Dean Lister is the godfather of leg locks here in the states. Back when leg locks were considered dirty, Dean was leg locking his way to championship titles. Starting with his straight foot locks at blue belt, he later developed a dangerous heel hook game at the higher ranks and soon was winning matches in […]

The north/south position in Jiu Jitsu can be tricky. There aren’t many people who specialize in attacks from that position. And even more so, most people don’t take the time to practice the defenses and escapes from it either. While there are not endless amounts of attacks from north/south, the few that are there are […]

One of my favorite guard passes in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu has got to be the double-under pass. While its cousin, the over-under pass seems to be more popular, as far as control goes, the double-under pass is my go to. The cool aspect of the double-under pass is that you hit it from playing low, […]

While leg attacks are feared these days, they are not unstoppable. Instead of fearing the foot lock, one should respect it and know the proper defense of it. I have not been submitted by a straight foot lock in years, because of the fact that the proper defense is easy to master. Knowing the battles […]

Throughout the past few years, the leg lock game has become a major aspect of competition grappling, more so than ever before.  One result of this has been the development of “new” systems, but another, far more interesting result has been the resurgence in popularity of certain grappling arts.  Perhaps one of the most interesting of these […]

When it comes to stand up grappling, foot sweeping has become kind of a lost art. Everyone is either trying to hit double leg and single leg takedowns, or big hip throws. Now those are all great takedown techniques, but too many people ignore effective foot sweeps. You don’t see them much in BJJ, and […]

If you are a fan of the submission only scene, then more then likely you have watched at least one of the Eddie Bravo Invitational (EBI) tournaments. And if you’ve watched those tournaments, then you have seen three competitors from the same team win over and over. Those competitors are Eddie Cummings, Gordon Ryan and […]

Buttefly guard. It is one of the preferred guards of higher level guys. Usually, you will not see white belts, or even blue belts playing much butterfly. Usually purple belts and up in becomes a popular guard. But why is it so popular? There are quite a few reasons why guys like to play in […]

Leg attacks are the great neutralizer when it comes to Jiu Jitsu. They can take the wind out of anyone’s sails. For those that don’t bother with them, often regret it later after falling to one. While heel hooks are the hot thing these days, the straight foot lock is the building block for all […]

IBJJF legal leg locks are becoming very popular. With the use of non legal leg locks in competitions such as EBI and Polaris, IBJFF competitors also are looking to add leg attacks to their games. But due to the stricter rules of the IBJJF, these leg attack techniques have to be modified to fit the […]

For some reason, the majority of people do not like to practice submission escapes in Jiu Jitsu. Most people find it more fun to simply do offensive techniques and get their training partners to tap. But practicing submission escapes is essential for growth as a Jiu Jitsu competitor. Being able to defend submissions is something […]

As a BJJ practitioner, I am always looking to improve my takedown and throwing skills. While it isn’t easy, it is something that can be worked on and improved. While most people tend to learn Wrestling takedowns to add to their BJJ game, I am the opposite. I prefer to look towards Judo for my […]

It is 2017 and the Jiu Jitsu world is already preparing for some big tournaments to come. One man that closed out 2016 strong, was Atos black belt, Claudio Calasans. He was able to take home two more titles, those being the Asian Open and the South American Championship. Claudio is easily one of the […]

Today is the last day of 2016. For all the student and competitors in Jiu Jitsu, there have been great triumphs and great defeats as well. We saw some awesome matches throughout the year within the IBJJF, at the Eddie Bravo Invitational, Polaris and more! For us personally, I’m sure there are things that you […]