Key Takeaways
- Gi instructional with four volumes that emphasize the connection between guards and back takes.
- Offers guard retention concepts, Berimobolos, and pass counters that lead to back takes.
- Provides back-taking systems from different guards including the DLR, Xanadu, X-Guard, and others.
- BJJ World Expert Rating: 8 out of 10.
XANADU BACK TAKES LEVI JONES-LEARY DVD GET HERE
Some people in the BJJ world really do blow my mind with the way they present material that we’ve all been working on for decades, but never really managed to present (or comprehend) it as concisely as they do. The last one to do so is Levi Jones-Leary and his very interesting approach to emphasizing the guard-back mount connection.
The Xanadu Back Takes Levi Jones-Leary DVD is a useful resource for those considering themselves backmount experts, but also for those suffering from these same ‘experts” and even those hoping to achieve this expertise one day. In short, it offers a perspective on back-taking that you had no idea ran so deep in BJJ.
What Are BJJ Camping Tactics?
The term ‘camping’ is becoming more and more prevalent these days in BJJ. For those not familiar with META tactics for FPS games, let me elaborate – camping referees to the patient waiting in a safe spot for your opponent to allow you to deliver the finishing blow (in the case of BJJ, a submission).
There are not many safe camping options in Jiu-Jitsu, and the best one you can get is the back mount. There are next to no submission dangers (I’m not even going to entertain the thought of the ‘crossed foot lock’), people tend to have a hard time getting out of it, and it is only a question of time when you’ll get the finish.
Lots of high-level grapplers are employing camping tactics lately. Apart from the back, you can also opt for the mount, or some passing or guarded positions, if you’re feeling particularly adventurous. For those looking for the risk-free version, the Xanadu Back Takes Levi Jones-Leary DVD is your best bet.
Unity Jiu-Jitsu Competitor Levi Jones-Leary
Levi Jones-Leary is a black belt in BJJ under the legendary Murilo Santana. So far, he has a few big titles to his name, including the IBJJF Euros, the Pan Ams, and winning the ADCC trials in 2024. We never got to see him in the ADCC, as he chose CJI instead, where he lost to -88kg champion Kade Ruotolo.
Levi has been training for a long time, with his first introduction to BJJ dating back to his teenage days, when he first discovered MMA. Born and raised in Sydney, Australia, Jones-Leary entered combat sports with an already impressive set of athletic abilities he’d developed competing in track and field.
MMA didn’t quite keep the attention of Levi, but BJJ did, as he found his first base in teh Garage Jiu-Jitsu Academy in Sydney. Competing as much as he could, Levi perfected his trade with Cobrinha whenever he was in the US, eventually ending up in Unity Jiu-Jitsu in 2015.
Murilo gave Levi Jones-Leary his black belt in 2018 after he won just about everything at brown belt and proved he could easily hang with the best in the world. A huge fan of the Miayos, Levi made the back his go-to position from his early competitive days, resulting in a wealth of knowledge in the position, which is on display in the Xanadu Back Takes Levi Jones-Leary DVD
Xanadu Back Takes Levi Jones-Leary DVD Review
The four-volume Levi Jones-Leary Xanadu Back Takes DVD really does a deep dive into the way you can use different guards to set up back exposure and conquer the back mount in the Gi. It takes Jones-Leary just over 2 hours to present all his thoughts on the subject:
Part 1 – Guard Retention Back Takes
The angle that the Xanadu Back Takes Levi Jones-Leary DVD provides is an unusual one, as it looks into back-taking from the perspective of playing guard. Usually, DVDs focus on one or the other, but overall Levi manages to pull this one off.
First up are his concepts of guard retention and how you can use a defensive mindset (of sorts) to set up seamless transitions to the back. Levi uses retention tactics that actually expose the back, resulting in pass counters that put you on the opponent’s back without them realizing what you’re trying to do.
He covers passing threats like knee slice passes, double under, and the Тorreando, which means he covered three out of four possible passing directions with direct examples.
Part 2 – Otisde Open Guard Entries
Part two of the reminds me of the early back-taking game by Atos competitors and the Estima brothers. This portion of the Xanadu Back Takes Levi Jones-Leary DVD goes over back taking from the De la Riva, something we don’t see as much these days, as a result of the inside guard dominance because of leg locks.
Jones-Leary offers several interesting DLR concepts that include exploding the back either via sweep threats or submissions like the Omoplata. He includes options against standing and kneeling opponents, focusing a lot on demonstrating the perfect angles for back attacks.
Part 3 – Berimbolos
I already said that Levi Jones-Leary is a big admirer of the Miyao brothers. Paired with the type of game played at Unity, the Beribmolo was bound to appear in the Levi Jones-Leary Back Takes DVD.
In its own dedicated volume, the Berimbolo is first introduced through some basic inverting motion, followed by an unusual endpoint – the mount. This serves as the optimal stage to launch a series of back takes in different directions, including top position setups featuring leg drags, which we often see in conjunction with Berimbolos.
The double pull X-Guard helps introduce a different dimension to open guard back takes, building on the Berimbolo options by addressing a level-changing opponent, and exploiting their innate weaknesses.
Part 4 – Xanadu Guard Crucifix Setups
As we reach teh final part of the Xanadu Back Takes Levi Jones-Leary DVD, Levi goes over his signature Xanadu guard, and all the ways you can use it to get back. The guard retention concepts still apply, but the starting guard and ending position are a bit different here.
Much to my pleasure, back control of choice for ending this instructional is the crucifix, and Jones-Leary offers some very innovative ways of getting to this super-versatile position against standing and kneeling opponents alike.
The Back Mount – Guard Connection
What are your attacking options from guards? Most people would immediately say submissions and sweeps, and those people would not be wrong. However, that is not the complete answer.
Back takes are neither sweeps nor deliver an immediate submission reward. They are, however, a great way of getting 4 points, and are just as readily (kind of) available from most guards as sweeps and submissions are. The best part is that these tend to be easier to hide from your opponent, and thus, much more effective due to the surprise factor.
The original perspective on the back takes offered in the Xanadu Back Takes Levi Jones-Leary DVD is one we should pay a lot more attention to when developing our game plans. Guards, coming on so many different forms, offer a lot more different directions to the back than any top position does. Just some food for thought as you start to implement what you’ve learned from Levi’s DVD.
FULL DOWNLOAD: XANADU BACK TAKES LEVI JONES-LEARY DVD
The Xanadu Effect
Levi Jones-Leary demonstrated that you can become so good at getting the back from guards, that you can end up naming your own guard and use it to confuse people. However, even though this is covered in the Xanadu Back Takes Levi Jones-Leary DVD, this instructional offers the big picture as well, connecting all the key dots between guarded positions and the back mount.
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