Repeat Post, but seems relevant to my students

When I first got into BJJ, it was all about the submissions. Sweeps and escapes were something cool that were only necessary to know, if you ever got caught in a bad spot. If you had never been put in a bad situation, you didn't really want to spend the time preparing for it when until after it had happened.

A great majority of the time was spent scouring the internet and images in books for new submissions and the "how-to" videos on Youtube or in the newest issue of Grappling Magazine (now known as Ultimate MMA Magazine).

Forget about learning hook sweeps, or how to better control from knee on belly. Lets learn how to do the triangle to omoplata with modified toe-hold!!

Since I have gotten older, and hopefully a lot wiser, I have learned that one of the most beneficial tools to your game (second to escapes/defense), is positional control. This has become my most preached lesson, and my greatest asset in grappling practice/matches/police scenarios/and practical application in the street.

The problem with this is easily evident in the opinion of some grappling enthusiasts, who, when watching a video of someone doing this on Youtube (I am namely referring to a match of myself against a much larger - 6'6 320 lb BJJ blue belt), the critic went on an on about me not capitalizing on my dominant position. His argument was that if you are in dominant position, you are not actually winning and demonstrating real BJJ skill unless you submit the person.

COME ON PEOPLE!!

Lets not forget that if you are on top of someone in side mount or mount, moving to north south or knee on belly, you are winning! Gracie Jiu-Jitsu teaches us in its basic philosophies that you must first gain dominance to be effective. From that point, your goal should be to maintain that dominant position and not let the person get on top of you. The trade of in some cases are usually the BJJ practitioner in top position giving up his dominant position in favor of a failed arm-bar or another "forced" submission, in which the bottom man has now reversed you for a better position.

Remember these main points next time you are rolling:
- Position over submission
- Use your positioning and top game to exhaust the opponent
- Let him dictate the submission i.e. don't force the submission, instead, let him work himself into a bad spot and capitalize on his mistake

Incorporate this into a drill by getting with your partner and have him work from a bad position for 1 round, and do the top 2-3 defensive counters. At each counter, change position in a "slow roll" manner. If he can sweep you or get up, then you must be on the bottom for 10 minutes. If you get where you can maintain top control during transitions and position changes, then have your opponent on bottom start to give you "submission indicators". These can be as simple as putting the arm up that gives away an arm-bar, or turning belly down to give up the back. This should help foster good reactions to these movements, which are signs that you must be able to key-off on to capitalize on the mistake of the opponent.

Please leave comments and questions. Especially if you are having a hard time identifying the "cues" that your opponent is giving that signal when to attack the submission.



-Keep on The Path

Skill Building - Back to Basics

At this point in training, today, right now, get back to basics! Whether you are a brown belt world champion, or you are a brand new grappler with 2 months experience, get back to basics.

It is so easy to get sucked into the lure of wanting to learn alot of new cool "tricks". There are literally hundreds of submissions out there to learn, but only a few basic positions. Learn those few basic positions and the principals for being successful at them now!

- Learn to prevent your guard from getting passed or replacing guard
- Get your posture better when in the guard or passing
- Improve your base to feel as dominant as possible in mount/side/north-south/back
- Improve your control and timing

To do all this, all it takes are some basic skill building exercises.

- Guard pass drill. Get a partner to get in guard and try to pass. Break down his posture, shrimp and adjust your guard to prevent his passes.

- Get in guard and improve your posture by sitting back straight, head up, torso alignment should be straight up and down with your weight over your hips, NOT I FRONT OF YOUR KNEES, with your legs apart in comfortable base. Use pressure and slow control to pass. Make it uncomfortable for your partner, so that letting you pass is a better option for him than having you stay in guard.

- Get in side mount and practice moving around from side to knee on belley, to mount, then knee on belly on the other side, then side, then north south, and back to original side. Do this by maintaining constant closeness and good body alignment. Keep weight on your partner and always block his hips and head as you move around i this circle for several reps. Be sure they check your base at the beginning of each position.

- Timing requires a partner that knows at least as much as you for whatever moves you are going to be working. Get in mount and have your partner check your base so you can get that cue to adjust hooks and control, then he should do the "bench press" to cue and armbar, or he should feed him arm across your chest to show giving up the back and you take that cue to take the back and get the RNC. these types of exercises will improve timing and recognizing threats and openings.

