An effective Jiu Jitsu attack is a lot like an effective boxing attack. In either situation, rarely will you see a single technique land, but a good combination will likely cause some serious damage. This becomes even more important as you progress through the ranks in Jiu Jitsu.
A skilled opponent will almost always defend your initial attack, and if you don’t transition to another technique, your opponent will have an opportunity to counter.
However, it’s often a lot harder to see a Jiu Jitsu combination than a boxing combination. To help illustrate this point, I thought I’d share with you a real-world example of a Jiu Jitsu combination, plus the secret sauce that connected all the techniques together.
In February (2019), I fought in the London Open. During the final, I swept my opponent with a series of attacks leading to an x-guard sweep. Check out the video of the sweep that won me the final of the London Open.
Before we get into how the techniques fitted together, I wanted to break down how I’d have liked the techniques to work in a perfect world.
Technique 1: Lasso Berimbolo
The Lasso / Pant Grip spider guard AKA Chelsea’s Guard is an incredibly powerful position. It gives you fantastic control over your opponent’s ability to move in any direction but still allows you numerous attacking options.
One of the most powerful attacks out of Chelsea’s guard is the transition to deep De La Riva and Berimbolo. As I learned this technique from my beautiful wife (and she’s far better at it than me) I thought I’d have her demonstrate it.
In the video below, Chelsea Leah says some key controls for using this guard and how to attack the Berimbolo.
Technique 2: Standing X Guard Sweep
The X Guard is another fantastic guard to attack your opponent from. The power of the position comes from the fact you’re directly under your opponent’s centre of balance. This can make it relatively easy for you to knock your opponent off balance and sweep them.
In the video below covers the Standing Sweep from X Guard. This sweep can be incredibly difficult to defend as your opponent will have to maintain their balance while having their leg lifted in the air. Check it out below:
Technique 3: The Rafa Hook
When you get to the rear body lock you have a number of options. You can try to take your opponent down, you can try to jump to their back, or you can try something like the Rafa Hook.
The Rafa Hook is named after Rafael Mendes who developed it during one of his ADCC training camps. It’s a great way to transition from the body lock to the back or knock your opponent down.
The Secret Sauce
Any technique can be effective, but you have to be able to react to your opponent’s counters, and, if necessary, transition to a new technique. All of the techniques I used in the match I shared work fine on their own, but they wouldn’t have worked in this situation if I had used them individually.
In this video, I demonstrate how I connected the techniques I used in the match. This is a good example of how you can string techniques together.
Connecting techniques together without thinking about them too much is what’s going to take your Jiu Jitsu to the next level. When you first start connecting your techniques together, you’ll make bad choices– but it’s better to do something and find out that it doesn’t work than do nothing and learn nothing from the process. With a little practice, you’ll find your attacks become a lot more effective.
Resources
Here are a couple of resources you might find useful if you want to improve your transitional speed and improve your Jiu Jitsu.
1. Download Performance Drilling
Performance Drilling is the methodology I use to learn techniques and integrate them into my Jiu Jitsu faster.
You can download a FREE copy now at:
https://tombarlowonline.com/resources/performance-drilling/
2. Chelsea Leah’s Modern Jiu Jitsu
I’m a little biased but Chelsea’s Jiu Jitsu is outstanding. A while ago, we recorded an instructional covering some of her favourite passes and guard attacks. As a bonus, it also includes the complete Lasso / Pant Grip spider guard, which is my new favourite guard.
You can learn more and get your copy now at:
https://tombarlowonline.com/chelsea-leahs-modern-jiu-jitsu/
3. Escapology Online
This is the ultimate resource if you want to make improvements in your Jiu Jitsu. You get access to a huge library of content (including the resources mentioned above), plus the support and guidance to integrate them into your Jiu Jitsu.
You can learn more and get your £1 Trial at:
