Why is De La Riva so Common?

By Fanatics Authors, July 19, 2017

De La Riva or DLR guard has exploded with popularity in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu over recent years. Why is so common now? There several reasons that contribute to its popularity, obviously, it is extremely effective, versatile and efficient. We are not going to discuss the applications but the reasons behind what made it so common.

DLR is one of the most common guards because a lot of people stand and pass or pass from combat base, and because it is extremely easy to find, DLR presents itself often, and contrary to popular belief, it is not a very grip dependent guard. That being said, this combination of things bread the common DLR guard we see today.

De La Riva and Standing Passes

DLR is one of the best options to deal with a fast paced and agile guard passer who like to pass standing. When someone moves fast and stands to pass, if you don’t set up a guard quickly, you will get your guard passed fats. When someone stands to pass your guard, the easiest guard to insert is the DLR. This is because it is simple to insert the hook and just inserting a good DLR hook and putting your opposite foot on your opponent’s knee or hip, you can slow down your opponent’s passes.

The Half Guard is another extremely popular guard for many of the same reasons. The half guard exploded with popularity in the early competition days because one of the most prevalent passes was the knee cut and the half guard was a simple guard to establish that would slow down the knee cut. Check out our article on the first DLR sweep you should learn here. Also, check out this DLR back take below.

De La Riva presenting itself often

De La Riva is extremely popular because it presents itself so often. Typically in bjj academies many people start their rolls on their knees. This is followed by, for the most part, one person will elect to play guard by sitting to butterfly and the other will attempt to pass. Many people today start passing either in combat base (one leg up one knee down) or from standing. If someone is standing and you are on your back or sitting guard, you are at a disadvantage because they can establish grips easier and pass your guard quickly. Check out this article "Go To DLR Sweeps" for some awesome DLR sweeps.

So what do you do? Put a DLR hook in. The DLR hook is the easiest control to establish when there are no grips and someone is trying to pass standing or from combat base. DLR presents itself. Once you have a strong DLR hook in and your other foot controlling the distance, you can get your grips. Check out this drills that will help you DLR guard exponentially.

So now you want to implement De La Riva into your bjj game? We have a solution to help you learn DLR quickly. Check out purple belt world champion, Matheus Gonzaga’s DVD Set, “The Lightweight Guard.” This DVD is an excellent resource for anybody of any age, weight, size, and skill level!