Interview: Mauricio Gomes on Roger Gracie

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In the first instalment of this four part interview, Mauricio spoke about the development of competition in BJJ. In this week's discussion, he talks about his son, Roger Gracie.

slideyfoot.com: It's interesting you mention sponsorship there, because in Roger's case, he always wears a plain gi, you don't see lots of sponsors all over him.

Mauricio Gomes: He never really had a sponsor, except Keiko Sports, who have been helping him since he was about sixteen years old. They sponsored him for quite a while, blue belt, purple belt, all the way to black. Even now, I think at Roger's last two competitions, he made a deal with Keiko on the day to use the gi. I don't know what kind of terms, because I don't get involved in the financial side of things.

Roger still has his gym, so he still has to look after his gym, teach, see what's going on, is it good, is it bad, is anything missing. On top of all that, he has to train three or four times a day for months and then go to the competition. A lot of other guys that are competing at that level, they don't have gyms. They are part of some gym, but they usually don't have their own gym, running it, not all of them. Marcelo Garcia has his, but most of them, they come from a group. That group is their training camp.

But it's a lot of money, and these competitions don't give you anything back. It's a medal, a handshake and an "attaboy!" [laughs] But you have to see it that way, because it's an amateur sport. Amateur sports maybe give a prize, but other than that, you would have to go to the professional level, which would be MMA or something like that.

slideyfoot.com: I'm sure you've been asked this many times before, but do you think there is anything unique about your son Roger that enables him to be so successful, or was it just down to hard work?

Mauricio Gomes: I'm a bit biased of course, for me he is a very special boy. Not only because he is my son, but it is about what he has achieved and the humility he always has. I see sometimes a very clear example. You see at this competition we're at now [the GB Submission Only], you see people fighting, one has to win, the other has to lose, everything is normal. Now, how do you win and how do you lose? That's the main quality that the fighter will have to show sometime in their life.

I see people sometimes, they won the fight, fair and square, no doubting about that. Then the other one, perhaps they're hurt for some reason, a popped knee, or something like that. The first guy, they won, so obviously they're happy. I've seen in some situations the guy screaming his head off in the middle of the mat, while his opponent is lying on the floor, all wrecked, but the winner doesn't have the decency to help out the other guy. "What happened, are you ok, what can I do," something like that. No, he goes around screaming this and that, jumping up and down. I find that is a huge lack of respect to your fellow competitor.

Obviously, some people don't care about that, I see that as a negative point. Maybe it is just me, maybe I'm an old timer, but I find it weird.

slideyfoot.com: Roger is of course well know for being humble, he wouldn't do that.

Mauricio Gomes: Exactly. The fight he had with Demente at the last Mundial, Demente's arm was about to break. Roger let the arm go to try something else, you know? That's a good demonstration of fair play in a fight. You're fighting, it's all fine, anything goes, you can do this, you can do that. It's all damaging, really bad. But how do you apply that, how do you deal with that? How do you win, how do you learn to lose? A fighter is composed of many things. It's not just an ability to fight and how much gas there is in the tank, no. There are also the qualities that will make that fighter always grow. Otherwise my friend, we're just here eating grass.

slideyfoot.com: Since RGA 2 opened in Kilburn back in 2009, there are quite a few RGA affiliates now, even internationally with Helio's school in Angola among others. Do you see the Roger Gracie Academy as a separate team, or still an off-shoot of Gracie Barra?

Mauricio Gomes: I think that Roger, when he competes, to this day, he never used his academy name. So as far as I'm concerned, he is still Gracie Barra. If he is Gracie Barra, competes for Gracie Barra, training at Gracie Barra his entire life, I would say it's still the same thing. I don't see a difference, not yet, anyway.

[Pics included by kind permission of Zafar Hashmi]

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29/03/2012 - Teaching (Escaping Side Control)

Teaching #047
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Can Sönmez, Bristol, UK - 29/03/2012

The first BJJ class I taught, which was only back in last May, was on side control escapes. Tonight I'll be returning to that material, so it will be similar lesson. To begin the basic side control escape where you shrimp to guard, I started by focusing on your hand and arm positioning. First thing to note is that they will want to kill your near arm. This is bad for you, because it means you can't stop them shifting up towards your head. From there, they can make as much space as they want and pass to mount.

So, you need to get your arm inside, the forearm pressing against their hip. That will help block their movement, and initiate your attempts to create some space. It should also help you block them moving to north south, as if you clamp it by their side, they'll move you with them as they try to switch position.

