Class 253...

A last chance to roll before the Xmas break, but we faced a stamina-sapping series of stomach-strengthening drills beforehand. 

Somebody added them all up and we did 580 in total, which is a lot. I was fine with most of them, but I still suck the big one at press-ups.

We then did four five-minute rounds. I was fine with two white belts and I hit a couple of wrist locks, chokes and I even caught a gogoplata at one point. I then held my own against a decent blue belt, before taking a gentle mauling from a purple belt.

I defended OK against him and I escaped a few tricky positions and I threatened a toe press at one point. But he was just much better at controlling a dominant position.

An ace way to end the year, though.

Things to remember: Grips and controlling tension. Keep attached when attacking.

Class 252...

A final class with a very good black belt, who is not only is a very successful competitor but also a very skilled teacher.

He taught some basics about pulling guard and retaining guard. The take-home lessons were:
I) Keep grips at all times to collapse him into guard, to break his posture in guard and to threaten attacks and submissions.

II) When attacking, keep connected and close distance; when defending, create distance and lose connections.

I also got to spar with the departing black belt, too, and it was a gentle and controlled mauling. It was good to roll with a high-level competitor and see the above lessons in action. He always maintained contact and never let the pressure stop.

Things to remember: grips, pressure and connections.

Class 251...

A class going over some basic drills. These were the armbar, the triangle and the hip bump sweep, then some work on kimuras. 

The key advice when attacking for kimuras was: be compact. The wrist lock is also a possibility when opponent defends the kimura by straightening an arm.

In sparring, I fended off a good purple belt for a round and I hit a guillotine sweep using butterfly guard. I again struggled to escape both mount or side against bigger opponents, though. I am starting to drill basic escapes from these positions, though.

Things to remember: be compact and act as a unit when attacking with the kimura.

Competition Time...

My first competition as a blue belt and I fought a team-mate from London Fight Factory!

My preparation was good and, because I knew I was fighting a judo blackbelt, I went in with a specific game plan. This was to keep a low posture and pull guard and attack from there.

This worked for about the opening 90 seconds, then he postured up and escaped my guard. I then got careless and was tripped from a re-stand. He then secured position, got mount and choked me out.

Takehome lessons for me were:
Attack their posture and be more offensive when in guard.
Be more careful from re-stands.
Stick to the game plan when you have one.

I still loved all the preparation, the event and the fight, though.

Private Class No.15...

I'm competing in a few days so I booked a private class to work on some stand-up techniques, particularly on pulling guard.

The take-home on this was simple: 

i) Secure grip on the opponent's sleeve and collar. 

ii) Place foot in hip of opponent.

iii) Drop back and pull opponent into guard. 

iv) Fight to close guard. 

v) Secure over hook. 

vi) Attack. 

That, obviously, is the ideal scenario, but from standing the key is to keep my posture low. If the opponent secures grips, then strip the grips and block the hip to avoid hip throws.

Also, if the opponent postures up in guard, keep his posture broken and continue to attack. 

Class 250...

Work is hell so I've missed a few normal classes and, instead, I attended the Thursday dinner rounds class.

This a class where the rules are simple: fight any opponent over a seven-minute round; then find a new opponent and repeat; and repeat. It's tiring and brutal but it's also fantastic.

I did OK against a couple of very big and strong opponents, but I struggled against a friend who's a strong wrestler. Once he gets side control, it's difficult to escape from under him.

I need to work on this. I hit a few ezekiel chokes, though, and threatened a few wristlocks.

Class 251...

A class featuring three standing techniques, plus a wrist lock from full guard. These went something like this:

Takedown from standing with cross collar grab:
Collapse opponent from cross collar grab and shoot for opposite side single leg; secure leg and pull down collar and elevate leg; keep corkscrewing round to collapse opponent.
There is also the option of across collar choke from this position.

Wrist lock from standing:
Opponent grabs collar; turn his wrist and grab his tricep with both hands; angle his elbow into his rib cage and compress to attack his wrist.

Wrist lock from full guard from same side wrist grab: opponent grabs same side wrist; swim hand under to turn his wrist; connect your other arm to own bicep in crossed arms to trap wrist at broken angle; compress with knees to finish.

Sparring was OK. I struggled to escape from side bottom against a strong white belt. But I survived against a much better blue belt and escaped various bad positions.

I am threatening wrist locks from bad positions. While I am not hitting them, the threat is a solid distraction tactic.

Things to remember: wrist locks are a good option for me.

Classes 255 & 256...

More work on the same side wrist control and collar grab.

The takehome was the collar grip always needs to be on the opposite side the opponent is trying to pass to. In guard, the use of one foot on the hip of the opponent to either control distance or collapse his posture was also emphasised. This can also set up triangles and omoplatas.

I did ok in sparring and got double unders on opponents' legs a few times to aid passing. Side control escapes are also improving. I need to look at mount escapes and reguarding again.

Things to remember: Use collar control to retain tension, work on side control and mount escapes, use foot on hip.