Every Day Porrada Spider Guard With Romulo Barral

When it comes to some of the best spider guard players in BJJ history, 36 year old Romulo Barral tops the list.

Romulo is a 5 Time IBJJF Black Belt World Champion. Barral is one of the top Brazilian Jiu Jitsu fighters in the Meio Pesado weight division. He has maintained his status as a world class black belt throughout his competitive career at all of the major Brazilian Jiu Jitsu tournaments.  Originally from Belo Horizonte, Brazil, Barral has since moved to the United States where he coaches full time at his jiu jitsu academy. He spends every day doing what he loves, and is always striving to learn more and stay in top competitive form.

Romulo draws back the curtain and lets you in on all of his secrets...

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Romulo has just released a great new instructional series on BJJFanatics.com called “The Everyday Porrada Spider Guard.” Often when BJJ practitioners think about the most effective guards they think about the widely used Spider Guard. The spider guard is one of the most common open guards used in high level Brazilian Jiu Jitsu competition. It is known for its versatility, allowing the spider guard player to set up multiple attacks, transitions and submissions with ease. Romulo includes all of his secret tips and tricks for the spider guard in this amazing series. If you love playing open guards, then this is definitely for you. Let’s check out some of the techniques that make Romulo Barral so great at spider guard.

Kneeling Opponent Scissor Sweep

If you have been around the BJJ game for a while you will know that not all opponents stand in your spider guard, which is okay, because there are still options for you. Some opponents will attempt to play at a lower position in order to pressure pass a tight guard. But the fundamental scissor sweep can be used here very effectively. The scissor sweep works as well in spider guard as it does full guard. To get the position correct you will need to get your foot up inside your opponent’s upper arm and bicep while maintaining sleeve control. You will shoot past the hip with your other foot, and using the foot controlling the bicep of your opponent to scissor his legs. When done correctly, you will end up in mount.

Over Under Defense

The over under pass can be difficult to defend. In a situation where your guard is being passed this way there is actually a great way to defend, which Romulo demonstrates here. Typically you will see someone try to push away their opponent at a bad angle to try to free their legs. Instead of pushing your opponent’s head in the direction he is trying to pass, Romulo pushes the head from the opposite side away from his body. Now he can sit up which prevents his opponent from passing his guard. As soon as your opponent tries to pull their head out you can recover your guard and secure your grips.

Inside Reverse De La Riva Hook Sweep

The De La Riva Hook sweep is a very simple sweep from the reverse de la riva guard. This technique is all about timing. In this technique, Romulo uses a spider guard and switches his base to attack the leg. He brings his opposite leg through and hooks it behind his opponent’s leg. This hook will allow him to off balance his opponent. Now he extends his leg upwards which causes his training partner to lean into him. At the same time he is doing this, Romulo is also punching his opponent’s arm in between his legs. Notice his training partner is now completely off balance. All Romulo has to do from here is roll through, keeping his leg up, as he secures top mount on his opponent.

No Arm Triangle Choke

Typically when you think of the triangle chose you focus on breaking down your opponent’s posture, securing one arm inside, the other arm outside and using your hips to increase the pressure of the choke. It is a common technique which means most people see it coming. But this no arm triangle choke is a bit more sneaky. Romulo likes to hit this no arm triangle choke when his opponent is going for a double under hook pass. Here he will control his opponent’s sleeves, keeping his hips heavy and straightening his legs in order to prevent being stacked. As his training partner pressures down with this head to hit the pass, Barral secures a grip on his opponent’s neck. Then Barral adjusts his hips and brings his leg up to the other side of his opponent’s neck like similar to a traditional triangle choke. To complete the triangle, Romulo locks up the choke with his other leg and pulls his opponent’s head toward his hand, causing him to tap.

Double Under Guard Recover

A common defense to spider guard is stackingGetting stacked is a dangerous position to be in. It leaves you defenseless and vulnerable to submissions. When you face a taller opponent they can usually posture up and break down your grips. To counter this, Barral recommends shooting your legs up quickly in order to prevent your training partner from posturing up. You want to use the momentum of your counter to off balance your opponent and recover your guard. But most of this time it will not be this simple. If you drop to recover your guard and your opponent takes double under hooks on your thighs then do not worry. Just maintain your grips and keep in mind that your legs are always stronger than your opponent’s arms. Your legs should be heavy on top of your opponent’s arms which will allow you to move backwards with your shoulders. It is likely your opponent will try to regain his double under hooks, connecting his hands in an attempt to smash pass your guard. When your opponent’s hands are connected he has a much stronger grip around your legs. So keep your legs heavy and move your shoulders back in order to prevent this while you work to recover your guard.

This is really impressive stuff from Romulo Barral! If you are looking for more spider guard techniques then be sure to check out Romulo Barral’s “The Everyday Porrada Spider Guard” instructional series! If you struggle with sweeps, submissions or even retaining your guard, then this series is for you. It does not require you to be flexible or athletic, even older guys can use these techniques with ease. So be sure to check it out and give these techniques a try the next time you are on the mats!

Learn All Of The Tricks, Hacks &Techniques That Allow Romulo Barral To Dominate Bigger, Stronger, Faster &Much Younger Guys With This Unstoppable Guard

If You Struggle With Sweeps, Submissions or Even Retaining Your Guard: Spider Guard Will Feel Like Cheating When You Learn Romulo’s Recipe

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