Analyzing Every Second Of The Craig Jones Heel Hook That Broke Vinny Magalhaes’ Leg

Craig Jones Heel Hook Vinny magalhaes cover

Leg locks don’t work! I guess the build-up to the Submission Underground 13 was the last time that this phrase really managed to hold at least a bit of truth to it. Or so it seemed. Craig Jones is the man to finally put to bed the myth that Nobody can submit Vinny Magalhaes with a leg lock. This time though, nothing was left to doubt, even though Vinny “toughed” it out and didn’t tap to the submission immediately. The aftermath saw Vinny with a very damaged leg as a result of not one, but two Craig Jones Heel Hook attacks that have wreaked havoc on Vinny’s knee.

I guess nobody likes to see an injury in a BJJ match, even if it is the only way to prove a point. And, this will only further reiterate the importance of being really careful and never stubborn when training heel hooks. After all, the damage to Vinny’s knee was not apparent during the match, as much as a kneebar or Kimura damage is. However, it is way more significant as there are crucial structures within Vinyn’s leg that have been destroyed by what is to become “that” famous Craig Jones heel hook. Or should I say hell hook?

The Craig Jones Heel Hook Felt Around The World

I guess Submission Underground 13 was the unlikeliest of places at the unluckiest of times for such a pivotal moment in leg locking history. Oh, and as you can see, I am very biased towards leg locks and I consider this a big victory for use “dirty leg locking cheate4rs” over the rest of the “pure” Jiu-JIteros. Joking aside, a sub-only tournament held in the midst of the world-wide Covid-19 lockdown, provided us with enough entertainment and talking points to probably last us until the end o quarantine.

So, what exactly happened in this crazy match that ended up with so much damage to Vinny’s leg? How come he seemed to defend everything and then tap verbally? Let’s go over it step by step and see the key points that made this Craig Jones heel hook finally work on the “un-leg-lockable” Vinny Magalhaes.

The setup

As the match started, Craig Jones immediately went to half guard. Not something unusual for him, as he really thrives in the Z guard, his go-to position well before he fell in love with leg locks. Inverting is not something we see from Jones in terms of leg locks, but he did go upside-down almost immediately. He went into a kind of tornado guard, only to completely Granby over and get a very slick transition into an Ashi Garami. Clearly, something that was worked on a lot.

The Ashi Garami

Speaking of the Ashi Garami, only after 35 seconds in the match, Craig already had Vinny Magalhaes in a 50/50 position, with Vinny’s leg cross Craig’s body. Exactly where he wanted it. Let’s not forget, Craig’s coach Lachlan Giles submitted three heavyweights for the position at the 2019 ADCC.

At this point, Craig took it easy, still grip fighting and looking for a deeper bite rather than rushing the heel hook. He uses the fact that Vinyl tris to put weight on the leg to rotate into a better Ashi Grami bite and then exposes the heel (around the 46 seconds mark). At this point, he even goes belly down which actually prevents Vinyl from rotating out, as he probably thought he could. It is also when Craig re-adjusts to a far hip Ashi Garami version, which really helps him pin Vinny’s hip to the mats.

The First Heel Hook

At this point, the first Craig Jones heel hook is already set up. As Craig turns towards the ceiling, he already has a very deep butterfly grip on the heel. The fact that he starts off with the second grip in the heel hook hierarchy shows how much respect he has for Vinny’s ability to resist leg locks. It also shows how serious he is, with Vinny’s heel already twisted in a very uncomfortable looking situation.

However, that’s far from the worse of it. Vinny Magalhaes still doesn’t submit, so Craig switches to the tightest possible heel hook grip – the reverse butterfly grip. At the same time, he rotates his body to the other side, clearly getting Vinny’s heel not just in line with his knee, but past it. Ouch!

Hats off to Vinny, who, despite having a broken leg at this point, got out of the position and even ack to his feet.

The Inside Senkaku

Right after the disengaged, a minute and a half in the match, Craig immediately pulled half guard yet again. at this point, they had the first of three talking exchanges which had commentators and spectators alike, baffled.

Once again working from the Z guard, Craig went into what looked like a sweet attempt, before setting up yet another inverted Ashi Garami entry. However, that took place after the second round of discussions between the two. They even seem to be laughing about something. That did not prevent Craig from setting up one of his signature Z guard entries into the inside Senkaku though.

In fact, he did not just get Insider Snekaku, but got the tightest possible variation, with him on top of Vinny Magalhaes’ leg. It is the same position Gordon Ryan used to easily tap Roberto ‘Cyborg’ Abreu a few years back.

The Second Heel Hook

Which brings us to the second time Craig got one of the tightest ever heel hooks on Vinny’s leg. Conversely, it was the same leg that he heel hooked only a couple of minutes earlier. This time though, you can see Craig setting up the reverse butterfly grip oft the get-go (at 02:43 of the match). At this point, Craig extended his hips, then rotated his body, before finally rotating with a bridge and clearly snapping Vinny’s leg. Twice!

Not even knowing what’s going on, Craig actually let go at this point, starting the third conversation with Vinny. A very gentleman thing to do, given that he already completely destroyed Vinny’s knee with the now infamous Craig Jones heel hook.

The Tap

Just after Craig lets go, they go into the third conversation during which they both stop grappling completely. Once again, Vinny Magalhaes seems impervious to leg locks, and you can see Craig fighting from the bottom, loosely looking for back attacks, guillotines and even an armbar transition. Vinny seems to be very static though and is far from his usual pace.

In fact, with about 45 seconds of the match left, and Craig in Z guard again, Vinny looks at the referee, and verbally taps, acknowledging that he can’t go on. About time, as his leg was probably more than useless at this point.

The Curious Case of Vinny Maglahes And His Resilience To Leg Locks

The reason why this Craig Jones heel hook is so big is that Vinny Magalhaes has never surrendered to a leg lock before. He managed to really take his famous “leg locks don’t work” for a long ride. He even managed to resist both Garry Tonon and Gordon Ryan, a couple of the most renowned leg lockers in the world. For a brief moment there, it seemed as if there was something to Vinny’s approach.

What he didn’t take into account, as well as everyone else, is that Craig Jones now also trains very regularly at Danaher’s gym. And, it seems, Danaher took it a bit personally that Vinny managed to resist two of his star students. In fact in a Facebook post after the fact, Danaher shared that he and Jones worked on Hip control a lot, identifying that as the main reason Vinny was able to resist leg locks for so long.

After the match, though, it has to be said that Vinny also had a very respectful reaction to the whole thing. In a reaction released a day after the match, Vinny calls Craig Jones the number one grappler in the world. He also discusses how his legs pop frequently in training, but this time he felt it was different. You can even see how swollen his leg is just moments after the match. Classy, you have to hand it to him, to finally admit that leg locks do work!

Submission Underground 13 full results

Submission underground 13 featured a total of 10 submission-only No-Gi matches. These are the complete results of the only grappling event in the world that didn’t tap out to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Craig Jones def. Vinny Magalhaes – verbal submission due to heel hook;
Austin Vanderford def. Richie Martinez – arm triangle;
Gabriel Checco def. Jake Ellenberger – reverse triangle choke;
Ethan Crelinsten def. Andrew Alexander – rear-naked choke ( overtime);
Dan Stoner def. Alex Larmey – fastest escape time;
Joe Baize def. Nicholas Maximov – heel hook;
Chris Lencioni def. Gabriel Austin Daffron – fastest escape time;
Charlie Gilpin def. Jake Smith – Kimura;
Eric McConico def. George Martinez – armbar (overtime);
Cody Kenaga def. Jake Hargis – toehold.

Conclusion

The Craig Jones heel hook felt around the world. There’s hardly a better description of what happened at SUG 13. As usual, huge respect for Vinny Magalhaes, who really did try to resist. However, as it seems the combined efforts of John Danaher and Craig Jones managed to put to rest one of the biggest debates of modern BJJ – whether leg locks work, or not.

10 Best Leg Locks DVDs and Digital Instructionals

Graphic Warning! The Most Painful BJJ Submissions Ending In Horrific Breaks!

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Disclaimer first – this article is not for the faint of heart. In most cases, BJJ submissions end in victory via taps or even refer stoppages. However, sometimes, things end up going all the way, which is not something that is easy to see. In the case of chokes, people go to sleep, and it usually ends without consequences, given the nature of blood chokes. They’re immensely dangerous, but very hard to be abused. On the other hand, going for limb submissions in the form of joint locks provides us with some of the most painful BJJ submissions in existence. And, the evidence of how effective they are is out there, it just may not be pleasant to watch.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is extremely powerful as a martial art. Even though most people view it s as spot nowadays, or even just a form of physical exercise, you can actually do some real serious damage to people. Plenty of BJJ moves, like takedowns or pressure positions, can cause injury even unintentionally., However, it is submissions that are the most dangerous weapons Jiu-Jitsu has to offer. In short, painful BJJ submissions are all submissions that you can actually pull off with success. Pain is the premise upon which you get a tap from a partner. But, what happens when the tap doesn’t come? Well, if your submission technique is on point, you get a snap, crackle, and pop and some pretty graphic images.

What Are The Most Painful BJJ Submissions?

Every submission that hurts and gets a tap is a painful one. Obviously. However, pain is not a really relevant factor when it comes to the effectiveness of submissions. In terms of pain itself, everyone has a different threshold. Of course, nobody wants to go home with a broken leg from class, so we tap at the earliest possible discomfort when training. This oftentimes causes us to thnk our submissions are much tighter and better than they really are. Competing helps clean this aspect up, as you’ll find out just how painful BJJ submissions are (or aren’t) when in a tournament.

