Tag Archives: Guard Passes
A Video Tutorial on the X Guard
The X Guard is a really powerful open guard position that creates a whole world of trouble for your opponents. Here’s an excerpt from my DVD “13 Techniques You Can Use On The Mat Today” which takes you through the most important points of the X Guard… (more…)
The 'Fundamental Five Guard Sweeps' from the de la Riva Guard
Ricardo de la Riva is an incredibly nice and humble man, but don’t let that fool you – this man is a BJJ legend. (I mean, how many people have a popular guard position named after them?) (more…)
'My' Technique at ADCC...
Talk about synchronicity!
A month ago I told you about a specific guard position I’ve been having a ton of success with – the logsplitter position. (more…)
Straight From Brazil - a Deep Half Guard Sweep
Recently I had the pleasure of training with Oscar Daniotti, a black belt under Ricardo de la Riva. And Oscar showed me some really cool stuff! (more…)
Knee Slide Guard Pass
Many Brazilian jiu-jitsu guard passes can be adapted for use in mixed martial arts. Here the cross knee slide guard pass is used to achieve side mount control. (more…)
This guard pass requires commitment and some athleticism, but is quick and can take an opponent by surprise. (more…)
Denis Kang Cartwheel Guard Pass
The cartwheel guard pass is most often seen in the Japanese lightweight MMA divisions, but it can also be used in Submission Wrestling and BJJ. Here’s how to do it correctly… (more…)
Tricks, Concepts, Techniques and Drills to Prevent Opponents from Passing Your Guard
In December, 2008, I sent out a Grappling Tip Email with a tip about not letting your opponent control your hips (see the first tip below). I then asked readers to share their own top tips for preventing or blocking the guard pass.
Below is a selection of reader contributions on the topic of making your guard ‘unpassable.’ I find it the diversity of suggestions very interesting, and I’m sure that you’re going to learn a lot about developing a better guard.interesting that the (more…)
Slaughter on the Mats...
Today my BJJ sparring was a battle for survival.
Maybe you think it’s because I sparred with a bunch of high-level black belts… Sorry to disappoint you, but that’s wasn’t the case at all. In fact, I was barely holding my own against blue belts with only a couple of years experience. And they were all lighter than me. (more…)
Recently I published a short article on how I improved my guard pass defense. Shortly thereafter I received an interesting and informative email from ‘Scott’ who trains at Colorado Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in Denver CO. (more…)
The Unpassable Guard
A few years ago Denis Kang and I published an article in Grappling Magazine about passing the guard in MMA. In that article we said there are three stages of getting past your opponent’s legs: (more…)
Countering the Half Guard Pass
Since I released my DVD on the Dynamic Half Guard I get a lot of questions on how to prevent certain guard passes. I cover a lot of guard pass and leglock prevention in that video, but it’s *only* 2 hours long (more…)
A Jiu-jitsu Secret
OK, draw the curtains, turn down the lights, turn off your recording devices and come closer.
Today I want to share a principle with you that Marc Laimon calls “one of the secrets of jiu-jitsu”. (more…)
Refusing to Concede the Sweep
I trained with Denis Kang for the first five or six years of his MMA career. At some point during that time he became very, very difficult to sweep. Partially this was due to his increasing technical knowledge, but it was also more than that. (more…)
The Stiff Arm (in Grappling)
The stiff arm on the Heisman Trophy is an iconic posture in football, and it is used by players in every single game. In Brazilian jiu-jitsu, however, the stiff arm has a bit of a bad rap. (more…)
Jiu-jitsu and Physical Attributes
Physical attributes are things like balance, neck strength, limb length, explosiveness, leg flexibility, and percent body fat. Your physical attributes are the foundation of what you can do with your body, and are influenced by genetics, training, age and injuries. (more…)
Dealing with Daddy Long Legs
A reader writes:
Q: Do you have any advice for handling opponents who are tall, long-legged and very flexible?
A: Yes! I have had several training partners who were built like daddy long leg spiders (more…)
How to Stand in the Guard
Last week I discussed the differences between standing and kneeling guard passes. One thing I pointed out was that some schools tend use only kneeling guard passes whereas other schools tend to mix up their guard passing and use both standing and kneeling passes. (more…)
A few weeks ago I was practicing technique with a big, strong rock climber who had a grip from hell and tenacious isometric strength. I noticed how much he liked controlling my gi, breaking my posture and attacking with collar chokes. (more…)
The 'Kick Out'
Today I want to talk about a little move that has probably saved my butt at least a thousand times. I call it the Kick Out and if your game includes any standing guard passes I think it might deserve a place in your repertoire. (more…)
What is Caging the Hips
Everybody says that that hip movement is the most important thing in BJJ…
“Boca” Oliveira, a de la Riva black belt, recently told me: “the hips are 90% of jiu-jitsu, and position is the other 10%”. (more…)
Posture Outside of Guard
Practitioners of submission grappling and BJJ quickly learn about the importance of posture in an opponent’s guard. If you have bad posture in the guard you will get swept and submitted all the time. (more…)
Half Guard DVD Update
I know, I know, there have been a ton of delays in getting the Half Guard DVD ready…
Lessons in grappling (and life in general) repeat themselves until learned. Sometimes there are techniques or principles that you learn, take for granted, teach to others and then slowly forget (more…)
Breaking Posture with the Shakedown
Here’s a little trick, or technique, you can use to prevent your opponent from establishing posture and passing your guard when you are wrestling with the gi.
Several years ago I was training with Marcello Grosso, a Carlson Gracie Black Belt… (more…)
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