MMA article from Big 2 News featureing Brad and Paul

http://prod.permianbasin360.com/search-fulltext?&nxd_id=66626

An event known as Shark Fights is taking place in Odessa this weekend, and the hand-to-hand combat is sure to draw a crowd. But before stepping into the cage, one of the fighters sat down with Big 2 to explain how his fighting technique has been picked up by our local law enforcement.

Mixed martial arts, or MMA, is a full contact combat sport that involves a wide variety of fighting techniques. It's become a popular past-time for many people. Some just watch it. Others actually practice it. So, in order to stay ahead of the game, Midland police have been working with a professional fighter whose helped them incorporate mixed martial arts into their training.

"If I'm writing a report next to a suspect, I don't know if he's going to be aggressive. If I'm not looking away and he eventually attacks...I stop...short elbow," Paul Buentello, a professional MMA fighter, said Friday while demonstrating his techniques.

He's been fighting for nearly 13 years, and this weekend he'll take on the undefeated Bryan Humes as part of Shark Fights main event. This UFC legend is no stranger to the area though. Buentello's worked closely with Midland police for years.

"I met Paul at a show in Carlsbad six years ago and really hit it off. He's real approachable," Brad Barnes, a Midland police officer, said.

Barnes quickly realized that Buentello's unique fighting style could translate to law enforcement, so he pitched an idea.

"When we don't have the ability to pull a gun or use a baton or use pepper spray...when we're just standing close to people, the things that you're good at will work for this job," Barnes said.

"There's a lot of little tricks of the trade...how to fight, how to close the distance, how to keep somebody away, and I jumped right on this horse because Brad's a good friend of mine," Buentello said.

Known as “The Headhunter” in the world of cage fighting, Buentello began to train Midland police officers...teaching them how to be prepared for any kind of attack.
"On a nightly basis we're putting people in handcuffs, whether it's just to detain them or to take them to jail. And people don't like being put in handcuffs, and they're going to fight you for it. I would say on an average shift...you're going to have to do some type of defensive tactics or stop some type of resistance," Barnes said.

"I've been doing it now for 13 years in a cage, actually getting paid to do these techniques. And if I can show an officer just a few little things things to remember, a little muscle memory on defending themselves and stopping an aggressive person. And they can go home at night...I feel a lot better about that," Buentello said.

For more about the event this weekend, check out www.SharkFights.com. And for more about Buentello, head to his website...www.PaulBuentello.com.

FIGHTER PROFILE - JASON SAMPSON

Local fighter profile: Jason Sampson By Andrew Plante


Jason Sampson is an up-and-coming fighter in the local MMA scene. He recently won his first professional fight at SWC 9 in dominating fashion. He's back in action at SWC 10 on Jan. 16, facing Josh Montoya.


Not unlike many MMA fighters, he is driven because of life experiences. His mother left him and his two brothers when Jason was 7. Since then, stepdad Greg Kimbrell has been his sole parental figure. "I consider him my dad," Sampson said. "He's been pushing me and supporting me. ... He's a blessing and inspiration in my life."


Sampson was a self-confessed troubled kid, getting in trouble for fighting in school and experimenting with drugs. He has two brothers in jail because of their involvement with crystal meth. He uses all of these experiences to maintain his focus on becoming a better person in life and a better fighter in the cage.


He began wrestling at the age of 11 as a way to stay out of trouble. He quickly found out that he was pretty talented -- even winning a Pan Am title in 2006 -- and the sport could keep him on the right path if he stuck with it.


In addition to Kimbrell's support, Sampson has numerous friends and family who are helping him to succeed, including girlfriend Monica Mendoza -- who he says "has been pushing me and encouraging me all the way" -- and grandmother Jackie Kimbrell, who "has always been there for me as both a grandmother and a mother." He is dedicating his fight to Mendoza's daughter, Victoria, who turns 14 the day of his next fight.


Coach Allen Mohler from Mohler Jiu-Jitsu probably has been the biggest influence to Sampson's MMA path.