Another thing to consider is flexibility. People have different levels of dexterity, and most often, have a certain body part that is more flexible than others. For example, some people have extreme ankle flexibility making them seem impervious to leg locks but will tap before you even connect your hands for a Kimura due to extremely immobile shoulders. That said, while all of these factors need to be taken into account, they do not determine whether a submission is effective or not.

The thing with painful BJJ submissions is that some of them are painful after the fact. Our bodies do not have the same amount of pain receptors everywhere, which, along with stubbornness and stupidity are often the reasons we see just how effective and painful BJJ submissions can be. To that extent, the most painful BJJ submissions are the ones that can break a limb without the person executing them having to exert extreme amounts of force. Conversely, those happen to also be the highest percentage submission that brings about a lot of taps anyway.

19 Times BJJ Submissions Went All The Way

Where do we start with all the examples of painful BJJ submissions that we’ve seen so far? In the examples below, you’ll find plenty of situations that have taken place in different competition settings. Some are Gi BJJ matches, others are in No-Gi submission-only situations, as well as some of the worst (or best, depending on how you see them) joint breaks in MMA that are a result of BJJ submissions. We even threw in a couple of street fighting/self-defense situations where submissions proved to work a bit more than they probably should have.

Roger Gracie Breaks Jacare’s Arm

As things stand, straight armbars are the biggest culprit when it comes to broken bones in competition as a result of a submission. Conversely, guess what is the highest percentage BJJ submission ever in both Gi and No-Gi?

This match took place at the 2004 Mundials and is the stuff of BJJ legends. Roger Gracie met Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza in the final of the Worlds that took place in Brazil. While Jacare is up on points, Roger managed to sneak in an armbar from the closed guard, using a high guard setup. Obviously, Jacare though he could take it, but Roger set it up so tight, it ended up snapping Jacare’s arm. Incredibly enough, he kept fighting despite the arm break, and actually managed to see the match to the end and win. Would you have kept on going?

That Time When Romulo Barral Got His Foot Removed By A Toe Hold

Speaking of painful BJJ submissions we have to include toe holds. Remember when I said some submission become painful after the fact? Well, the toe hold definitely falls into that category. And the fact that it is world champion Romulo Barral suffering the break further shows how effective the move can be.

At the 2017 Worlds, Patric Gaudio managed to slap a toe hold on to Romulo Barral’s foot. Romulo didn’t seem to be in much trouble as long as Gauido was belly down. Once Patric turned to face the ceiling, though, there was suddenly a lot of room to twist Romulo’s foot, so much so, that his foot seems to have separated from the rest of his leg, hanging on just by the skin. Nasty, and with picture-perfect technique.

A Cringe-Worthy Amrbar Finish

They can’t all be world champions breaking each other’s bones. Some fo the submission featured here today took place in different divisions of different tournaments. That doesn’t make them less cringe-worthy, or less effective. Take this armbar for example.

The guy in the white rashguard went for a takedown that didn’t work but had a nasty guard game to fall back to. He started hunting for a Kimura and then did a slick transition into an armbar. The opponent did try to do a stack defense, but only ended up deeper, and the arm broke before he even had the chance to tap. The armbar is definitely the king of the most painful BJJ submissions at all levels.

The Ffion Davis ADCC Armbar

Now, this is an armbar finish that is still fresh in our minds. At the 2019 ADCC, we saw a lot of upsets, but in the female divisions, the biggest one came via this Ffion Davis armbar. Bea was a favorite to win the division, but Davies had something to say about it. In one of the biggest upsets, she got to a very tight triangle-armbar position. Having long limbs certainly helped her hold on to it, and follow Bea’s rolling escape attempts, eventually putting so much pressure on, that Mesquita’s arm snapped in a very nasty fashion.

A Heel Hook Break

Heel hooks are the boogeyman of Jiu-Jitu, and we do not actually see too many injuries as a result of these submissions, because people are afraid of them. That means people tap early. If there was ever a submission you need to tap early to, it has to be the heel hook. Yet another one of the painful BJ J submissions that don’t seem to bad at first.

At the Atlanta NAGA in 2015, we see the now usual, butterfly guard toa straight Ashi Garami entry where the bottom guy (the one in the black rashguard) needs a few attempts to finally get a proper outside heel hook grip. Once he gets it, though it is easy for him to follow the opponent’s turn, put a stop to it, and pop his knee wit the pressure.

The Frank Mir Armlock Frenzy

Frank Mir is notorious for his use of the armlocks. Talk about painful BJJ submissions! He managed to break not one, but two arms with submission, and did it against some of the baddest people on the planet, inside the UFC octagon. One is against Tim Sylvia when Mir used an armbar from the guard so snap Tim’s arm in two. And, as if that wasn’t scary enough, he took it one step further.

When Mir battled Big Nog, who is a legend of BJJ as well as MMA, he managed to slap on a top side control Kimura that had the seasoned grappler in trouble. How much trouble exactly, became apparent the moment that arm snapped, a moment clearly visible after Nogueira’s failed rolling escape.

Bent Arm Lock Break

At what appears to be an in-house tournament, we witness one of the nastiest arm breaks in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Whenever I teach this armlock from the scarf hold I make it a point to discourage people from using it in live rolls. competition is different though, and though I wouldn’t use it at an in-house tournament, it is an effective way to end a match.

Form the scarf hold, one of the toughest things to stop is having your arm straightened, and placed under pressure by the opponent;’s legs. However, bending the arm like for an Americana lock while trying to defend a straight armlock will only make things worse. Just like in this case.

Biceps Slicer Forearm Fracture

This is an unusual and rare submission at best and can be devastating at worst. As it turns out, a biceps slicer doesn’t only threaten to snap a biceps muscle in half, it can also break the forearm in the process as well. This one happens inside a cage during an MMA fight when the bottom guy (red tape on the gloves) sets up the sneakiest possible biceps slicer form the bottom. Although not visible at the beginning, it is clear that the pressure managed to break the forearm bones before slicing through the biceps. It makes you wonder if we haven’t stumbled across the most painful BJJ submission right there.

Ankle Lock From Hell

For those that don’t believe ankle locks can cause trouble, think again. Apart from the fact that you can use the ankle lock position to break a baseball bat, you can definitely destroy an ankle, and in more ways than one.

After quite the leg lock exchange, the guy in the red shorts, who obviously had his mindset on winning via ankle lock, finally managed to get a tap. It came too late though, and it is baffling as to why the opponent thought he can withstand the pressure of the entire body against his ankle joint. Ankle locks can be some of the most painful BJJ submissions around, so be careful!

Sub Spectrum Kimura

A Kimura finish at the Sub Spectrum Grappling tournament. Hannah Sharp from Renzo Gracie Portland did a great job setting up a beautiful Kimura form the top. Seriously, she had that arm perfectly isolated from the get-go! Okay, she might’ve gotten a bit overzealous and in combination with gravity, definitely took the arm too far. So far, in fact, you could almost see it come out on the other side. Not intentional, but also extremely painful to even watch!

Michelle Nicolini vs. Tammi Musumeci Omoplata/Armbar Break

Back at world-class level, it seems that black belts are just as stubborn at tapping out, as white belts are. We all know that Michelle Nicolini is one of the best out there, but so is Tammi Musumeci. When the two met at the 2014 Worlds it was the finals, and Michelle got the upper hand, (pun intended).

Nicolini patiently waited for the perfect moment to set up a submission going from closed guard to Spider guard all the way to a crazy Omoplata position. However, instead of attacking the near arm, Nicolini went for the far arm doing a straight armlock that clearly snapped Tammi’s elbow. To her credit, Musumeci, who had a two-point lead at the moment, did not tap, similarly to Jacare. However, Michele used the fact her opponent was injured and racked up an incredible 9 points in 30 seconds to secure the title.

Tye Ruotolo’s Desperate Kneebar

As far as painful BJJ submissions go, this certainly was painful, although it does not technically count as a submission, as there was no tap. In fact, this was a huge one for Paolo Miyao, who clung on to ADCC bronze by not tapping out to young Tyre Ruotolo’s kneebar attempt. Although not apparent in the video (much) Miyao took significant damage to the knee and was not able to use the leg later on. Luckily, he had no more matches left so he could hide the extent of the injury well. Kudos to the 16-year-old who had one of the most seasoned grapplers in the tightest possible spot. Anyone else would’ve tapped.

MMA Kimura From Closed Guard

Yet another Kimura, and once again, in an MMA match. This time, MMA fighter Aaron Strawmier is the “culprit” really snapping Jonathan Riffles’ arm with a gruesome Kimura finish. The attack is a closed guard Kimura, but with a variation. Obviously, Strawmier is a lanky guy, as he had his opponent in a body triangle from the front, isnte4ad of the usual closed guard. Apparently this makes the Kiimura work way better, as the hips remain locked. The result speaks for itself, with this rocketing to the top spots for most painful BJJ submissions ever!

AJ Refusing To Tap To Tonon’s Kneebar

In a situation similar to the one with Ruotolo and Miyao, Gracie Barra’s AJ Agazarm, how is notoriously difficult (if not impossible) to submit, managed to survive a leg lock attack. It was not just any leg lock attack, but an extremely tight kneebar. What’s even more impressive is that it wasn’t just anyone doing the leg lock. But Garry Tonon himself!

