Leg entanglements allow you to stay a step ahead at all times in guard play: An opponent can hide his upper body from submissions quite well no gi simply by standing up. He can negate whole categories of sweeps by switching between standing and kneeling postures. One thing he can never hide by completely by changing stance is his legs – there is always a way to enter. Once you start threatening the legs your opponent cannot simply ignore it – he has to react. As such you immediately put him in a framework where he is reacting to YOUR game rather than you to his. In combat sports this is a crucial advantage. Here, Garry Tonon ties up the great ADCC champion Vinny Magalhaes in a classic backside 50/50 and puts him under strong pressure despite the big size difference. Learning to dictate the pace and get an opponent into a reactive mindset is a crucial part of guard play – learning to attack legs from everywhere is a great way to do it!
Related posts:
November 12, 2022
Speed kills
Speed kills: Last night in Dallas Luke Griffith won his match against rising star…
September 4, 2022
Position AND submission
Position AND submission: In most cases we distinguish between positional moves and…
October 18, 2021
Two for the price of one
Two for the price of one - the dual power of leg locks from bottom position: When an…
June 28, 2021
My first two goals when I teach open guard
My first two goals when I teach open guard: Open guard is among the most difficult skills…