Grappling Tips Newsletter

September 08, 2009

A Great Half Guard Resource!

If you haven't seen this video yet then you're in for a treat!

Here Indrek Reiland and Jorgen Matsi take you through the Half Guard Position, covering the basics of both the top and the bottom position.

Not only do they show techniques, but they also share drills and, most importantly the underlying concepts of the half guard. Once you understand these concepts it will put the techniques into perspective and also make it much easier to remember them.
Production values aren't quite up to 'Speilbergian' standards, but the information they show you is top notch.

By the end of this video you should have a real solid head start on the Half Guard.

Since it's on Google Video, you can either watch the video on the site or download it to your computer for free. In fact, I'd recommend that you go and download it right away, just because you never know when a gem like this is going to disappear from the internet forever!

(If you want to download it to your computer first click here to go to the page on Google video, and then click on the "download video - iPod/PSP" link to the right of the video.)

Till later!

Stephan Kesting

P.S. Word's gotten out that I'm working on something new. I don't want to jinx things by talking about too early, but it's a BIG thing with some very exciting give-aways. Hopefully I'll be able to make a big announcement soon, and then things are going to get VERY interesting around here...

Labels: drills, half guard

permanent link to this article posted by Stephan @ 1:02 PM

July 14, 2009

Brock Lesnar vs. Frank Mir: How to Destroy the Half Guard

Brock Lesnar probably wouldn't be on my list of people to invite to a book club or an evening of wine tasting. But love him or hate him, you have to admit that he's a hell of a fighter and force to be reckoned with.

What I found most interesting about Brock Lesnar vs. Frank Mir at UFC 100 was that it was a case study of how to shut down the half guard. Frank spent most of the match in the half guard, and I have no doubt that he has a TON of highly effective sweeps and attacks from there.

But that night none of his techniques worked on Brock...

Of course it's partially that Brock Lesnar is a very large human being. I mean he actually cuts weight to make it down to the upper limit for heavyweights (265 lbs)! He's also explosive, incredibly agile and has great endurance.

Let's first take a look at two strategies that form the foundation of most successful half guard attacks:

Being on your side, facing your opponent, and
Getting your body under his center of gravity

Now in the fight Frank Mir was basically never able to apply either strategy, and it wasn't only Brock's physical attributes that shut down Frank Mir's half guard game. There was a lot of deliberate technique there too!

Brock deliberately kept Frank on his back and/or facing away from him, and also didn't let him get under his center of gravity.

How did he do this? At various times in the fight Brock used the following techniques and tactics:

He stiff armed his neck (keeping Frank away),
He pinned the head and moved his body back
He turned the head away with his forearm
He secured the far underhook and applied chest pressure
He used his head to grind into Frank's jaw, and drive into the chest and armpit
He grabbed the far armpit to turn Frank's face away and place it directly in the line of fire

Finally, when Frank tried again to turn in at the very end of the fight, Brock let him turn, and secured the far wrist. The brutal flurry of unanswered blows that ended the fight came right after that.

The thing is that there are counters and preventive measures to all these half guard top position techniques and tactics. And I'm sure that Frank knows them and practiced them. It's just that when the size difference is that large then your timing has to be razor sharp in order to apply your game. And a bit of luck helps too...

A rematch between these two fighters is inevitable. Maybe the next time Frank will be sharp enough or lucky enough to impose his half guard game on Brock!

Download your free copy of "BJJ Secrets for MMA" by clicking here!

Labels: Brock Lesnar, Frank Mir, half guard, UFC

permanent link to this article posted by Stephan @ 10:34 PM

June 30, 2009

Here's a half guard sweep I can personally vouch for. I use it all the time when I'm training with the gi.

www.grapplearts.com/half-guard-sweep-with-bjj-belt.html

I've even used this technique in competition when my opponent stood up to pass my half guard. Passing the belt through his legs stopped the guard pass and gave me the sweep.

Obviously this particular variation relies on you getting a good grip on your opponent's belt. But I think you should study this sweep even if you train mostly without the gi!

That's because this technique is similar to the transition from the half guard to the single leg takedown, which is a bread and butter half guard technique both in 'regular' BJJ and also in no-gi grappling.

Anyway, check out this BJJ Half Guard Sweeping technique, demonstrated on me by Oscar Daniotti, a BJJ Black Belt under Ricardo de la Riva.