There’s no tap and AJ did manage to get out of the position, but at what cost? The question was never answered as AJ claimed he was alright. See for yourself whether or not he managed to get out injury-free, or had some rehab and recovery to do.

Belly Down Amrbar In An MMA Match

If there was ever a nasty armbar to look at, it has to be this one! Once again it takes place ina an MMA match and it shows the power of the belly down armbar. It also shows why you should never lift up when defending an armbar because now you’re allowing your opponent to use gravity against you as well. In this instance, the arm snaps, and stays snapped for one of the all-time most painful BJJ submissions ever pulled off in a fight!

Omoplata Arm Break In A Street Fight

For everyone who thinks BJJ is not effective in self-defense here’s something to change your mind. A guy is on his back in a street fight situation, and he manages to slap on an Omoplata. Suffice to say, he takes it all the way, leaving the opponent in agony and with a painfully distorted and very much broken arm.

Fight Like A Girl, Break Like A Girl

Another street fight example of how BJJ makes you superior ina one-on-one situation. Whatever this girl did wrong, she won’t repeat any time soon. Obviously, her opponent knew how to grapple, and then some, because she gets a beautiful armbar from mount finish, with the elbow popping and all, before continuing to beat on the girl and eventually choke her unconscious. Fight likes a girl they say… you wish!

The Latest Example – Craig Jones Breaks Vinny Magalhaes’ Leg

And finally, the latest example happened just last night, in the Submission Underground 13 main event. Vinny Magalhaes, known for his “leg locks don’t work” mantra, came up against one of the nastiest leg lockers ever in Craig Jones. Suffice to say, Vinny won’t be claiming that leg locks are ineffective any longer. Given that Craig broke his leg multiple times, from what can be seen. Although Vinny did not tap immediately, he did verbally tap a bit later. I guess that’s when the pains from these painful BJ Jsubmissions starts to really show.

The Elephant In The Room

You could argue all BJJ submissions are Painful BJJ submissions. There’s a case to be made there, for sure. However, the fact remains that certain submissions really do carry a threat for serious long term consequences, and I’m not just talking about going to sleep. The broken arms and legs in the ways seen above are the exact reason why you should always tap early and often when you’re training, and especially when you are competing. Moreover, it is exactly why you need to watch out what you’re doing when you’re trying to crank on submission holds which power yo do not yet fully appreciate.

Eddie Bravo DVD Review: The Ultimate Rubber Guard

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Eddie Bravo DVD Ultimate Rubber Guard Cover

Eddie Bravo is back making instructionals, and his rubber guard is back alongside him. The latest Eddie bravo DVD to come out is the Ultimate Rubber Guard, which is pretty self-explanatory. However, since Eddie Bravo’s last rubber guard instructional is more than a decade old, you could argue this one is long overdue. After all 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu is booming, and knowing how much Eddie innovates, there is going to be decade’s worth of improvements in this instructional. I’m not a huge fan of the rubber guard myself, but I like Eddie Bravo, so this was one review I did enjoy doing.

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The Ultimate Rubber Guard – Eddie Bravo

The rubber guard has always split the opinions of the BJJ community. Given Eddie bravo’s unorthodox approach to, well, everything, people do tend to take him with a grain of salt. Well, I can vouch that his things work, whether you agree with his philosophy or not. For me, in particular, the lockdown and Truck are huge, and if it wasn’t for Bravo and his innovative approach, modern BJJ would’ve lacked a lot. The same can be said fro the rubber guard, although I don’t personally use it. However, I am reconsidering things, after seeing what this new Eddie Bravo DVD: Ultimate Rubber Guard has to offer.

10th Planet’s Defining Position

There’s no denying that the rubber guard is one position that defines 10th Planet a lot more than anything else that has come out of that academy. Stuff like those I previously mentioned, namely the lockdown and truck, as well as the twister is not really completely genuine 10-th Planet positions. They do exist in wrestling and other grappling martial arts, and Bravo has just modified them to fit BJJ.

The rubber guard, on the other hand, is a position that’s Eddie Bravo through and through. He invented it as the best possible closed guard for MMA, but it turned out to work perfectly for BJJ as well. granted, the early versions were based on Bravo’s extreme flexibility, but that later changed. Nowadays, Eddie’s rubber guard will work even if you have bad knees or are the stiffest grappler in your academy.

For those that do not know, Eddie Bravo has an online video library where he issues a few online instructionals every month. Over there, you can see how much Bravo has been working on the rubber guard. the unique thing about him is that he employes the help of his students, all of them. he listens to everyone’s feedback and tries to adjust his positions based on peoples’ ideas. That’s the definition of evolution right there. Inevitably, the rubber guard has been developing at an insane rate now that Bravo has students working on it all across the world.

The Ultimate Rubber guard Eddie Bravo DVD is now going to stir the pot even more. Now, one of the forgotten positions of BJJ is making a comeback at the biggest possible stage. I can confirm that the information inside this DVD is about never before seen concepts and moves from the rubber guard. I can also freely say that it is more than worth your time and money. But why not be the judge for yourself?

A Complete Review Of The Ultimate Rubber Guard Eddie Bravo DVD

Eddie’s new DVD follows the modern format of being a 4part instructional. If you take a look back, Bravo’s early DVDs were in a similar format, only with a lot more non-BJJ scenes cut in between the instructions. Now, what we get is a pure Jiu-Jitsu DVD, completely focused on the inner workings of the rubber guard.

The way this Eddie Bravo DVD is organized, though, is again in Eddie’s original way. Namely, two of the four parts have just one chapter, which I guess you might call a title. That’s because Bravo likes to explain everything ina cohesive way, and only divides chapters when absolutely required. The approach works perfectly for his Ultimate Rubber Guard, though.

DVD 1: Origins Of The System

Once again, consider it is Eddie Bravo doing the instructions in this BJJ DVD. What you get is completely different from anything else you might be used to. For example, much of the first DVD is about history. Bravo starts off with the origin of his latest brainchild, Combat Jiu-Jitsu. He then extends his lessons to what BJJ for MMA is, and how it works in modern times. In both situations (CJJ and BJJ for MMA) he touches upon how his rubber guard fits in and why it works.

Going forward, he covers a subject that always seems to come up when Bravo or 10th Planet is in question – Gi vs. No-Gi. As you know, Bravo is a No-Gi only man, and his entire academy trains exclusively in No-Gi. That said, he does claim the rubber guard works perfectly with the Gi as well, which I find to be logical.

Finally, there’s a bit in there on the history of the rubber guard. More precisely, on its origins and how Bravo came up with the idea. A rubber guard Omoplata example rounds of the first part of the Ultimate Rubber Guard Eddie bravo DVD.

DVD 2: The Evolution Of The Rubber Guard

The second part is one of the two parts in this instructional that ahs only one chapter. In other words, it has a title. Inside, Eddie Bravo covers just one subject. In this volume, it is the evolution of the rubber guard, from the early days and needs, all the way to modern times. Bravo starts with how the original rubber guard intended to be an MMA guard, turned into a staple of his BJJ system. Moreover, he covers the basic positioning and setups from the early rubber guard.

He then moves on to a period of rubber guard that was exclusively in a grappling context. This is where most of the innovation happened, with lots of it being contributions from his students. The rubber guard certainly reached a whole new level between it’s early intended MMA use and the system it is today.

Finally, Bravo covers how the rubber guard works in the brand new BJJ competition setting – Combat Jiu-Jitsu which is halfway (or so) between BJJ and MMA. CJJ does require a different approach to both MMA and pure Jiu-Jitsu. Stil the rubber guard seems to be the one link between the three that is easy to use everywhere, with next to no adjustments.

DVD 3: The Full Rubber Guard System

This is where things get interesting, to say the least. This is where we get to learn the Ultimate Rubber Guard secrets, and how to put it to use today. And yes, this does include BJJ, MMA, CJJ, Gi, No-Gi, and just about anything else you might think of.

Since lots of the basic positioning was covered in earlier volumes, Bravo sticks to his crazy ways of tangling up your opponents until they snap. Literally. Ther are lots of the usual submissions, like the Gogoplata, Dead Orchard as well as staple moves like the Meathook. Yeah, I know saying a Gogoplata is a usual move does raise the bar extremely high. And Bravo does deliver on it, big time. Ther are even crazier things in there, one being the Hindulotine choke. In short, you’ll find a wealth of crazy ways to torture people from the rubber guard in this Eddie Bravo DVD.

Also, there are different ways of entering the rubber guard from a host of positions. Again, there’s a lot of innovation here, even for people used to the old school rubber guard entries and setups. Whether they work or not is going to take a bit more experimentation on my part, but they do make sense. A lot of it.

DVD 4: Variations And Follow-Ups

Finally, Bravo expands into what I like to call a sneak peek in the future. The rubber guard has grown so big, that there are now variations of the guard. IN fact, I had no idea there were so many rubber guard variations. This is the one volume in this DVD that’ will benefit everyone because you get to learn how to do the rubber guard without any athletic or flexibility requirements whatsoever.

Moreover, there’s a part in here that covers the half guard from the bottom as well. While most of the information is about getting to the rubber guard, there’s so key info in there on the lockdown as well. After all, it is a 10th planet DVD, isn’t it?

Final Thoughts

Eddie Bravo usually has a lot of smart things to say, BJJ-wise. This Eddie Bravo DVD is free of all the usual Eddie Bravo instructional clutter. Conversely, it delivers pure 10th Planet Highest level Jiu-Jitsu straight from the founder himself. The Ultimate Rubber Guard is a DVD that will give you a different outlook on playing the bottom game. And, if you’re thinking about CJJ or MMA, you absolutely have to have this in your collection. Well, only if you like to win fights without getting hit.

