What do you think when you think of armbars? Most of you got a mental image of someone doing an armbar finish from the top, didn’t you? The armbar is a submission that has been around grappling arts from the moment someone figured out how to put pressure on that elbow joint. Well, if you want to know how to attack with armbars systematically, then you should consider the spiderweb position. In fact, you should probably get your hands on this Richie Martinez BJJ DVD instructional titled “Armbars, Spider Webs & EBI Overtime”.
Overview
Any instructions that Geo and Richie Martinez come up with are worth checking out in my opinion. The brothers are very high-level black belts under Eddie Bravo, and great innovators, especially in No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu.
Conversely, this instructional looks at the position used commonly in the 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu system for finishing armbars – the Spiderweb. The position provides control, multiple entry points, and different submission finishes and follow-ups. However, the one thing it is perfect for is the armbar, which is exactly what Richie Martinez is focusing on hee.
Moreover, he talks about tactics for dominating EBI Overtime rounds, which have you begin attacking and defending from the Spiderweb position.
Instructor Background
Richie Martinez is a black belt under Eddie Bravo in the 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu system. That means that his black belt is also endorsed by Jean Jacques Machado.
Richie and Geo come from breakdancing, which has a significant impact on their style of fighting. Both the “Freak Brothers” like to do crazy acrobatic movements as they grapple, but do so with great success. They also specialize in certain aspects of the 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu system, taking things a lot further than Eddie Bravo.
Richie has always been keen on armlocks, attacking often with Omoplatas and armbars in addition to his signature necktie chokes.
Martinez has some notable titles and wins in NAGA, EBI, IBJJF No-Gi Worlds, Onnit Invitational, etc.
Richie started BJJ back in 2011 with his brother Geo, and they skyrocketed through the system. Actually, the first year saw Richie train once per week in an academy and spend every other day drilling with his girlfriend until he got his blue belt. That’s when he went to 10Planet HQ to learn under Eddie Bravo. He got his black belt from Bravo in 2015, in just 4 years.
Currently, Richie is teaching at his 10th Planet Freaks Academy in San Diego.
Subject
The armbar is a classic BJJ submission that is statistically responsible for the most taps in competitive matches ever. As such, it is a well-known move that everyone learns quite early in Jiu-Jitsu. Ways of finishing the armbar from different positions, dealing with how people counter your armbar attacks, and ensuring you can stay in position long enough to finish an armbar is where most fail.
This is exactly what this Richie Martinez DVD addresses. The spiderweb is a position that allows you to access a top position armbar submission while having as much control over the opponent as is possible. It is an intricate position that does have many details to it.
In those terms, knowledge of the position, and the best submission available from it – the armbar is of extreme importance in the context of competing under EBI rules, which is arguable, the best competitive Jiu-Jitsu ruleset out there.
Martinez talks about everything of the above, offering a “cheat sheet” on how to understand armbars, spiderwebs, and EBI overtime rules in record time.
Complexity
10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu is often referred to as advanced and complicated. However, the spiderweb position is something I teach to all my students, starting from the white belt. Obviously, the armbar is already a staple of BJJ that students learn in their first few classes (very first class in my academy).
The way Richie Martinez presents the information in this DVD is diverse, He shows some very basic moves, like armbars breaking mechanics and armbar gip breaks from the spiderweb. He also shows advanced ways of getting to the position, like the swim move and rubber guard that is more appropriate for people at the blue/purple belt level.
Technical Details
There are two volumes to this DVD set. The first lasts almost 30 minutes, while the second one goes up to 50 minutes. That is a total running time of 1 hour and 20 minutes, which is a lot of dedicated time to exploring spiderweb armbars.
The camerawork, video, and audio quality are up to the golden standard. The “Armbars, Spider Webs & EBI Overtime” instructional is available both as a digital download and in DVD format.
The way Richie conveys information is beyond question, as he is one of the best instructors in the entire 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu system.
Detailed Analysis
DVD #1
Starting off, Richie Martinez explains the concept behind the spider web position and armbars. This is the fundamentals part of this instructional, where Richie goes over armbar setups from knee on belly, covering both near and far side attacks
He also dissects the spiderweb position in the second part of this first volume. He covers holding the position and some key grip breaks to give you access to the armbar from there.
DVD #2
This volume is all about flows that lead towards the spiderweb and armbar finishes. Richie shows how you can enter the position from everywhere, top, bottom, and standing. He starts with a swim move setup (rolling armbar setup) from guard, before exploring some more “traditional” entries like the flower sweep and hip bump sweep.
Past the halfway point in this DVD, “Boogeyman” goes off the deep end, showing some advanced ways of armbar hunting. Triangle armbars, rubber guard connections, and armbar variations all feature heavily here. The violin armbar is one to really pay attention to.
How We Grade The “Armbars, Spider Webs & EBI Overtime” Richie Martinez DVD Instructional
Considering this “Armbars, Spider Webs & EBI Overtime” Richie Martinez instructional DVD’s technical aspects and quality of content, we come to an overall score for this instructional that I’ll deliberate in short below.
Technical Quality: 10/10
BJJ fanatics is behind this BJJ DVD instructional, meaning every technical aspect of it is professionally taken care of. Video and audio quality are up to standards and camera work is precise, offering multiple angles.
Quality of Content: 9/10
Richie Martinez is an amazing coach, and everything he shares in this instructional is highly useful. He starts off at the beginning, showing the basics that will be easy even for complete beginners to grasp. HE then goes on to advanced transitions and flows that will tickle the minds of even the most creative black belts.
Martinez is also very good at connecting the materials that he shares in different chapters together.
The only negative side to this instructional is that it is somewhat short – “only” two volumes and a total of 1 hour and 20 minutes of material.
Overall: 9/10
Great DVD if you are an armbar hunter, especially one that specializes in No-Gi and has an eye on competing under EBI rules.
Wrap Up
Personally, I like Richie Martinez, and I found his and his brother’s instructional very useful. They do represent a very specific style of BJJ that not everyone is on board with, but that exactly is why I recommend you look into them – they can provide you with some secret weapons your opponents are not aware of.