That arm is also the first part of your frame, so once you have that first arm through, you're going to add your other arm: this defends against the cross-face, which I didn't do enough. There are many other options for hand positioning, but I wanted to stick with the basics to avoid overwhelming people.

Anyway, to get that grip: grab the gi material by their shoulder, close to their neck, then pull down. Twist that arm up into their neck, keeping the elbow in: you need to be tight here, as otherwise they will go for a figure four on that arm. Once you've got the forearm into their neck, they can't press down into you, as they'll essentially be choking themselves.

Next I moved on to the legs. Your legs have two main purposes here: first, blocking your opponent getting to mount. Raise your near knee and drive it into their side. The idea is to wedge them between your knee and the arm you have by their hip. Personally, I like to keep my knee floating, glued to their side. This is where the one leg bridging from earlier comes in.

That makes it easier to slip my knee under as soon as they give me any space, which is something I learned from Roger. Many people prefer to cross their foot over their knee, which is something I used to do in the past as well. However, as this long Sherdog thread discusses, that can leave you open to a footlock, and also limit your mobility. Then again, you can see it used at the highest levels, like here at the Mundials.

The second use for your legs is bridging. Marcelo Garcia has a handy tip for this (although the escape he is doing there is slightly different), related to increasing the power of your bridge. To do that, bring your foot right to your bum, up on your toes. That increases your range of motion, so you can really drive up into them.

Make sure you turn into them as you bridge, rather than just straight up. This will help the next part, which is to shrimp out as you come back down. That's why you've created space in the first place: if you simply plopped back down, then you've wasted the opportunity. As soon as you shrimp out, slip the knee pressing into their side underneath. I could have added another thing here, noting that you aren't trying to lift them with your arms. Instead, you want to push off them, moving your body rather than theirs.

Once your knee is through, you need to be careful they don't immediately pass by pushing down and moving around that knee, ruining all your hard work. To prevent that, keep your hand by their shoulder. Straighten it, then add further support by bracing your other hand into their bicep (same side as the blocked shoulder). Your new frame should create a barrier to their pass, giving you enough time to recover your guard, or even move into a submission.

Alternatively, you can control their arm with your hip-bracing arm as you escape, like Roy Dean demonstrates in Blue Belt Requirements. That will also stop them pushing down on your knee, as their arm is trapped. It is worth trying both and seeing which you prefer, or which one the situation demands.

The second side control escape was the other basic one, where you go to your knees. It begins in much the same way, again establishing that frame with your arms, knee into the side and bridging. As an instructor, that meant I could review what we'd just done once again, which is useful: whenever possible, I also want to closely link whatever techniques I'm teaching.

After you bridge and shrimp this time, you're going to do something different with the arm you have into their neck. Rotate it under their armpit, then reach for their legs, bringing your leg and head up on one side. Grip the gi by their legs, then drive towards them while pulling their legs in the other direction. That should enable you to move through into side control.

Roy Dean has a modification on that, as he moves around to the side, puts his hand by the far knee, then drives forward to take them down. Caio Terra's version is a little different, as he grabs the near leg with both arms, then yanks it out so he can grab the foot. Pulling that up and driving forward, he drives them to the floor, then adjusts his grip to encircle both legs. Continuing to drive, he can then settle into side control.

Gi Review - Kingz Ripstop

Short Review: If you want an ultra lightweight gi, but don't feel comfortable with the extremely thin ripstops like Gorilla and Kauai, then the Kingz Ripstop serves as a happy medium. It is still ripstop, and therefore lightweight and quick-drying, but at 420gsm it is also much thicker than either the Gorilla or Kauai. In addition, the trousers are not ripstop, but sturdy standard cotton, with the same unusual flexible crotch panel as other models in the current Kingz product line. Available to buy here.

Full Review: I enjoy training while I'm travelling, which is why I picked up a Gorilla 'Hitman' ripstop a little while ago. I was very pleased with that gi when it arrived, as it fulfilled all my requirements: plain, super-light, quick-drying and fairly cheap. I was therefore intrigued by the prospect of comparing it with another ripstop offering, from Canadian company Kingz Kimonos.

When other gi companies use ripstop in their products, they will often opt to go with ripstop trousers and a lightweight gi top. A few companies, like Gorilla, also offer a completely ripstop gi. Kingz has taken a different route, as their ripstop gi has a ripstop jacket, but standard cotton twill trousers. These appear to be the same trousers which are included with the heavier 550 Comp model, with that same flexible crotch panel. They're superb trousers, as I mentioned in my review of the 550 Comp, but they're certainly not ultra-light.