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Systematically Attacking The Turtle Gordon Ryan DVD Review

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Gordon Ryan might have retired (however shortly) from competing, but he definitely didn’t retire from issuing DVD instructionals. Of course, everyone is more than happy to jump on and get the latest thing to come from the “King”. this time around, it is yet another installment of his “Systematically Attacking” series. What Ryan systematizes now is the turtle position, or rather how to deal with people that turtle up. Systematically Attacking The Turtle is the latest Gordon Ryan DVD, and, as far as I am concerned, the best of the bunch so far.

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Systematically Attacking The Turtle – Gordon Ryan

Systematically Attacking The Turtle Gordon Ryan DVD Cover — Techniques List

Gordon Ryan might be a one of a kind competitor and all, but he is definitely one of the world’s top BJJ coaches as well. Plus, he has really mastered the art of teaching through DVDs in the past few years. Apart from his very first fluke DVD, which was about lifting weights, all his BJJ related ones are top-level instructionals. He has several so far, but not all are aa part of the same series. After winning the ADCC he came out with a very unique type of DVD, outlining what he did in all of his history-making fights. Systematically Attacking The Turtle is the latest in a long line of Ryan DVD instructionals that are actively shaping the world of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

The King’s Reign

Ryan burst on the competition scene as part of the Danaher Death Squad during the early days of EBI. Just like with all the other members of the squad, people already knew his name on the local competition scene before Danaher gave him the all-clear to start competing at a bigger stage. Suffice to say, Ryan took the opportunity and never stopped winning since those days. After winning several EBIs he became the guy to beat and people started lining up to fight him.

That led to a host of super fights under different rulesets that really showed Ryan is something else. he didn’t stop there, trying his hand at the IBJJF No-Gi worlds, which he won with ease in 2019. The same holds true for the ADCC, which he won twice in his category, and once in the absolute. All of this pretty much confirmed that he is the ‘King” ate least when ti comes to No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu.

During the King’s reign, he also dedicated himself to sharing knowledge with the BJJ community. Earlier instructionals, apart from his early weight lifting DVD and the latest one on his ADCC success were on the subjects of guard passing and the closed guard, respectively. Both are amazing, and I’m using stuff I picked up from them on a regular basis. However, this latest Ryan DVD, “Systematically Attacking the Turtle” is something of a masterpiece, even by Ryan’s standards.

The Turtle Problem In BJJ

If there was any subject that Ryan could choose for a DVD that would guarantee success for his instructional that is the turtle position. People turtling up is one of the most annoying things that can happen in BJJ. So much so, in fact, that people have elaborate defensive concepts and even guards based on the turtle position.

In simple terms, as long as someone understands how to turtle up properly, there’s not much you can do to them apart from the circle around them. Granted, they might not have attacks, or even further escapes at their disposal, but neither will you. There’s only one way of dealing with a turtled up opponent – open that turtle up! And that’s where most people run into all kinds of challenges. Well, Systematically Attacking the Turtle is the Gordon Ryan DVD claiming to be able to change that once and for all. Does it hold up to this claim?

Systematically Attacking The Turtle Gordon Ryan DVD Review

This Gordon Ryan DVD follows the same pattern as his previous ones, particularly those in the “Systematically Attacking” series. It has 8 volumes and follows a very clear progression throughout. IN that sense, every DVD covers a different aspect of the turtle, starting with some really key basic principles and concepts. he then goes on to explore how he approaches opening up turtled opponents.

I also have to mention that Systematically Attacking the turtle is Ryan’s technically richest instructional so far. There are more than a dozen chapters in each of the 8 volumes, covering insane levels of detail that blend the best of BJJ, wrestling, and Judo, given how popular the turtle position can be in all three grappling martial arts. Before he wraps up, Ryan uses the final two volumes to go over some rolling, part of it including breakdown commentaries and including a lot of turtle situations that often come up in training.

Part 1

In the opening sequence, Ryan goes over an introduction to the turtle position and starts at the very beginning – grips. From there on, he goes into ways of breaking down turtled up opponents into side control, which is one of the best outcomes versus the turtle. He also covers seating back and going to the back as well.

The following suit is a submission overview from the so-called “seated head and arm” position. Fro there, as is usual with any Ryan DVD, there are a lot of options that depend on the reactions of the opponent. Something that really made sense for me was in the final few chapters of the first volume of Systematically attacking the Turtle. Those address the concept of diagonal control, particularly with the help of hooks. The final chapter focuses on how to follow people when they attempt to roll out of the turtle.

Part 2

How do wrestlers deal with turtled up opponents? They do “rides’. That is something most of us in BJJ isn’t really accustomed to using. Well, Ryan and this DVD, in particular, is about to change that for good. The second volume starts off with a cross-body ride that opens up a bunch of other opportunities. From there on, Ryan goes into several different ways of inserting the second hook in on different opponents under different circumstances.

Another huge wrestling staple makes an appearance in this portion of the instructional. it is the half Nelson, or the Power half nelson, to be particular. Ryan offers different ways of breaking people down with it, as well as opening up submissions, like Juji Gatame and triangles.

Part 3

This is where Gordon Ryan start exploring the so-called open turtle position. This is a more dynamic version of the turtle and henceforth, one that requires different means of attack. Whenever partners decide to open parts of the turtle themselves you need to capitalize, and Ryan ahs the perfect recipe. He demonstrates how to get hooks in and how to act from the reverse tight waist. This is a position that is quickly becoming my best friend, particularly given that it offers great ways of getting to the back.

When it comes to submissions, there are several in this part of the Systematically Attacking the Turtle DVD that we usually do not associate with Ryan. For example, there’s a calf slicer there, followed by a hammerlock, both executed from the cross-body ride. There’s also a freestyle guillotine in there to really round off the attacking options in this part of this Gordon Ryan DVD.

Part 4

Another part of this DVD is extremely important, at least according to me. In it, Ryan clarifies the open and closed below dilemma and how it pertains to the turtle position. He also shows a crazy cool way of knocking people over to their hip that’s extremely logical and easy to do.

A reason why I particularly enjoyed this part of the DVD is that Ryan explains a lot of the stuff we usually do, but goes in really deep into every possible detail. He goes over the head and arm roll through, using strangles to break people down and some more Half nelson craziness. The rear body lock also makes an appearance here, offering alternatives even when people try to stand up from the turtle position.

Part 5

This one is easily the most fun volume of the entire Systematically Attacking the Turtle Gordon Ryan DVD. It has to do with the Crucifix position. It is one of the most devastating positions you can enter against people that are turtled up. Ryan explains every step fo the way, from trapping the near arm to transitioning to the Crucifix via the crackdown and the Phoenix eye.

One of the hardest things about the Crucifix position is positioning the legs correctly so that the opponent doesn’t slide away. Ryan has several checkpoints in that sense that have really helped me clean up the way I set up the crucifix. Several more ways of breaking people down follow, including a few rolling ones. Of course, there’s a couple of submissions in there as well, in the form of armbars and strangles.

Part 6

Speaking of fun volumes, this one is also very entertaining. However, this is the one that’s more on the advanced side of things, as it requires you to have timing already developed. In this volume, Ryan goes over countering rolls from the turtle and using them to keep the position open and make your opponent vulnerable. The subjects include near side rolling and the maki Komi roll. Moreover, there are options in terms of opponents standing up with both their outside or inside leg as a lead. This is a shorter volume than the others in this DVD, but one of the most important ones to master when it comes to dealing with the turtle.

Part 7 and 8

The reason I’m going over the final two volumes of the Systematically Attacking the Turtle Gordon Ryan DVD together is that they both include footage of Ryan rolling. There are six rolls in each volume, with the first half of them coming with a breakdown commentary by Ryan himself. Also, in the first six rolls, Ryan spends a lot more time breaking turtled opponents down, compared to the final chapter, where he rolls openly with his partners. This is a great way of seeing how his system works and how and when he uses the concepts and techniques outlined above.

Conclusion

Once again, a great Gordon Ryan DVD. Yet, compared to previous instructionals, I have to say that Systematically Attacking The Turtle is Ryan’s best work so far, without a doubt. It is organized perfectly, tackles a very important subject, and introduces other grappling martial arts solutions into the frame. In other words, the perfect grappling DVD.

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Marcelo Garcia: The Complete North South Choke DVD Review

BJJ World

Mracelo Garcia North South Choke DVD Review cover

ell, if there’s one positive thing about the COVID-19 isolation it has to be that there is time to go over the new Marcelo Garcia DVDs. Yeah, that’s right, there’s more than one new Marcelo Garcia BJJ instructional. In fact, if his previous one was good (which it was- read the review), then this one is that much better. Namely, Marcelo has talked about most of his favorite positions in detail before, like the butterfly guard and the guillotine, for example. However, the North-South Choke, particularly the way he does it, has remained a closely guarded secret. Until now. Marcelo’s latest instruction is The complete North-South Choke DVD and it is the BJJ instructional of the year if you ask me.

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The Complete North-South Choke – Marcelo Garcia

You don’t have to like the North-South Choke in order to become good at it. YOu can use it as an opportunistic attack, given how often you’ll end up in the North-South position anyway. Regardless if it is your go-to attack or just an ace up your sleeve, you want to learn how to do it from the best. And there’ no person alive that’s better at the North-South choke than Marcelo Garcia. the thing is, he never had a fully detailed instructional on the subject, but rather just bits and pieces over the years. Finally, his Complete North-South Choke DVD is here to clear up everything about this amazingly efficient BJJ strangle.

Marcelo’s Best Kept Secret

Marcelo Garcia is one of the most exciting grapplers to ever live. In fact, I still have him right up there as the GOAT, at least until such a time that he and Ryan battle it out. And with Marcelo hinting about coming out of retirement, it may just happen. However, we’ll have to wait on it, obviously longer than expected with this world under a quarantine situation. And in the meantime, Marcelo sure has a way of keeping our minds off the fact we’re stranded at home with no Jiu-Jitsu.

I’m still going through lots of the detail in Marcelo’s latest Butterfly Guard DVD. It is an amazing piece of instructional and I actually decided to set up most of the classes in my academy according to it. Once we go back, and have a guard on the curriculum, of course. That said, I was always interested in how he sets up that dreaded North-South choke that has forced so many of the highest level grapplers to tap. And so far, marcel sure did a great thing of not exposing his secrets.

To be honest, I have no idea why he changed his mind, but the Complete North-South Choke DVD is now out, and every juicy detail Marcelo has is in there. Finally!

The Elusive North South Choke

Have you ever tried pulling off a North-South choke? It is not easy, by all means. the strangle looks deceptively simple but is quite complex in essence. One thing to consider is that you don’t have an arm in to use triangle choking mechanics (although Marcelo does show a variation of that in the Complete North-South Choke DVD). Being a D’arce and guillotine man myself, I’ve always wondered how Marcel got it to work so perfectly.

My take on this elusive choke was to try and find instructions on it by Marcelo’s black belts. It worked to a point, particularly given the information Emily Kwok had to provide. However, things were still not completely clear. And now that the Complete North-South Choke DVD is here, it is clear why – there’s so much more to this choke than I, and pretty much everyone, originally thought.

Marcelo Garcia: The Complete North-South Choke DVD Review

The essentials in the Complete North-South Choke DVD are simple. You get a pristine BJJ instructional, divided into four parts. Marcelo shares groundbreaking concepts and tips on how to set up, finish, recover, and basically, pull off the North-South choke every time you go after it. and it includes some extremely interesting variations as well.

The instructional opens up with the basics, and move son to explore different position setups later on. Past the halfway point, It is all about variations, both in finishing and re-countering your opponent’s reactions. The final volume covers some advanced positional setups as well as adjustments to make the choke virtually inescapable.

Part 1

After a short intro, it is right down to business. the first thing Marcelo Garcia shares about the North-South Choke is how to block the opponent’s arms. Before you even think fo setting the choke up, you need to use your chest to make sure you can adjust the finer aspects of it. A crucial and never before shared detail right off the bat.

Alignment, positioning, and grip concepts come next. As suspected, there’s a lot more to the grip than just Gable gripping your palms together. In fact, there is a surprising amount of details in the elbow positioning department too. Oh, and when you get to the part about using the toes to get a base, you’ll have your mind blown. Expect to spend some time letting the information in this part sink in.

Part 2

Setting up the North-South choke from the top half guard? It can not only be done, but it is also extremely efficient. But why stay there? the Complete North Sout hChoke DVD will teach you to get it from everywhere, including the mount. In fact, there are entries from just about any top position.

The second portion of this part covers a few more crucial details, the likes of countering the head turn and sneaking the arm underneath the head. It is probably redundant to mention that this instructional is No-Gi as this chokes works best without the Gi. Angles of attack are also a subject of this volume, as are re-gripping options that help you make the choke even tighter.

Part 3

In part 3 of this Marcelo Garcia DVD, you’ll find one of the most interesting North-South choke variations ever – the arm in North-South choke. I never really thought it is a high percentage choke, before now. Now, it is the one thing I’m itching to actually try against people on the mats.

Apart from this variation, there’s lots of information about introducing your legs into the fight. When it comes to battling your opponent’s arms, you’ll be doing that for most of your time in the North-South Choke. Marcelo likes to sue the knees to break grips, clear the arms, and even deal with frames.

Finally, there’ a beyond cool transition to the North-South from the seatbelt escape that will have people holding their heads. Moreover, there’s also a way to get the North-South off of a closed guard opening. The Complete North-South Choke DD is simply unbelievable.

Part 4

The final portion of the instructional has a lot of info inside on getting to the strangle from the knee on belly position. It is a position that opens up the choke, but, Marcel Garcia has some new (to all of us) details to share on how to make your opponents give the choke up.

There are also a lot of transitions from armbar,s through arm trapping, and even side headlocks that end in the North-South choke. A special mention to the double arm wrap, as it is something I can’t wait to introduce in my game. A section everyone will enjoy is the one on finishing the choke with just one arm, which is something you will want to do after watching this Marcel Garcia DVD.

Wrapping the entire Complete North-South CHoke DVD up is a portion on holding on and making the strangle work even when the opponent trie to get away using momentum escapes. Priceless!

Final Words

As you can see from our review, Marcelo Garcia holds nothing back in this instructional. It is the ultimate guide to everything North-South choke related, and as such, is mandatory for everyone that trains grappling. Think of this DVD as you did of Danaher’s leg lock instructional – finally, the secret is out via the Complete North-South Choke DVD. You simply can’t miss this one!

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“Shoot To Kill: Wrestle, Scramble, Submit” Garry Tonon DVD Review

BJJ World

The Lion Killer is back again, doubling up on his tally for BJJ DVD instructionals. While it was pretty unexpected of him (although entirely understandable) to release an escapes DVD as his first one, his second instructional comes as no surprise. Garry Tonon has, arguably, the best wrestling in BJJ today, and perhaps even MMA. Time will tell for the latter, but after his displays at the ADCC, there’s no doubt when it comes to Jiu-Jitsu. Now, his take on wrestling for BJJ is neatly organized in the Shoot To Kill: Wrestle, Scramble, Submit Garry Tonon DVD.

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Be honest, what’s better than a Garry Tonon DVD while stuck them in isolation? With the protective measures slowly but surely starting to loosen up around Europe it is only a question of time until we’re all back on the mats. And that means this is the perfect time to check out The Shoot To Kill Garry Tonon DVD which has 8 parts and about 10 hours running time, meaning there’s a lot of material to cover.

The Best Wrestling in BJJ?

In terms of Garry Tonon and his BJJ success, I doubt anyone needs an introduction. If so, stop reading this Garry Tonon DVD review and pick up Shoot to kill: Wrestle, Scramble, Submit immediately. No really, you need ti more than anyone. If you’re aware who Tonon is and what he has accomplished, you’re most likely already itching to learn more about his talk about wrestling style.

Garry is a very complete grappler, although, due to his association with the Danaher Death Squad people often think of him as only a leg locker. Tonon is much more than just that, and he has one of the most exciting grappling styles in the world. He definitely is a submission machine, but his arsenal extends far past just leg locking. On top of that, he has not been caught in a submission in quite some time as well. These are all aspects of his game we expected to see in his ADCC performance, where he actually entered unplanned.

What we got to see, though, was far more than that. Now fighting in MMA (undefeated in 5 with 3 submission and two KO victories) Tonon has developed a crazy wrestling game that is effective, unpredictable, and very impressive. His match against Renato Canuto, declared the best one at the 2019 ADCC, is a great example of how far Tonon has come in terms of incorporating world-class wrestling into his game. More importantly, he has done it in a way that compliments his BJJ game, instead of just going for pure wrestling.

Wrestling For Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

Wrestling for Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is different from your usual wrestling. A double leg is a double leg, you might say, but it is not quite as simple. The different ruleset and options in BJJ mean that you can’t just approach wrestling in the same manner. Mechanically speaking, the moves are the same, but atactically speaking, everything needs to be adjusted to fit BJJ. Moreover,e it needs to take into account whether it is Gi or No-GI, the opponent’s background, how to factor in submission, and even scrambles. In other words, everything that is in the Shoot to Kill Gaarry Tonon DVD.

Will wrestling help your BJJ? Definitely. However, if you use it smartly, as Tonon does, it will be much more beneficial than if you’re a former wrestler relying on your skills way too much. As you might know, there are ways to deal with wrestlers in BJJ, but there aren’ t many to deal with people that have efficient wrestling for BJJ. Again, that Tonon vs. Canuto fight is a wonderful example of this.

Garry Tonon DVD Review: “Shoot To Kill: Wrestle, Scramble, Submit”

This is a unique instructional, as you’d expect from a Garry Tonon DVD. just like with any DDS release so far, it is long, featuring 8 volumes. Watching it I got the impression Garry could go on for at least 8 more, but I guess what we get is more than enough. Frankly, there’s loads of information inside, and all of it is brilliantly organized in a unique system. The only thing to consider is that this is Garry’s system, and you will need to use what he teaches to improve your game, instead of imitating what he does.

From getting behind and his signature duck unders, Garry takes us through the single and double leg to rolling and flying AshiGarami entries and even throws in a few Judo throws for No-Gi as well. And that is all just in the first four volumes of the Shoot to Kill DVD. The second half of the instructional covers front headlocks, cradles, Kimura traps, funk wrestling, and a few original Tonon-style drills.

Introduction And Getting Behind

If you’ve ever seen Garry Tonon wrestle, you’ve probably noticed that he really likes getting to the back even from standing. The opening volume of the Shoot to Kill Garry Tonon DVD addresses this specific aspect of his unique wrestling game for Jiu-Jitsu.

