DVD explores innovative controls such as Half Nelsons, North-South seatbelt control, and plenty of crucifix options.
On the subject of the crucifix, Felipe offers a mini-system you can use on its own, featuring swift Kimuras and triangles. Pena also shares a submission I haven’t seen in quite a while in the form of a biceps slicer inspired by Robinsho Moura.
Part 4 – Submission Finishes
The final part of the Back Control and Submission Felipe Pena DVD is all about submissions, ranging from grip fighting and setup to end-range mechanics. All the retention principles re-appear, making submissions like the RNC from the side possible.
On top of that, you have an arsenal of super tight subs to pick from, including more Twister finishes, brutally fast wrist locks, armbars, and Felipe’s own take on the Straight Jacket system, complete with strangling finishes.
Back Control Past Seatbelt & Hooks
If you keep thinking about back control simply in terms of hooks and seatbelt, you won’t manage to get very far with it. I understand the draw of the 4 points (or more) from getting to the position, but you don’t always have to hunt for the points. Even better, why not get them and then open up your back control game to include lots of different positions, and thereby, many more submissions than the classic?
Things like the crucifix, hip lock back control, the twister, and even the Truck are all very valid examples of different types of back control that yield plenty of submission threats, even though they won’t earn you any points.
Sometimes (or, better said, most of the time) moving into these positions is the only option you have apart from losing back control altogether. People can defend in many different effective ways in modern Jiu-Jitsu, so instructional that take that into account, such as the Back Control and Submission Felipe Pena DVD offer a huge edge to your back-attacking game, no matter what belt you hold.
FULL DOWNLOAD: BACK CONTROL AND SUBMISSIONS FELIPE PENA DVD
Strangle Time!
Instead of trying to claw desperately onto the back, even if that means that you’re exhausted and on the defense when your opponent gets out, be smart about being a constant submission threat by diversifying the controls. Use the Back Control and Submission Felipe Pena DVD to develop a system of back control that will help you dominate in both Gi and No-Gi, under any ruleset out there.