"Coach Mohler has given me a second chance at life by letting me teach at his gym," Sampson said. "He saw things in me and allowed me to have a career. I was going down the wrong path, but Coach Mohler saw good qualities in me -- like my wrestling skills, my heart and my teaching ability -- and gave me a shot. I am the person I am because of Coach Mohler."


Sampson's ultimate goal is to make it into the WEC. Whether or not he gets to that level, Jason has a very good attitude about his life.


"I've bounced back from drug use and a troubled childhood and now have an opportunity to follow my dream," Sampson said. "Not many people get to do what they enjoy every day. I'm lucky to be able to do that."
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I have started to manage Jason and had the chance to have a sit-down with him and William Campuzano, as well as Jason's girlfriend (and the one who keeps him together!), Monica.

Jason is an extremely outgoing individual and has alot of drive to succeed. He looks at a goal, tackles it to the best of his ability and immediately sets another goal. His determination and work ethic have already made him a success, no matter how far he goes. His next fight is tentatively scheduled for May, with a title fight looming in the last week of June.

Guest blog- Confidence in grappling

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Confidence in Grappling
Author: Jason Scully

"Kill the snake of doubt in your soul, crush the worms of fear in your heart, and mountains will move out of your way" ~ Kate Seredy

Yesterday I was rolling with one of my students in class who has about 3 years experience and when we were rolling I noticed something, and I realized that this is actually an issue with many grapplers out there. As we were rolling I was paying attention to his movements and his facial expressions and it was clear that he was missing something very important. What was he missing? He was missing his confidence. That's right, it was his confidence that he was missing.
There's so many times when I train with someone and they don't seem confident at all in what they're doing. Even if they know a ton of techniques they hold themselves back because they don't trust themselves that they'll execute those techniques properly.

When you're in practice you should never have to worry about if something is going to work, or if your opponent is going to counter your attack. You should just go for it with 100% confidence that you are going to make something happen. That no matter what, even if your opponent counters your movements you should have 100% confidence in yourself that you can counter right back.

You see many times it's not the moves you know that makes the difference it's the trust in yourself that makes a difference. There is so many people who can execute moves perfectly when drilling, but when it comes down to performing them in a live situation they either freeze up, don't remember them, or they don't have confidence in what they know.

Have you ever rolled with someone more experienced then you and you were weary of coming forward and you had a technique or plan that you wanted to execute but you weren't sure if it was going to work? You ended up taking a second to think about what might happen and by the time you're done thinking your partner or opponent has already made his move, because they were more confident then you were. That's what can make the difference of being steps ahead of your opponent or not.

The person who is 2, 3, and even 4 steps ahead of their opponent is the same person who is completely confident in their abilities and their techniques. They don't care if they know what's going to happen or not, because regardless their going to MAKE THINGS HAPPEN. There is no waiting, pausing, or thinking about what might happen they just go and take that chance knowing that no matter what they trust in themselves that they will be the ones to come out on top every time.

Even if what you tried didn't work you still believed in yourself and you now know what would have happened because you went for it instead of just sitting back and not taking any chances at all and not even knowing.

This is also a very common when you roll with someone who is much more experienced then you or a much higher rank then you. Let's say a blue belt in BJJ pairs up with a brown belt. Many times that blue belt is already thinking of ways that the brown belt can beat him before they even started rolling. They beat themselves before the match even started. They never gave themselves a chance and counted themselves out right from the beginning instead of starting with their head high and their confidence in full affect.

When you are confident in yourself regardless of your technical ability you will:

Think clearer.
React faster.
Feel better about yourself.
Breath better.
Be less conscious.
Make things happen.
Be steps ahead of those who aren't as confident.
Attack better.
Defend better.
Trust that you can deal with any situation in the moment.

As your techniques and strategies get better and better and you mix that in with being confident in yourself you will be much more successful in your rolling sessions.

