In BJJ it’s what you don’t know that hurts you. If you get caught in a position that you don’t have an answer to, that you don’t understand, then life on the mat just got exponentially more difficult.
This problem is most pronounced for the guard. It can be really difficult to keep up with the changing technology. One year it’s the X Guard, taking the world by storm, then it’s the 50/50 guard, and then it’s the worm guard…
You don’t necessarily need to add each of these new guard positions to your own personal repertoire, but you DO need to know how to shut them down. You need good answers for each of these positions.
If you stick your head in the sand and ignore these new positions then you’re going to be on the receiving end of a whole lot of sweeps, and tapping out to a lot of surprise submissions. There’s a reason that these positions have evolved, and that’s because they work!
Take, for example, the infamous 50/50 guard.
When this guard variation first hit the BJJ scene it immediately became notorious for being a stalling position. Players would put their opponent into 50/50, score a couple of points and then spend the rest of the match coasting. Nobody knew how to solve the riddle of the 50/50, and it became very popular very fast.
But is it an unpassable guard? Of course not. Jiu-jitsu evolves, and world champions HAVE to have answers that work against the very best guard players in the world.
Of course you could travel to Rio and Sao Paulo in Brazil to train with the champions, but one of the joys of practising BJJ in the digital age is that help often not that far away.
For example, I recently received some exclusive footage of Leandro Lo, current and multiple-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion, teaching some cutting edge guard passing techniques that you may not have seen yet.
The first clip is a detailed breakdown of Leandro Lo’s approach for systematically demolishing the 50/50 guard. If you only have time to watch one Youtube instructional today then this should be the one – it could save your butt on the mat big time.
The second exclusive clip is an advanced Kimura armlock attack you can use when you’re in half guard top.
This is one of those times where it’s much easier to show you what I’m talking about than it is to describe it, but the key to this technique is the leg movement that you have to use after you roll over to the other side of his body.
Check it out – if your spatial awareness and leg dexterity is sufficiently developed to add this to your arsenal then your opponents won’t have any idea what hit them.
If you thought that these techniques were useful then I would encourage you to check out Leandro Lo’s Guard & Matrix Passing instructional set. I have seen quite a bit of this set and been very impressed with everything I’ve seen so far.
In volume 1 Leandro Lo takes you through his own unique style of open guard, but the main focus of the set is demolishing, crushing and slicing through the guard (jn Volumes 2, 3 and 4). You’ll learn how to deal with de la Riva guard, spider guard, X guard, 50/50 guard, the knee shield, worm guard, deep half guard, and the shin guard. All of which are positions you’re guaranteed to run into if you’re competing in the modern BJJ scene.
Leandro Lo’s Guard & Matrix Passing comes with a money-back guarantee so you’re not really risking anything if it’s not as promised. It’s also produced by a friend of mine, so if you have any problems with the set (or getting a refund if you want one) then get in touch with me and I’ll take care of it for you.