Before he gets into all that, though, Garry does offer a baseline. In that sense, the fundamentals he addresses have to do with posture, momentum, push and pull dynamics, etc. there’s a really cool section on creating opportunities by using wrestling basics like snap downs and drags. Of course, lots of arm drags and duck unders follow as Tonon outlines his favorite setups and combinations.

Double/Single Leg Takedowns And Body Locks

I think this is the volume most people will turn to, as it contains information on what people use anyway – double and single legs. Duck unders are fun but will take a lot of training and drilling. The information on the “usual” takedowns, though, is something you can directly implement in your game, especially if you’re already using leg grabs. Tonon starts off with single legs, starting with the basics and heading into variation he used in different matches including a “Canuto variation”.

A few blocks and throw bys, mostly in the form of Russian ties provide a break before moving on to double leg takedown.s there’s not a lot of philosophy here, with the focus on turning the corner, which will set up Tonon’s famous pile driver double leg.

Wrapping up is a portion on the rear body lock. As I said, Toonlieks to get behind his opponents. And the rear body lock offers both great control and a perfect spot for takedown setups. From getting to the 50/50 to using momentum to break opponents down, you get some funky options to take people down.

Ashi Garami Attacks

A Garry Tonon DVD would not be complete without at least one volume covering leg locks, would it? Well, volume three is that part of the Shoot To Kill: Wrestle, Scramble, Submit instructional. In that sense, Tonon refers to Ashi Garmi entries in a wrestling sense as AshiGarami pulls. Simply put Garry shows how you can get an AshiGarmi off of every time up, form front headlocks, through the body lock all the way to cradles. Low singles, overhooks, underhooks, Imanari rolls, and some crazy AnshiGaramitranistions will; provide you with more options than you can really ever use in a match. There’s no chapter here worth pointing out – the entire volume is pure gold.

Rolling And Flying Sambo/Judo

Remember the kaniBasamiTonon pulled off against Edwin Najmi at the ADCC? Well, in this portion of the instructional you’ll not only learn that but an additional 7 different Kani Basami (scissor takedowns) variations that Tonon likes to use.

On top of that, he also covers the SUmiGaeshi, and in particular, the Yoko SumiGaeshi. This is a variation of the throw that really scuppers any defense or counter an opponent might try and use. That said, the Sumi is great to use with the Gi, and Garry’s modification for No-Gi is what really makes a difference here. Oh, and he uses it mostly in a defensive manner, s takedown counter to some common attacks.

Oh, and If you’ve ever seen Sambo guys do those crazy rolls into kneebars, then you’re in for a real treat. The victor roll is something Tonon excels at, and just like with the KaniBasami, he offers a bunch of variations and some interesting details that are very easy to miss otherwise.

Front Headlock

A staple of wrestling, and something Garry really goes for quite often. The front headlock is actually the best wrestling position that you can use in BJJ. It offers control takedowns, submission entries, transitions… you name it. But then again, there’s the wrestling front headlock, and then, there’s Tonon version. Standing guillotines – check. Cradles from front headlock – check. Flying Triangles – check. And that’s before I even mention the falling armbar and transitions to the back.

Cradles, Kimuras And Triangles

This is where the real fun in this Garry Tonon DVD begins. The sixth volume of the Shoot to Kill: Wrestle, Scramble, Submit instructional covers some of the most useful things you can do in terms of submission when wrestling. However, before showing you how to surprisingly tap people, Tonon des cover a few cradle basics first. Because why not torture your opponent’s before you submit them, right?

The kimura section is the largest one in this volume, covering a host of different setups. Some accounts to takedown attempts, while others work ina more offensive manner. The taiOtoshi setups is marvelous, as is the entire rear body lock sequence.

With the triangles, it is Garry Tonon extravaganza all day. The sie triangle is going to become something everyone uses now that this instructional is out. A few sneaky setups round off an impressive submission game based on wrestling setups.

Scrambling

If you thought Ben Askren had a funk wrestling style, this is the volume to change your mind. Garry Tonon’s funk is different, as it welcomes scrambles more than any other grappling style out there. In fact, you’ll learn just that – how to thrive in scrambles and unexpected situations.

However, it is not just about scrambles. In this volume, Garry covers Granby rolls, the Maki Komi Roll as well as his own brand of funk wrestling. After you learn the proper rolling mechanics, going for things like funk rolls makes lots of sense, especially when you’re all about iniv9ting scrambles instead of avoiding them. In other words, this is the volume that really contains the makings of Garry Tonon’s unique wrestling style for BJJ.

Drills And Rolling

Having a final volume that has narrated rolls and certain drill sequences to help tie everything together has become a mark of the Danaher Death Squad’s instructionals. This Garry Tonon DVD is no different, with lots of focus on single-leg variations and the turtle position. There is lots of live work in this volume (all of it, in fact) but done at a speed that allows you to identify everything Tonon presented in earlier parts of the Shoot To Kill DVD. Once again, a perfectly put-together BJJ instructional.

All In All

Whichever way you look at it, a Garry Tonon DVD is a great way to learn grappling and p[ass time inneresting fashion. Garry is always entertaining, both in his style and the way he teaches. The 8-part Shoot to Kill, Wrestle, Scramble, Submit instructional is one that will most likely change the landscape of wrestling for BJJ. Either that or the lucky ones who own it will dominate everyone ina very funky and impressive fashion.

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The Highest Percentage Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Submissions

BJJ World

What’s your favorite BJJ submission? What about the one that works the most for you? If you take a close look you might just notice that the two are not the same. As time passes by, you come to see that in Jiu-Jitsu, certain submissions work a lot more reliably than others. Now, there’s no real rule here, as people are differently built. Moreover, they have varying degrees of success with different submissions. However, have you wondered what the highest percentage Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu submissions are across the board? It is about time we answered that question.

When it comes to the highest percentage Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu submissions, the key is how we determine their percentage rate. An often-used method is asking people what their highest percentage submission is and extrapolating an answer from there. Unfortunately, this does not give a real picture. What works is looking at competition data, and the highest percentage finishes over a period that is as long as possible. To that extent, there’ is not much information available, but after some painstaking research, we seem to have a winner.

The Highest Percentage Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Submissions Of All Time

It would be hard to determine the real percentage of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu submissions over the entire period of the sport’s existence. The reason is simple – som of the moves have been around since day one, while other sare newer. Moreover, rulesets have discredited certain moves over the years. Heel hooks, for example, are a really great submission that appears to be a lot less effective than it is. All this in consideration though, calculating percentages is precise work that doesn’t leave much to the imagination. That means that although we’re aware of heel hooks and similar subs that are “underground” work when it comes to our highest percentage submissions selection, they won’t really rank high.

Out of the moves you’d expect to be ranked the highest, the triangle choke, the armbar, and rear-naked choke are probably on most people’s minds. That’s true, although you might just end up surprised as to which one is actually the undisputed number one. Others you’d expect to feature are Kimuras, Guillotines, D’arce chokes, lapel/collar chokes, certain foot locks, etc. They all have a place in the statistics, just probably not as high as you might expect.

That said, statistics shouldn’t be the basis upon which you decide your highest percentage or favorite move. Statistics only show what people use the most. When you realize that most BJJ practitioners in the world are white/blue belts, it is easy to see how the fundamental moves end up ranking the highest on the list. It is just one of the finer intricacies of calculating the highest percentage of Brazilian JIu-Jitsu submissions that we encountered.

The Undisputed Number One

I have to be honest, the number one BJJ submission, in terms of percentage at competition surprised me as well. I’d have thought that with all the hype the rear-naked choke is the most reliable and often used one. I guess all that hand fighting does the trick because the RNC does not come even close to the leader – the armbar.

In one study that analyzed 500 matches, dividing them equally according to belt level (a hundred of each belt level) and Gi and No-Gi (50/50). The armbar ended up “winning” with a convincing 123 finishes, or 25% of all Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu submissions. What’s more impressive is that it was the highest-ranking submission in Gi, NO-Gi, and evenly used at every belt level, white to black.

A similar study analyzed over 4.000 matches, in the period between 2015 and 2017. This time, though, they were all sub-only matches. The results show that the armbar rules with 1002 finishes, or once again, around 25% out of all the submissions.

Data obtained from the IBJJF World Championships between 2015 and 2017 further confirms the armbar’s supremacy. The number of finishes is 13, 12, and 9 armbar finishes, respectively. Chokes from the back do appear more in number in each of these editions of the Worlds. However, they include all types of chokes from the back, meaning that when looking at one particularly submission technique, the armbar remains unbeaten.

Top Contenders

Along with the armbar, there are two more Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu submissions that account for more than 50% of all submission finishes in all of the studies we could come across. Those two moves are the triangle choke and the rear-naked choke.

The triangle actually comes in a close second, when it comes to the study of 500 matches with just above 15% or 76 finishes. When it comes to sub-only matches in the 4.000 matches data analysis, the triangle choke appears 467 times (11.6 %). During the three editions of the IBJJF worlds (2015-2017), the triangle choke comes in second and third compared to all other Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu submissions used.

The Rear naked choke or the submission most people (me included) thought to be the highest percentage I actually coming in a close third place. Out of the 500 mixed belts Gi and No-Gi matches, it featured a total of 60 times or around 12%. Interestingly enough, when looking at 4.000 sub-only matches, the Kimura beats the RNC ever so slightly. The choke caused 382 taps, just four less than the Kimura. At the black belt level in the Mundials, the rear-naked choke is put into the “chokes from the back” category and exact numbers are hard to extrapolate.

