Key Takeaways
- A 2-volume No-Gi instructional showcasing a different appraoch to back control.
- Features finishes from the Rack position, as well as entries from pins, guard, and passing.
- Contains drills to help you master the underlying concepts of the Rack.
- BJJ World Expert Rating: 8.5 out of 10.
THE RACK KYLE WATSON DVD GET HERE
As far as back control goes, I personally prefer to abandon hooks quite early and use my legs to help my arms in hunting for chokes. I accept that this is not the only way to control land hunt from the back, but I like using it.
Well, as it turns out I also like another method, the one taught in The Rack Kyle Watson BJJ DVD. Kyle blends some old-school BJJ and some very effective wrestling to come up with one of the best back control systems I’ve seen used in grappling and BJJ. Given his background, all you MMA guys and girls can also pick up on it quickly.
A Hierarchy of Back Control Positions
When I say back control, most of you are going to have different variations of the position in mind. For most, a version of a seatbelt grip and hooks is what defines the back. that’s correct, but where does this ‘classic’ position lie in the hierarchy of back controls, and what can you do to improve it?
The back position is a difficult one to master if you want to finish people from there. There is a very intricate play of control that allows you to choke, given that your hands are constantly engaged, and you need them to finish most submissions that don’t have you leaving the position.
Danaher had a good explanation with his system, but as comprehensive as that one is, it ended up being overly complicated for most. Being a big proponent of ‘less is more’ I tend to prefer simpler versions of back control rather than the complicated ones.
For me, the ones that rank the highest are the ones that work without me having to be able to bench press double my body weight in order to pull them off. So, when lazy grappling is our gold standard, not much is going to work better than the proven techniques of submission grappling for MMA – enter The Rack Kyle Watson BJJ DVD.
UFC Vet Kyle Watson
One of the early adopters of BJJ, Watson has been training since the late 90s, when he supplemented his Jeey Kune Do with BJJ. At the time, this combination was common and is behind some of the best fighters we saw in the octagon in the early 2000s.
Kyle Watson fought in the UFC as well, a spot he claimed through The Ultimate Fighter, but he didn’t spend too much time inside the octagon. His 19-8-1 record definitely had room for improvement, but the fact remains that he was a mean grappler—10 of his 19 victories came by way of submission.
Kyle is a 3rd-degree black belt in BJJ, currently owns Watson Martial Arts, and still competes on the IBJJF masters circuit, his latest medal coming at the 2024 Memphis Open tournament. This guy has been around and knows grappling, especially in No-Gi. So, when you’re picking up The Rack Kyle Watson BJJ DVD, expect a set of instructions that work, even if they look a bit outdated.
Detailed The Rack Kyle Watson BJJ DVD Review
The Rack Kyle Watson BJJ DVD is a 2-part No-Gi instructional that shares an MMA-inspired back control system that seems to bypass common back mount issues while keeping instructionals simple and to the point. The entire instructional lasts about an hour.
Part 1 – Attacking from the Rack
The Rack Kyle Watson BJJ DVD begins with an introduction that contains a roadmap to using the material Kyle offers. His system is simple and straightforward, yet very versatile. It is based on keeping your opponent’s back exposed by manipulating their shoulders, mostly with the Gift Wrap grips.
Kyle’s take on things is more wrestling-inspired, with the claw featuring as the main connection point. That said, we already know it works, and Watson made it the start by building a set of primary attacks (RNC) and secondary submissions (Ezekiel and arm triangle choke) around it.
This first volume outlines the positional control details that will allow you to keep the position as well as how to finish each of the submissions mentioned above, and how to combine them in a mixed threat. Towards the end of the instructional, Kyle starts sharing ways into the Rack, starting with the mount.
Part 2 – Setups and Entries
Part two is where most people will find lots of value in the The Rack Kyle Watson BJJ DVD instructional. Via the forced rotation made possible by the Gift Wrap, Kyle’s way to the Rack back control is to go for upper body control first and hooks second. Pretty old school.
This second volume of the DVD contains entries from side control, and the turtle position, tying into the stuff already covered from the mount. I like that Kyle also shares key concepts such as the one on anchoring, breaking down the functional foundations of the system.
Toward the final stages of the instructional, Watson also goes over the guard, and how you can set up entries while playing guard, or pass into one of the best pins to get you into the Rack. As he explains in the conclusion, the rack is everywhere, and all you need to do is recognize it.
Forcing the Back
With modern defense systems happening in between established pins, such as mount and back mount, for example, understanding how to drive the defender to a clear pin is just as important, if not more, as getting and keeping said pin. That is usually quite a difficult feat unless you have dominant grips.
Enter the claw ride. I have no idea if the Gift wrap emerged as a continuation of the claw, but it sure seems like it. In No-Gi, either of these grips offers extreme control from both the back and the mount, without having to change grips or sacrifice attacking threats.
Focusing on this type of gripping was something I originally saw from Ryan Hall some 10 years ago, but his system was dependent on the Gi. Now, The Rack Kyle Watson BJJ DVD has figured out how to use a similar approach in No-GI, focusing on a grip that will eventually provide both points by way of hooks, and a legit submission opportunity.
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Dominate The Back!
Dominating the back is as easy as finding a way to attack from the position, without the other person killing all effective angles. Immobilization is what you’re after, and no amount of hooks is going to help if you don’t use your grips in a smart way. That’s where The Rack Kyle Watson BJJ DVD can help you elevate your back attacks into a whole new dimension of efficiency.
Rener Gracie Tries To Rebrand And Patent The Gift Wrap as SafeWrap