Before we finish up, I just want to clarify what being confident is not. Being confident IS NOT:

Being cocky or over confident - just because your confident doesn't mean you should be cocky. Confidence will help you improve your overall game, but it's not the only thing that will make you the best. Being lazy - being confident doesn't mean you are lazy and you shouldn't work hard. Being arrogant - A person can be confident in themselves without being arrogant and boastful. Show your confidence with respect and work to help others be confident in their grappling as well. Don't under mind your partners and look down on those less experienced or even less confident then you may be. Comparing yourself to others - Don't compare your confidence to others, and your abilities to others. Just be confident in what you know and your potential and you'll be well on your way to a successful and most importantly FUN grappling experience. Having an Ego - One can be confident and not have an ego. Always trust in what you do and regardless of what happens whether it is a positive or negative, be humble in your experience and see every opportunity as a learning experience.
To sum things up: The point is to trust yourself and what you know. Trust that even if you don't know how to do something that you will one day. If you don't have confidence in yourself, then you don't trust yourself. If you don't trust yourself, then who can you trust?

"Experience tells you what do to do, confidence allows you to do it" ~ Stan Smith

Thanks for reading!
Jason
 

ARE YOU POWERFUL?

Guest Blog: Caleb - Phalanx BJJ

Evolution

My name is Caleb and I first met and trained with Brad about 3 years ago. When I first started I really had no idea how to do any escapes, sweeps or submissions. I'd seen them on youtube and in the UFC, but my first day of class when someone asked me if I wanted to roll I had no clue what to do. I remember grabbing onto his neck and squeezing with everything I had dying to make someone tap out my first try, but to my surprise I squeezed and squeezed and nothing happened, he eventually got out and he WAS able to squeeze my neck properly and force me to tap out which was especially confusing because I outweighed the guy by at least 60lbs.

After that day I started learning some techniques but I wasn't able to pull them off yet. I knew the moves, but there was a lot more I didn't know about control, pressure, balance, leverage, and counters to the counters of the techniques I'm trying to implement. Even though I've become much better than I was before, those are the same things I have to work on now, because when I learn a new lesson and get better at a certain technique I end up in a different place and have to learn the concepts and techniques from there. That's what I love about grappling, I learn the same lessons every day of training in a new and fresh way. It fascinates me to see how my grappling game evolves in a short amount of time. I have days where I feel great and days when I am frustrated and just can't seem to do anything right, but I look at the bad days as one down and one less to have. I feel that to be REALLY good at something like grappling or fighting, you have to try and fail many times, I always say you have to take at least 10,000 ass beatings to be great and after I take one I say it's just one less I have to take.

Today I told Brad at lunch that I needed some help on a half guard sweep and it's actually a position I used to feel good about when I trained with smaller guys, but against Brad or Paul (Buentello) it was obvious I was missing something. Having to go back and look at the small details of a position is an example of that evolution I find exciting about training. I started with nothing, learned that sweep, was able to get it on some guys. Now I have to learn how to do it to someone who knows the defense, and once I've done that I have to prepare for the next position or a different opponent, but before that even, I have to learn minor details while still learning the basic fundamentals, and fail several times before I can get it to work.

I have a perfect example from another situation today. I usually pull guard when Brad and I start from the knees. He's bigger and stronger and is best on top where he can make any control position painful, so I figure I will benefit most from having to deal with the skills he's best at so when I fight someone my size and experience level I am confident that even if I am in bad positions they won't be able to crush me like he does. Anyway, I did do some guard pulling, but later on he either pulled guard or gave me position so I could work more control from the top which is something I have been sucking at. I was trying new things in side mount and I was making mistakes, he would get back to half guard, sweep and pass. The past several weeks I've been trying to force a lot of action and movement and never relax in bad positions, and I tweaked some things and got a couple arm in guillotines, so when I've gotten in top half recently I've gotten over excited about the guillotine and had bad results. I'm at a point in the evolution with this technique now where I need to focus on the details and apply the common concepts of grappling. I wasn't cinching up tight enough and my transitions are sloppy, leave a lot of space, and are off balanced.

Every time I went for the choke Brad was using an underhook and an arm between my legs to roll me over his opposite hip, and I had finally failed in that position enough to learn how it felt when he was getting ready for it. I continued going for my guillotine and I paid closer attention to the details I needed to correct. I felt better, I felt like I was playing a tighter game and was going to stop the sweep and get the choke. He went for the sweep, it was close but I balanced myself just enough to keep from going over...right before he immediately went the other way and came out the back door.

I still got swept, I still got tapped, but if I fail and try again enough times I won't get swept or tapped by the same things. That's part of the evolution of the game and that's why I love it.