Labels: gi, half guard, sweeps

permanent link to this article posted by Stephan @ 10:28 PM

June 27, 2009

The Very First Time I Used the Logsplitter Sweep...

Check out this video, which shows the very first time I stumbled across the 'logsplitter' position. it was a complete fluke, but it still won me the match and a silver medal.

Then read on to find out what happened AFTER that competition...

Cool, huh? This is a guard variation I now use all the time because it offers both sweeping options and submission options. The best part is that nobody has any clue of what to do when they're caught in it.

But I didn't become competent in this position right away. In fact it took about a year for me to start working on it, and that was only because I received an email out of the blue from someone who had also been experimenting with it.

Click here for the whole story - including pictures and more video.

Labels: butterfly guard, competition, half guard, leglocks

permanent link to this article posted by Stephan @ 8:59 PM

June 20, 2009

Straight From Brazil - a Deep Half Guard Sweep

For the past 2 days I had the pleasure of training with Oscar Daniotti, a black belt under Ricardo de la Riva in Brazil.

Oscar came to North America to cover the 2009 Mundials for Faixa Preta, a Brazilian magazine dedicated to covering the art of BJJ.

While we were shooting the breeze about the deep half guard position Oscar smiled and showed me a really cool variation. I already knew the basic sweep, but the way that he used the gi to entangle my leg made it 10 times more difficult to counter the sweep.

So I got my camera out, handed it to my friend, and asked him to taking pictures. So here - straight from Brazil - is that technique!

Click here to see pictures and get step by step instructions for the new Deep Half Guard Sweep.

Note: of course this sweep is dependent on the gi. There's been a lot of debate about training gi vs. no gi, but I think that most grapplers should should train at least a little bit of both.

If nothing else, learning innovative ways to attack with the gi in BJJ exercises your grappling imagination and keeps your brain active.

Labels: gi, half guard, sweeps

permanent link to this article posted by Stephan @ 4:24 PM

April 14, 2009

Brabo Choke Defense

A fan of the half guard recently asked me how they could avoid getting caught in the Brabo choke:

"I like going for the foot grab sweep from half guard. My problem is that I always get caught in a guillotine choke or Brabo choke when I go for the leg of my opponent. What can I do to stop getting choked all the time?"

The first step of defending any technique is to understand the technique. Once you know how an attack yourself then your spider sense starts tingling when your opponent starts to set it up on you.

Brabo choke specialists typically like to attack when their opponent has an underhook. Here's one example of how to apply the Brabo choke.

So it's true that getting choked from the half guard is a legitimate concern. But that doesn't mean that the half guard or the foot grab sweep is useless.

Every single position and technique has its vulnerabilities: if you throw a jab your opponent might slip it and counter with an uppercut, if you use the open guard your opponent might have an opportunity to footlock you, and if you use the half guard you have to watch out for the Brabo choke (aka the "D'Arce choke").

The trick is to be aware of the potential dangers of a position and taking precautions to prevent the counterattacks!

So let's get back to the half guard. In order to attack with the foot grab sweep you need to first secure the underhook with the top arm. BUT once you get the underhook you shouldn't just hang out there.

The underhook is a means to an end, NOT an end in itself.

And a related mistake is to get the underhook and then start grabbing for your opponent's foot. This is incorrect. To do it properly you first need to move down, down down.

You should have your ear resting on his hip and your face almost in *ahem* his crotch before you grab the foot and go for the sweep.

And if you're down that far then it's very hard for him to get his arms into position to choke you.

But let's say that you screw up, give him the opening and he attacks with that darn Brabo choke. If you own it, I suggest you check out the series of defenses to this choke that I covered in my Dynamic Half Guard DVD.

If you don't have that DVD then one simple Brabo defense is to throw yourself hard, flat on your back, BEFORE he finalizes his hand position. To avoid getting rolled he has to release and post his hands, which also gets you out of the choke.

With regards to the guillotine, the most likely time for your opponent to lock it on is once the sweep is already happening and he's falling back onto his butt. So keep your awareness high at all times: if he slaps on a guillotine during the sweep, as he's falling, then scramble to the correct side to counter the choke.

Hope this helps...

Labels: chokes, half guard, techniques

permanent link to this article posted by Stephan @ 3:55 PM