The first seminar that I ever went to was a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu seminar hosted by East West Martial Arts. The legendary Jean Jacques Machado flew up to teach in the packed gymnasium.  The details of the techniques he thought were on a different level from anything I was used to. I still review the notes from that seminar to this day.

After watching this side mount escape video, you guys may be able to sympathize with me if you haven’t trained with him before.  It’s crazy just how knowledgeable Jean Jacques Machado is.

Side Mount Escape

Both escapes work well in gi and no gi. The crucifix option starts at :40.

The vast majority of fighters have an orthodox stance. That means that their left leg is their lead leg. Usually their sparring partners will also be orthodox so that is what they get used to.

Then comes along a southpaw and that throws a bit of a wrench in their strategy. Now they may be getting hit with more crosses and hooks than their used to, and their jab may be a little less effective. The game changes quite a bit.

The Southpaw vs Orthodox Strategy Simplified

If you are an orthodox fighter that wants to learn how to fight a southpaw or vice versa, there is one key principle to keep in mind. Get your lead leg to the outside of their lead leg!

By stepping to the outside of your opponent, you are setting up your cross and killing theirs. Also, you put yourself in a great position to kick, knee or elbow.

Checkout the video below to see what I am talking about.

The spinning backfist is one of the flashier techniques in the martial arts. It can create quite the highlight reel when it connects because often it results in a knockout.

Below, Muay Thai legend Duke Roufus breaks down the spin back fist and some of his favorite setups:

Here is a great example of a knockout from this technique. Andy Hug uses one of the best setups to get the knockout. He fakes the jab then turns hard through for the knockout:

Note: The spinning backfist works best when your opponent is backing up after one of your strikes.

I ran across this video a few years ago and really got a lot from it.  This is a demonstration in Thailand showing some of the traditional strikes and counters famous to Muay Thai.

Obviously because this is a demo, the techniques are done a little slower than usual and there is some choreography.  That’s not the point.  What should be taken from this is watching the technique and how these fighters flow.  For example, watching how they turn their hips on the kick and move between techniques can really be admired.  

Nothing is being forced, so the fighters can use pure Muay Thai technique.  Basically this is like rolling in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

The science of ground and pound isn’t really broken down the same way Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Muay Thai, and other arts are. There is a lot of grey area that is still out there in MMA.

The half guard is particularly a tricky position. From a pure BJJ standpoint, both the top and bottom have submission opportunities and a pretty equal ability to better their position. When you add MMA to the picture, things change. The person on the top is definitely at an advantage.

Here is an example of how to use the top position to open up strikes on your opponent. Keep in mind that you want to keep a strong base when you are putting your opponents arm between your legs. You are basically giving them a sweep if you let your hips become light.

Ground and Pound from Half Guard Top

In the previous post, Robert Drysdale showed how to pull off one of the most dangerous chokes in BJJ. A lot of people asked me how to defend against that choke.

Karel Pravec of Belt Quest shows two escapes below.  Give them a shot and see how they work for you.

Robert Drysdale is easily one of the top grapplers in the world. He’s a multi-time world champion that can teach just as well as he competes which is rare. He has a real knack for simplifying BJJ while still keeping the details that matter.

In this video he is teaching the proper way to finish a north south choke. He makes it very clear how important it is to back up and drop your weight as you attempt the choke.

If you liked this video, you will probably like Drysdale’s no-gi BJJ instructional series. It’s easily in the top five that I have owned:

(This is an affiliate link. If you don’t like the idea of that, search the dvd set on google.)

Lucas Leite was a machine at the Mundials (World BJJ Championships) this year.  Every time that he got into half guard bottom on anyone, he was sweeping them.

Half Guard Sweep from the BJJ Worlds

The key to this technique is using your underhook to pull your opponent off of his base (watch around :30 second mark) so that you can get up to your knees.  Once you are on your knees, you have all of the leverage you need to turn your opponent over.

Also note that this sweep works best when your opponent gets a wizzer (overhook) on your arm. You can clamp your elbow (left elbow in this video) down on his arm to prevent him from basing out as you sweep.  If he doesn’t use an overhook, take his back.

Give this sweep a shot.  If you are planning on using it nogi, grab under the shin or under the hamstring when you are going for the sweep.

Most of you know who Nate Diaz is from his success in the UFC and as a Caesar Gracie Brown Belt. Matt Darcy is also a high level brown belt, and he trains at Guerilla Jiu-Jitsu.

This past weekend the two of them had a great gi match. There are some fantastic transitions and techniques displayed here including an attempted flying arm bar, omoplata, kimura, and some good escapes.

Check it out:

Army Combatives is the hand to hand combat system that the army uses.  It runs parallel to many BJJ and MMA gyms. In the beginning, you may be starting on the knees, but as you progress, you may be allowed to fight with open hands like in Pancrase or even fight in the cage.

The interesting part about Army Combatives is that they do a great job of bringing in outside instructors to develop their program and stay as cutting edge as possible.

Here is a great highlight video from the tournaments that took place this year: