BJJ Fanatics Fighters Gearing up for ADCC 2019!

 

 

As ADCC 2019 approaches, we can’t help but begin to feel the electricity surrounding the event. With Seth Daniels (creator of Fight to Win) at the helm, the show itself is guaranteed to reach another level of production and excitement that we have not seen in previous years. This only adds to the experience and atmosphere of this incredibly intriguing event that’s bursting at the seems with talent. 

This is our Olympics. ADCC has been the pinnacle of BJJ competition for years and its unlike any other contest in the sport. The ruleset, the match durations and parameters force action like no other BJJ tournament in the world. 

The elite of the sport will be in attendance. There will be legends, young guns, and the current heroes of BJJ all in the same room, going to war. If you’re attending, its likely you won’t walk ten feet without running in to a recognizable face. Held in Anaheim, CA this year, ADCC makes a return to American soil for the first time since 2007 and this year’s line-up is sure to have everyone’s undivided attention. 

BJJ Fanatics has had the opportunity to work with may of these top tier BJJ competitors and this coming weekend their incredible skill levels will be on display. Today, let’s look at some instruction from some of these giants of the sport and get ourselves prepped for some of the wizardry we may be treated to this year. Let’s get started! 

The 66kg division is packed with talent and includes names such Nicky Ryan, Paulo Miya, Geo Martinez, and Kennedy Maciel. Among these names also sits Matheus Gabriel and this is who we’re going to look at in this first segment of instruction. Gabriel is more well known in the gi and this is where the bulk of his competition experience resides, but make no mistake, this young man is an incredibly proficient player and will be a contender in any ruleset. In this video he shows us and incredibly applicable triangle choke set up from the open guard. Take a look! 

 

Beginning in the open guard with a De La Rive hook and a common grip set, the collar and sleeve, Gabriel prepares for a very common reaction from his partner. Its likely that from this position, it will be the passers intention to step up the middle and sit on Gabriel’s right foot to being a passing sequence. There is an element of timing here that must be observed as Gabriel looks to kick his partner away at the exact moment this transition begins to occur. As he pushes his partner away, he must choose to either be swept or put his hands down to catch his balance. This creates opportunity for Gabriel. 

With the hand posted on the floor, Gabriel can now get to work. First, he transitions his DLR hook from its perch on the back of the leg around to the hip. He then threads his leg through the space that’s been created by forcing his partner to post and secures the triangle set up position. IN the first moments of the setup, Gabriel keeps his legs crossed, biting down on his partner to control the posture. He then passes the arm across the body, cuts an angel and locks the submission for the finish. 

Great stuff here from a hungry up and comer in Gabriel! We wish you the best of luck at this year’s competition! 

Moving up to 77kg, well find plenty of BJJ Fanatics alumni. This division is stacked as well with talented contenders rounding out the lineup. Here we see names like Lachlan Giles, Garry Tonon, Jonathan Sattva, Renato Canuto, Lucas Lepri, and much more. If we did an instructional piece on all of the BJJ Fanatics family in   this weight class you’d be reading for days, so we’re just going to focus on a couple! Let’s get started!

In the true spirit of ADCC competition where just about everything is legal and accepted, lets focus on an inside heel hook set up from Lachlan Giles. Giles is fresh off of a clean sweep in his last competitive endeavor at Kinektic and his phenomenal leg attack game made several appearances in the contest. Let’s take a look!

 

 

The inside heel hook is at the top of the list when it comes to dangerous submissions. Its one of those leg attacks that needs to be respected for its great ability to cause damage that may remove you from BJJ for a lengthy stint. Attacking the knee where its most vulnerable, this nasty submission has been a popular match ender for some time now. So, it makes sense that we should learnt he mechanics of this submission to help us understand its power and keep ourselves and training partners safe from unnecessary injury. 

Acquiring and maintaining superior control over the leg we wish to attack as well as the knee line is paramount with the inside heel hook. Freeing the knee is a sure way to make yourself to safety, so we must effectively learn to trap the knee and leg to be successful. Here, Giles sets up int eh saddle and first addresses a common misconception. When forming the saddle with the legs, many of us make a triangle and extend it under the far leg of our partner. This may feel like were doing something correctly, but as Giles states were actually giving our partner a lot of room to turn and escape. Giles recommends we form the saddle and pull everything back in toward our own body. This closes these gaps and makes freeing the knee much more difficult. 

When attempting to acquire the heel, especially at first, Giles recommends we fall to the side that brings our partners leg topside. This way the leg is within our grasp and we can begin to understand how to attack it. The heel hook also materializes much faster when the leg is on the bottom, giving your training partner less time to tap and deal with the position. Maintaining the same inward pressure on the leg, Giles bends his body at the waist, creating a bend in his partner’s knee, and furthering the control of the knee line. 

To acquire the heel, Giles leads with his triceps and then pinches the toes in between his ribs and the underside of the arm. Be careful not to position the toes too high in the armpit here. This may give you a shallow bite on the heel and the possibility of the foot slipping free. Giles then scoops the hell with the blade of his wrist, careful not to cradle it in the crook of the elbow. This provides a tremendous amount of leverage to the foot. Keeping the hand that’s in charge of the foot palm down, he connects his opposite hand to the underside, securing a palm to palm grip. With downward pressure from the armpit, upward pressure from the forearm and a slight rotation, Giles can effectively and easily command a tap with very limited movement. 

With some additional words on safety Giles reminds us of the brief window we have to tap to a heel hook. This makes the submission unique and dangerous compared to many other submissions. Giles suggests even trying this one with one hand to keep our training partners safe. Always remember to respect the ability of the inside heel hook to cause serious damage and keep it in mind. 

I’m sure we’ll see plenty of leg attacks from this monster this weekend at ADCC. I’ll be interested to see how Giles approaches the rule set this time around, and what he plans to lead with. Its always a pleasure to watch Giles compete! 

Sticking with the 77kg class, lets check out a piece of instruction from Renato Canuto. Canuto is a favorite this year for ADCC gold. He brings a very exciting style to the table and has all the right tools to be successful in the ADCC rule set. 

Here, Canuto treats us to some details a flying armbar, set up from an opponent’s’ shin to shin guard. Have a look! 

 

 

Canuto begins his instruction in a shin to shin scenario. With his partner tight to him and a lapel fed under the leg, Canuto takes two very important grips. One on the back of the collar and the other, using his elbow to separate his partner from him and keep him from hugging the leg too tightly. As the opposing energies begin to clash, Canuto reaches under his own leg and secures his partner’s wrist. As he pulls his partner close, Canuto takes a small hop to the other side of his partners legs and sits back, securing the arm bar. So slick. 

One of Camuto’s greatest strengths is his timing. This is an excellent example of this particular segment of Camuto’s game. A technique like this cant be pulled off without an understanding of the effect that timing has on its outcome. 

Canuto will be one to watch this weekend, as he is a fierce competitor and well equipped to win his division. Good luck to you Sir! 

In the 88kg division there is another surge of BJJ Fanatics athletes. This division will host plenty of its own fireworks with names like Craig Jones, Josh Hinger, Alec Baulding, Gabriel Arges, and Matheus Diniz among many other skilled professionals. 

Craig Jones is easily a favorite to win this weight class. Jones has been ever improving and continues to produce memorable performances in the no gi competition scene. Jones’s leg attacks are revered as some of the best in the game and his passing game, along with his wrestling have really improved over the last couple of years. 

Let’s take a look at a crab ride back take from Jones’s newest instructional. Check it out!

 

In this scenario, Jones is standing, dealing with a 50/50 style leg entanglement from the guard player. As he looks to unravel the position, he begins with two grips. A thumb down grip on the back side of the knee and a grip on the underside of his partner’s hip. Jones uses these two points of connection to rotate his partners body and then subsequently pulls his partners hips toward himself and down to the floor. Ashe pulls the hips down toward the floor his right foot gets more and more shallow and becomes a hook. He couples this positioning of his foot with a grip over and deep under his partners thigh. 

AS Jones enters in to a roll here over his right shoulder he extends his right leg and comes over the top with his left hook, securing his partner’s hip. With a pulling motion of this top hook, Jones causes his partner to travel more towards a seated position, where he can secure a seat belt grip and begin to attack the back position. 

Jones has been making innovations to the 50/50 on both ends and this is a great example of some of his finest work. I have no doubts we will see all aspects of Jones’s game this week as he attempts to chase the gold at ADCC! 

The big story in the men’s 99kg division this year will is of course Gordon Ryan. With an absolutely stellar performance at ADCC two years ago, Ryan will look to again conquer his division and chase absolute gold, where he fell short at the last ADCC. Ryan is coming off of a serious knee injury, but this doesn’t appear to have affected his momentum and he’ll be the biggest force to be reckoned with in the wright class among other big names such as Vinny Magalhaes, Aaron Johnson, Patrick Gaudio, and Lucas Barbosa, just to name a few. 

In his newest instructional on the closed guard, Ryan treats us to a systematized approach to the position, covering a plethora of submissions, transitions, and reversals. Check out this armbar attack from the series. 

 

The arm bar is no easy task from the guard if you don’t have the right positioning or controls. Here, Ryan secures his partners wrist with his left hand and begins to create an angle, reaching under his partners leg on the opposite side. We know that posture is always the enemy of closed guard attacks. Addressing this idea Ryan hits a knee pull, that brings his partner forward. This allows him a brief moment to transition his leg over his partners head. Here, Ryan makes sure to position his leg higher than the ear to get what he needs for a solid finish. 

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Ryan is definitely the favorite to win his division this year. Hell be a nightmare for anyone that crosses his path and his superior technique always shines. I’m looking forward to witnessing his performance!

Rounding out the men’s divisions we have the 99+kg weight category. This division is stacked as well with names like Buchecha, Orlando Sanchez, Yuri Simoes, and Cyborg. This division will undoubtedly be one of the most exciting spectacles of the day! 

For this one, lets focus on the returning champ, Buchecha. Buchecha is most definitely a favorite to win the 99+, and he’s coming for the gold! 

 

A common response to dealing with the half guard is the switching of the passers base. This is where we begin. As his partner switches his base in response to the half guard Buchecha turns hard to his right side, positioning his elbow as a block against his partners hip. This keeps him from getting flattened out and keeps his partner from claiming the space under his elbows. He then acquires a grip on the pants, further securing the position. 

While Securing a handful of gi material on his partner’s back with his top arm, Buchecha then looks to pass his partners leg off by extending his leg and handing off his partner’s foot to his opposite leg. With an assessment of the hips, Buchecha decides that they are too far away to get back, so here, scoops over top of both of his partners legs with his heel and locks a triangle. The sweep is now eminent, and all Buchecha has to do is get up on his elbow and begin to work his way to the top position. Here, Buchecha keeps the triangle on the legs closed and reaches back, scooping the head and bringing his partner underneath him where he can then secure the mount and settle in. 

Its not going to be an easy day for anyone joining Buchecha in the 99+. He’s been a powerhouse competitor for years and has showed no signs of slowing down. 

ADCC 2019 is slated to be the most exciting ADCC yet and its packed with BJJ Fanatics athletes! Its been a pleasure to learn from these heroes of the sport and were looking forward to seeing them in action this coming weekend at ADCC!

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