Doubling your chances: For every ten times you try to sweep someone your own size and skill level from guard position, you can expect around seven to eight of them to fail due to a skilled opponents anticipation and resistance. Knowing this it is very important that you build the habit of rising up from bottom position and following a failed sweep with an attempted takedown. This gives you a second chance to reverse your opponent and take top position. Most beginners have a tendency to sit back down after a failed sweep – do the opposite – rise up into a follow up takedown and you'll find that you double your chances of a score without adding a lot of effort. Interestingly these follow up takedowns tend to be easier than normal takedowns for the simple reason that the opponents stance and balance is usually broken by the initial sweep attempt, making takedown defense more difficult than usual. Next time you're sweeping from guard, start that building that habit of coming UP rather than just sitting back down.