This meant that for my purposes, the Kingz Ripstop is slightly less convenient, as I was hoping to use it when training further afield. Another option, which I tested out during my recent trip to Scotland, was to switch the Kingz trousers for a ripstop alternative: in my case, I went with the ripstop trousers from my Black Eagle Predator (reviewed here). However, at 420gsm, the Kingz Ripstop jacket is beefier than typical ripstop, meaning it does not pack as tightly as I would have liked. The Gorilla ripstop jacket is almost half the thickness at only 250gsm.

Of course, not everybody is looking for a gi to take travelling. If you simply want a light gi for training at your home club, then this remains a good choice, particularly if you're nervous about the thinner varieties of ripstop gi currently available. It's possible that the combination of ripstop stitching with a heavier material is particularly durable, but I can only speculate as I haven't had the gi very long. It's also possible that this thicker ripstop is more common than I'm assuming, given that I've so far only worn two ripstop gi jackets (Kingz and Gorilla) and rolled with training partners who were wearing two other brands of ripstop jacket (Kauai and Koral).

In terms of patches and embroidery, the design across the four models (Women's, 550 Comp, 420 Light and Ripstop) in the Kingz line is currently very similar. The only difference is the secondary colour, which on the Kingz Ripstop is blue, along with the model name included on the patches. As with the 550 Comp, they're understated, so will appeal to those who like a minimalist gi. For those who like me are more obsessive and want something even plainer, again as with the 550 Comp, the patches are not difficult to remove (and because the Kingz ripstop jacket is thicker than average ripstop, the needle holes won't show, unlike the patches I removed from the Predator trousers), with two exceptions.

Firstly, the shoulder patches are stitched underneath the collar, so you won't be able to get rid of that last edge. You'll be left with a dark line of black fluff under the collar, though it isn't especially noticeable unless you're right up close. Secondly, the tape around the bottom of the jacket cannot be removed at all, as it is holding together a fold of unhemmed material. I guess you could unstitch it and then replace it with a plain white tape, but that's beyond my sewing comfort zone. ;)

Given that similarity of design, almost everything I said in my 550 Comp review applies to the Ripstop as well. There is the same reassuring level of reinforcement on all the major stress points and a generous six belt loops to keep your trousers up. The collar is rubber, which Kingz states will not warp under typical levels of heat in a washing machine. In my garden on a sunny day (although this is in the UK in March, so it still wasn't especially warm), the gi took about seven hours to go from soaking wet to completely dry.

Yet another similarity between the 550 Comp and the Ripstop is that there isn't much shrinkage, at least at the 30 degree Celsius temperature I use to wash my gis. My A1 stayed at 156cm cuff to cuff on the jacket, while the trousers retained their 92cm length. For my frame (5'7 and about 65kg) that was comfortable, though I would be happy enough with a couple more centimetres off the sleeves. As long as you don't throw this in the tumble drier on a high heat, then as it's pre-shrunk, the figures on the size chart should be an accurate reference.

Several gis use ripstop for reinforcement to help lighten the weight, such as the ripstop cover for the Padilla Ultra-Light collar. The Gorilla Ripstop also uses ripstop over the collar, but the Kingz Ripstop opts for tougher cotton twill, in keeping with the more orthodox gi jacket. This is a little heavier, but should presumably mean the Kingz collar is less prone to fraying.

The Kingz Ripstop is a quality product relatively free of bling. So, I'd still recommend this if you want a light gi for training, but there are better options if you're looking to take it with you travelling. Available to buy here.

21/03/2012 - Gracie Barra Glasgow

Class #450
Gracie Barra Glasgow, (BJJ), Ricky Gillon, Glasgow, UK - 21/03/2012

[To get right to the training, click here]

Before the second day of the ADCC last year, Caleb from the FightWorks Podcast organised one of his regular 'meet the family' breakfasts. Not many people showed up to chat with him and Shawn Williams, but among that group was John McGuigan, a student at Gracie Barra Glasgow. As I'm one of the writers for Jiu Jitsu Style magazine, John asked me about getting a 'JJS on the Road' visit to GB Glasgow, kindly extending an invitation to stay with him in order to do so. I gladly accepted, as I thought it would be a great opportunity to not only visit some Scottish BJJ clubs, but also explore some of the beautiful Scottish landscape.