Up And Comers

While these Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu submissions are not really up and comers but have been around for a while, I do expect us to see more of them in the future. Who knows, one of them might just upset some of the top contenders. I have my money on heel hooks and the Brabo, but that is because I’m highly biased towards the submissions

Among the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu submissions that are very much worth your effort, the bow and arrow choke, guillotine choke, and ankle locks are things you definitely need to add to your arsenal. They account for a good chunk of submissions in both GI, No-Gi, IBJJF, and submission-only match finishes.

Closely following are my personal favorites. The Brabo and heel hooks, along with all the other leg locks (toe holds and kneebars) remain underused, mostly due to rule restrictions. The Ezekiel choke, with total use of 10 (2%) out of 500 matches and 135 taps out of 4.000 matches (3%) rounds off the most effective subs you can use in competition, across all belts and platforms. Everything else appears too little to really factor in as a high percentage submission. That said, this does not mean that all other subs are inferior.

Final Words

As I said, there are not many sources that really compile statistical data in a way that makes much sense. However, out of the sources, we could find and trust, given the methodology used and the number of matches analyzed, it is fair to say that the conclusion is clear – the “basics” work best when it comes to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu submissions. And out of all those basics, looking for a straight armbar is statistically, your best bet to get a tap.

Turkish Get Up Workout For Grappling

BJJ World

Everyone loves kettlebells. What’s not to love in swinging around an iron cannonball that has a handle attached to it? Apart from the kettlebell looking extremely cool, as well as you looking all manly and stuff while training with it, it is also a highly effective training tool. After all, it is something that Russian powerlifters and wrestlers have been using for three centuries now. And there is one exercise that you can do with a kettlebell, that’s pretty much the only one you’ll ever need, particularly as a grappler. In that sense, let’s look at how a Turkish Get Up workout for grappling can help you with your performance on the mats.

The Turkish get up is a complicated training exercise that requires a lot of dexterity, spatial orientation, coordination, strength, etc. In short, it is not an easy one to perform, and might even be dangerous if you do not know what you are doing. You will be holding a heavy iron ball over your head while performing it, so this comes as no surprise. As afar as an effective workout for grappling goes, just mastering the Turkish get up is more than enough. However, today we’ll go a bit further, and provide you with a Turkish get up workout that will challenge even the strongest among us.

The Turkish Get Up

As an exercise, the Turklsih get up dates back (most likely) to ancient times when Truskish wrestlers were preparing for competitions. What they’ used as weight is anybody’s guess, but combined with the Russian kettlebell we have the exercise we all love to hate today. Seriously, the Turkish get up is the Tabata of kettlebell exercises. it is extremely effective and rewarding, but nobody really loves doing them for prolonged periods of time.

The exercise is basically taking you through all levels of motion while keeping your entire body engaged. The focus of engagement is on the core at all times and other body parts get activated throughout the motion at different stages.

The Turkish get up starts with you lying on your back. you only need one kettlebell, which you hold in one arm and simply bench press it. From there on, your arm stays straight until you’re in the same position again. The first step is lifting your body up, while propping on your gree hand. First, you go with the elbow and then the palm. The next step is usually hard for people that don’t grapple, but it’ll come easy to Jiu-Jiteros. It is a technical stand up. However, you can’t just swing your leg back.

It is more than enough to just get on the knee of your back leg. From there on you can focus on getting up to standing, with perfect posture. At all times, the kettlebell stays above you, meaning you’re now in a position where you’re holding a kettlebell with one arm straight over your head. And that’s just halfway through – you now need to go back to prone the same way you came up.

It is evident how a Turkish get up workout for grappling makes sense, right?

An Unusual Turkish Get Up Workout

So, how do you go about setting up a Turkish get up workout? For starters, it is enough to know that this exercise is really all you need for a killer workout. It looks deceptively easy until you give it a try. Plus the more weight you can use, the more challenging it will be.

As far as pointers go, the most important one has to do with safety – always keep your eyes on the kettlebell. From the moment you bench press it to the moment you set it beside you, you need to keep your eyes on it. Secondly, fo course, make sure you can do the entire movement with no or very little weight first.

As for the workout, just alternating sides with a 24kg kettlebell for let’s say 20 minutes will have you panting and acting in ways you haven’t felt before. But there is a much better Turkish get up workout for grappling. Instead of simply going through the Turkish get up motion, you actually add a bit of dynamic work by doing a press at every stage of getting up and going down. That means apart from the first bench press, you do a press every time you reach a stage, from elbow propping, through basing on your palm, getting to a kneeling standup, etc. You get the point.

And, if you really want to spice it up, the moment you’re up, keep the kettlebell overhead and do a walk. Go for time or distance, regardless, before coming back, and going down, not forgetting to do a press at every stage of the movement.

More than Just A Workout For Grappling

When it comes to workouts for grappling, people usually think they have to be technical, involve specific patterns and pieces of gear. Well, you can actually tick all these boxes (and more) with just a simple kettlebell. For grapplers, doing a Turkish get up workout has way more benefits than just the obvious strength and conditioning focus:

Movement – the technical stand up, along with a hip escape and moving with a weight on just one side of your body is immense for Jiu-Jitsu. It is not just the pattern, but also loading that occurs exactly like that in plenty of situations during rolling.
Balance. There’s no real philosophy about this. You have unilateral placement of the weight, meaning you require balance and developing stability to manage to get up with it. Moreover, adding the presses introduces, even more, balancing, and coordination challenges.
Grappling strength – strength is strength, some would say, but it is not really so. In BJJ, you need the strength to both hold on, stabilize, and move something, or yourself at the same time. From grip strength to static and dynamic, and even eccentric strength, there’s nothing left untouched by a Turkish get up.

Final Thoughts

Wrapping up, try our Turkish get up workout for grappling. In fact, do the presses and the waiter walk as we discussed, alternating sides once you’re back down for 20 minutes. Start off light, though, with safety being your primary concern. You’ll not only develop a newfound respect for kettlebells, but you’ll be amazed at how your grappling movement and skills sharpen up as well.

Jiu-Jitsu Stereotypes: Which One Are You?

BJJ World

The BJJ community is a very coo land laid back one, not unlike the surfing community. And still, we do have that urge to put people In categories, even if we do not really mean much by that. Jiu-Jitsu stereotypes definitely exist and it is easy to find most of them on any given mat space around the world. That said, they’re not to be taken seriously (except in certain situations) and are actually quite fun to try and figure out. The important thing is to remember they’re just that, stereotypes, and by no means, they depict the people that we categorize accordingly. So, what is the JIu-Jitsusterotype you think you fit in?

When you come to think of it, most people really do fall in a certain category, especially in BJJ. Spend enough time on the mats and you’ll notice that certain types of people seem to be repeating throughout the years. These are the JIu-Jitsusteroptypes that are common and are fun to recognize after a while. With that in mind, if you are а coach or academy owner, some of them do need to be handled, when I come to hygiene or behavior. However, most of them are actually ubiquitous as sweat pools after hard rolling sessions, and they do make BJJ even more interesting.

The One-Of-A-Kind BJJ Community

Whichever way you take a look at the BJJ community there’s no denying it is one that nobody minds being a part of. Grapplers are some of the most laid back, cool, and interesting people to be around. Well most of the time, anyway. With this isolation and pandemic thing going on, BJJ folks are getting as jumpy as the rest of the world with no training available.

That said, getting tapped out and having your ego checked on a daily basis does produce some really easy-going folks. That and the addictive nature of Jiu-jitsu are a winning combination, one that is behind a really cool worldwide community. As fun as it all is, there’s also a certain measure of reality hough, knowing that you’re actually playing murder with the people you’re hanging out with. And, even though the community is usually judgment-free and all, there are still the Jиu-Jitsu stereotypes to consider.

So, before I go one, let me reiterate a point for all you social justice snowflakes out there. Iф you recognize your self in one of the JIu-Jitsu stereotypes and you don’t like it, it’s not my, or anyone’s fault. You might just be in there фor a good reason, and knowing it, might just even prompt you to change something. OR not, the choice is yours. The bottom line is that looking at the Jiu-Jitsu stereotypes is a fun thing to do, and nobody thinks less of anyone as a person or grappler because of it. That said, let’s see where you fit the best.

The Common Jiu-Jitsu Stereotypes

The way I see the JIu-Jitsusterotypes is as every other stereotype out there – it’s a broad category of people that share certain affinities or traits. In most BJJ cases, those are positive or funny ones and are usually the source of plenty of in-academy jokes. There are a few, though, mostly pertaining to hygiene and other important BJJ rules of conduct that really does merit a quick change. However, instructors, coaches, and even teammates are already well versed in recognizing those pesky ones and setting them straight, so I nth end, it is all fun and games after all.

Edward Scissor Hands/Feet

I’ll start off with eth folks that annoy me the most, or second-most. AS grapplers, we don’t mind the occasional scrap, cut, or bruise. It is a form of fighting after all. However, what I signed up for is Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and not Kali knife fighting. So, when a person with untrimmed (to put it mildly) finger and/or toenails starts scratching around for dear life, it does tend to become uncomfortable (again, putting it mildly).

Trim your nails people! Nobody likes to roll with Edward Scissor Hands! As obvious as this sounds, folks like this are all around BJJ gyms and are certainly one of the most common JIu-Jistusterotypes. Hint: you don’t want to be known as one of them!

