A friend recently complained that his training partners were forever just "running around" his guard. We got onto the mat and figured out that this wasn't the whole story. It turned out that his opponents were first pinning both his feet to the floor and then running around his guard, essentially a variation of the toreando pass. There are late stage defenses to the toreando, but - as … [Read more...]
Lapel Drag
Collar Drag from Open Guard, with Jon Thomas
The collar drag is one of the fastest, simplest and yet most effective ways to reverse positions on the ground. This is a very versatile move: it's a sweep when performed from the guard, and it's a takedown when performed on the feet. And this technique been proven in many world championship matches. All you need is a grip on your opponent's cross collar, a bit of distance, and the … [Read more...]
The Ultimate Lapel Guard
It's 2020, and the game has evolved. If you don't add this lapel variation to your game IMMEDIATELY then you're destined to be left irretrievably behind, choking on the dust cloud of the sport. Check it out... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PeRn8mPAmeI All kidding aside, I've got something important to tell you about... How to Develop an Impassable Guard To help you make your guard … [Read more...]
Lapel Drag from Butterfly Guard and from Standing
The lapel drag (aka collar drag) is an incredibly important move from the butterfly guard. It's a legitimate sweep, but it's also an amazing setup for many other attacks. It's also low risk and doesn't require an elaborate grip to set it up. In this Youtube video Rob Biernacki shows some of the black belt details that'll make this sweep MUCH more effective, even against skilled, larger … [Read more...]