I'm a big fan of Bristol's rugged neighbour, Wales, particularly the craggy coastline at Aberystwyth. I was therefore looking forward to something comparable up in Scotland, which is also known for its dramatic scenery. Taking in the many castles would have been interesting too, but most of them are closed in March, so that will have to wait for another time (though there were a couple open, one of which we went to see on our last day).

It's not all about landscape, of course. Glasgow in particular also boasts some excellent art, most famously the Glasgow School. I had seen a documentary about a part of that group, the Glasgow Boys (there is a female counterpart known as the Glasgow Girls), which meant the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum immediately jumped to the top of my list in terms of must-see sights in Glasgow. I headed straight there from Glasgow Central after getting off the train from Dumfries: it's roughly half an hour walk up St Vincent Street.

Wandering through the Kelvingrove can feel disjointed at times, as a number of rooms are arranged around vague themes like "looking at art", meaning a seventeenth century Dutch piece will be right next to something from 1990. The accompanying captions enhance the sense that it's directed at children, such as "do you think the unusual shape of the picture helps communicate how he felt about the event?" I would have much preferred something more informative about the history of the painting, but fortunately for snobs like me, orthodox organisation was in evidence as well, like the main attraction, the Glasgow Boys exhibit.

In their defence, some of those attempts at encouraging people to engage with art worked quite well, like the interactive console in front of Rembrandt's 'Man in Armour'. The subject of the painting has long been a matter of debate, so the Kelvingrove has provided a little talking head to guide you through five possible candidates, with accompanying evidence and theories.

The Glasgow Boys room features a good overview of their entire career, including two of the most famous paintings, 'The Druids' and 'A Funeral Service in the Highlands'. A short thirty minute documentary about the Boys' work runs on a loop, including details on art restoration at the end. That's something that pops up again for another highlight of the museum, Dali's 'Christ'. It's heavier on the restoration angle this time, as that painting once had a brick thrown at it, resulting in some large tears.

Although I was mainly there for the art associated with the Glasgow School, it is a museum as well, so you can look at exhibits on wildlife, archaeology and polar exploration, among others. After gazing at all the painting, I had time to explore the educational discussion of representations of Scottish identity in art, Glasgow life and a cool weaponry display (this time, the Kelvingrove's habit of throwing in lots of disparate material worked well, with African and Asian swords compared to Scottish and European examples).

That evening, John took me back to Helen's incredible house to stay the night and benefit from their amazing hospitality. I'd been looking forward to talking to Helen about Strawberry Switchblade (in case she's reading this, the Strawberry Switchblade site I was talking about is here, though as it comes up first in the Google results anyway, not exactly hard to find ;D) and Scottish pop, so that was really cool too. On the Wednesday, I headed down with John to the afternoon class at Gracie Barra Glasgow.

It's a relatively new gym, but already has a huge number of students, with a massive mat space to match. After John gave me a quick tour, I interviewed the head instructor, Ricky Gillon. Before his purple belt in BJJ, Gillon was already an experienced fitness and MMA coach: the story of his journey from karate, body-building, MMA then BJJ should be appearing in the next issue of Jiu Jitsu Style. He certainly isn't shy about talking, so I've got a ton of material to use for the 'JJS on the Road' column! :)

The fundamentals class tonight featured lots of combination drills, rather than pausing on specific techniques. It is the kind of system I'd love to use for a warm-up, which you could build up over a period of several months until all the students were familiar with the routine. I have considered doing something like that at Bristol, but I tend to get different people showing up to each class: I'd need a core group of regulars for a combination drill warm-up to work well.

Ricky's first combination was to pull guard, then as they try to stand, switch to the double ankle grab sweep and knock them to the floor. As you come up, make sure you maintain control of their same side foot, reaching for their collar with your other hand. Move through to mount, then spin to take the arm and complete the submission. Later, there was a variation, where this time when you go for that armbar, they are able to tuck their elbow and turn to your guard. As they look to pass by reaching under your leg, switch to a triangle, before restarting the drill.

Another drill started from standing where they have a collar and elbow grip, circle your arm to break a grip, then step in to clinch from the side. Step through to set up a hip throw, take them down then move to knee on belly. Grab their collar and slide into mount. They then trap your collar grabbing arm and a leg, bridging and rolling to come up in your guard. Again, they try to pass by bringing an arm under your leg, setting you up to finish with a triangle. The last drill was the same, but this time you use a spider guard set-up for the triangle.