The Teacher’s Pet

Here’s a fun one. Just like in school, every BJJ gym has a proverbial teacher’s pet. It is that person (or persons) that seems to be extremely close to instructors (or wants to be). They come in early, try to insert themselves in everything coaches do or say, and sometimes even take a disturbingly huge amount of privates. These types of grapplers do come across as interesting, particularly because they are in a category of their own within the ecosystem of BJJ. They roll with a select few, tend to warm up differently, and try to find recognition for everything they do in every possible moment.

The BJJ Fanatics Fanatic

Let’s face it, the time of YouTube BJJ warriors is pretty much done. Enter the BJJ DVD instructional horder. Instead of just looking at short clips, people now have the opportunity of watching a 4 tp 8 part specialized BJJ DVD on just about any subject. And the ones that get the most attention, are, of course, the ones that have nothing to do with fundamentals or the stuff that people learn in class.

It’s all cool when it comes to using any of the nutty moves and ideas people get from instructionals in a roll, they often come up short though. The curious thing is that this is one of the Jiu-Jitsu stereotypes that is on the rise, despite the fact that flying guard passes and nutty lapel guards do not yield any tangible results. It is fun smashing them, though.

Miss And Mister BJJ

As with everything that is popular, and I daresay BJJ is definitely popular, there are those folks that are all about the appearance. Don’t get me wrong, they can be deadly grapplers on the mats, but that doesn’t mean grappling comes first for them.

These are the girls and boys with pristine hairstyles, sometimes makeup, nails polished, ironed Gis, and numerous futile attempts at making their Gi and belt stay tucked and neat throughout an entire class. Matching colors of finger tape and GI or belt are also not uncommon.

BJJ Boris

I’m using the term Boris quite freely here, inspired by a poster we have at the gym by Bad Sports. It depicts a grappler that fits in one of those Jiu-Jitsu stereotypes you don’t want to be associated with. I other words, everything that is a DON’T in BJJ hygiene, starting and often ending, with a smelly, pungent, and strangely soft Gi. Even though the strange color of the Gi, something between white and black sie enough, it is the smell that marks them.

Interestingly enough, these people are oftentimes not dirty themselves. They just have an aversion to washing their Gi, and miraculously, have the uncanny ability to ignore the different scents that radiate from them. Hint: Don’t be this guy/girl!

The Unsung World Champ

Perhaps one day, there will be songs about this type of Jiu-JItsusterotype. However, until (or if) such a tie comes, they seem to be taking BJJ rolls as seriously as the black belt absolute Mundial finals. It is all about going al lout, full speed, no mercy with them. In most cases, it is not a spazz we’re talking about, but actually a quite well-rounded grappler that has impressive technical skills. It is just the approach that is one that really makes them stand out in the environment your regular BJJ gym, which has people from all walks of life trying to roll around for fun.

Vlad The Impaler

As far as Jiu-Jitsu stereotypes go, you actually want to possess the skills of this guy/girl. This is the type of person that you never want to gain any sort of top control, let alone end up past your guard. They will hold, pin and grind you down using all their knowledge of angles, pressure, and in some cases (insert evil laugh here) catch wrestling stuff that will make you miserable. If you’ve ever tapped to pressure, you know the type I’m talking about. Interestingly enough, these are usually smaller grapplers that end up being real torturers from top positions.

The Exceptionals

This is the category for those that seem like exceptions from every rule. The old guy you think is feeble and has no cardio that actually has incredible amounts of “old man strength”. The huge powerlifter that you expect to smash and throw you around that ends up actually being the most technical person in the gym. The tiny girl you’re looking out for, only to end up tangled like a pretzel with no limbs to tap. In other words, everyone that seems a bit awkward and out of place before you slap and bump. What happens afterward is BJJ 101, though.

The Guru

One of the most universally annoying JIu-Jitsu stereotypes out there. This is the person that loves coaching, even though they have absolutely no idea what they’re talking about. It is never a higher belt involved in coaching. Usually, this is a white or blue belt that just loves to correct everyone and constantly coach people, even during rolling. While lower belts will listen out of respect there’s a universal feeling of being annoyed. They can be tolerated, as long as they do not stop rolls, particularly when they’re in a bad spot to try and “teach. That’s a no go!

The “Naked” Warrior

I might have been in this category for a while (and probably still secretly am). This one is for all the NO-Gi nuts that have to train in Gi BJJ academies. Coming in with No-Gi gear for a Gi class, or open mat often has people looking at you like you’re out of place. That’s actually because in most cases, you are out of place. While I love No_Gi and belive that every academy should offer No-Gi classes as well as Gi, if you’re in a gi class, then dress accordingly. You can always forgo grabbing the Gi and roll with No-Gi grips only.

There’s also the literal Naked Warrior, the one coming in with just extremely short spats on and nothing apart from them. Hint: even No-Gi enthusiast won’t take gladly to rolling with you!

Conclusion

Of course, these are far from the only common Jiu-Jitsu stereotypes out there. In fact, I expect there are a lot more, I just can’t think of them at the moment. That’s where you come in. Let’s make this even more fun. Add your own experiences with Jiu-Jitsu stereotypes in the comments and let’s try to build the biggest database in existence!

Roger Gracie Beats Coronavirus Infection, Shares His Experiences

BJJ World

Roger Gracie Coronavirus infection Cover

Roger Gracie is a legend of the sport of BJJ. That, however, meant nothing as Roger contracted the COVID_19 Coronavirus, and had one of the toughest battles in s life. the multiple-time world champion and GOAT contender, recently spoke about his experiences with the Coronavirus, after spending nearly a dozen days trying to get ton top of it. There’s a huge lesson to be learned from his experiences!

The COVID-19 is slowly becoming something we’re kind of getting used to. And that is the worst possible thing we could do. While we may think that the virus only targets immunocompromised people and is a risk only for the elderly and sick, it can definitely surprise a person or two. There are unfortunate cases of the virus causing trouble in healthy and young individuals, even professional athletes. And in terms of BJJ, the most recognizable name to have direct experience with it is Roger Gracie.

Everyone is at Risk of Coronavirus

Just like that. Everyone is at risk. It doesn’t matter if it is a big or small risk, we’re definitely not safe. The meaning of this is huge, particularly when it comes to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. At present, BJJ does not exist. All the gyms are closed down as we wait for the COVID19 situation to get resolved. It will, undoubtedly, and we’ll get back to choking people and twisting their limbs in a matter of weeks. However, in the meantime the goal is easy – stay safe, and stay healthy.

To do that, we have to be humble and accept that the virus is no joke. After all, if a big man like Roger Gracie could succumb to it, and actually end up battling for his life, then so can everyone. If this scares you, good. It should. It is definitely not something we chose, but we do need to actually stay at home in isolation until this nutty thing passes. That’s if we ever want to be able to roll again. IF the virus doesn’t scare you, then the fact that you might end up not rolling for a year or more definitely should.

Roger Gracie’s story is an inspirational one. In the BJJ community, we haven’t had many reported cases or deaths so far. However, it is a fact that grapplers have been affected by it, some more than others. Lucky for the BJJ world, Roger Gracie is one of them, and coming out victorious from his ordeal, he can share an important message. And, since it is him giving it, I certainly hope that grapplers will listen.

Roger Gracie Taps The Coronavirs After A Hard Battle

Roger Gracie, a world champion in grappling and MMA leads a healthy lifestyle, being such a high performing athlete. At 38 years of age, he is not at all in the “mature athlete” category. Currently based in the UK, Roger actually ended up positive to the COVID-19 virus. Not only that, but he ended up having to fight through the infection, and it wasn’t easy.

In fact, according to Roger, “he never felt that before” as the virus managed “to take him down”. And that is not a feat many grapplers have succeeded in throughout the years. Just like everyone else, Roger closed his BJ Jgym nearly a couple of months ago now. And it was a timely decision as he started experiencing symptoms within days of closing.

AS per Roer, he had a fever, weakness, shortness of breath, coughing and a headache. he ended up calling an ambulance, but wasn’t taken to a hospital and was advised to stay in home isolation fro the duration of the infection. After a 10day long struggle with fever and pain, Roger Gracie ended up victorious once again. And he definitely has immense respect for this latest daunting opponent.

As Roger says, the never expected the virus to affect him like that. Given his lifestyle. That’s also the lesson he likes to convey to everyone. Respect the safety measures, stay at home, and ride it out. If this virus had Roger Gracie worried, then there’s no reason to play with any chance of contracting it. After all, that’s what Roger recommends anyway.

Richie “Boogeyman” Martinez Fined

Speaking of people not taking the COVID-19 measures seriously, Richie “Boogeyman” Martinez, the famous 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu competitor, just got fined for not respecting the Coronavirus guidelines and rules. As per his words, the Boogeyman was filming videos fro his students in the gym, and police were waiting for him outside. he ended up with a fine for not respecting the ban on training.

Martinez training, though, comes as no real surprise, as he is slated to grapple against Austin Vanderford, a Bellator fighter, in just over a week’s time. Despite all the bans, orders, and pleas, quite infamously, Chael Sonnen is not giving up on holding the planned events of his Submission Underground p[rmotion. To that extent, SUG 13 takes place April 26th with a card that includes Craig Jones, Vinny Magalhaes, Boogeyman, Jake Ellenberger and plenty of other big grappling names.

Conclusion

I’d much prefer to stay completely free of the Coronavirus, after seeing what Roger Gracie went through. No amount of blitz BJJ training at the moment is going to help with the situation anyway. So why not ride this out the right way, and get back to it all sooner rather than later? the key operating word here being getting “back”.

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