Like yesterday, I stayed very defensive in sparring, with my usual running escape survival posture. There was only one exception I can remember, where I immediately drove through to top half guard with one of the white belts. I managed to flatten them out and began looking for the usual pass, but messed up and got swept. I also had a play with a spider guard sweep from Abmar Barbosa but couldn't quite get the angle, before practicing butterfly (getting passed pretty quickly as usual, but hey, good to keep on trying it).

Last roll was with Ricky, who as you'd expect dominated me quite easily. He was going light, as he's a fair bit bigger and stronger, so again it was another opportunity to work on my defence. He would have choked me from the back if time hadn't run out, as he was in the process of sinking his arms around my neck. That's definitely the major risk with the running escape if you're too complacent about their arm sneaking past your hip.

Very handily, Gracie Barra Glasgow is right around the corner from Glasgow Central Station (about a two minute walk, if that), so I was able to get back on the train to Dumfries for a decent hour. The next day, my gf and I went to Glentrool, or at least we tried to: annoyingly, the trail around the Loch was closed until April, but there's still a gorgeous view from Bruce's Stone up on one of the hills.

If you're looking for a decent meal in Kirkcudbright, then I'd highly recommend the place we tried that evening, Kirkpatrick's Restaurant. That was itself recommended to me by Mr Mulligan, whose flat we rented (which was awesome too, especially as we got a discount due to it being out of season: you can book it here). He suggested we go on Thursday for the 'Scottish tapas'. As a result, I finally got to try some haggis: wrapped in bacon swimming in red jus, it was delicious. The Irn Bru sausages were great too, and so was the tasty brownie and ice cream dessert.

Thanks again to John and Helen for their hospitality, and of course for inspiring my trip to Scotland in the first place! :D

20/03/2012 - Royce Gracie Scotland

Class #449
Royce Gracie Scotland, (BJJ), Scott McVeigh, Glasgow, UK - 20/03/2012

[To ignore my rambling and skip to the training, click here]

The art we practice is called Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Its royal dynasty is unquestionably the Gracie family: though other names are also important, like Omori, Franca, Fadda and of course Maeda, not to mention the Machados (cousins to the Gracies), it is the progeny of Gastao Gracie Sr who have had the most visible impact on the sport. However, Gastao's father was not a Brazilian. He was a Scot, George Gracie, who lived about 20 miles north of Dumfries.

In 1826, George left the parish of Morton in Nithsdale (I'm still not sure if the specific village was Carronhill or Carronbridge) for Rio, returning in 1859 to the land of his birth in order to erect a memorial to his late father, James. This week I'm on holiday in the same area of Scotland: given my keen interest in jiu jitsu history, I knew I had to go see that tombstone. It's located in a small graveyard by a ruined church, Greenhead Cemetery. It was a bit of pain to find the exact location, so if you're planning to take a look too, save yourself some research by clicking here.

If you don't have a car (I was very fortunate that my friend was willing to drive), then from Dumfries, you can take the 436 bus to Thornhill, then walk for about thirty minutes up Manse Road until you reach the graveyard. The site is on Google Streetview, where you can see the large gravestone George established. There are also several pictures from Reyson Gracie's 2009 visit (written up here), which is what initially inspired my own mini-pilgrimage to the site [Update 2021: Looks like the site is down, sadly]. Finally, you can take a look here and here.

Looking at photos online is all well and good, but I wanted to be there in person, as well as get in some close-up pictures. I knew from what I'd read on the net that there was an inscription from George, though it was hard to make out. According to that Reyson article, it says "Erected by their son, George Gracie of Rio de Janeiro, 1859", which looks about right. At the top, it appears four of George's siblings died very young (I'm guessing that wouldn't have been unusual in the early 19th century, presumably from disease), but his father lived to 85, so that long lifespan may run in the family. Hopefully one day somebody will raise up the cash to restore the gravestone before the words are completely obscured.

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Our base for this week in Scotland was Kirkcudbright. It's known as an artist's town, mainly because of its connection with the Glasgow Boys: I'll be talking more about them in tomorrow's post. Despite the spelling, the town's name is said "kir-COO-bree" (I didn't realise the emphasis was on the second syllable rather than the first until later), but then as I have a weird name myself – it's written 'Can' but pronounced 'Jun' – I can't really complain. ;)

Kirkcudbright is a good location for heading off on walks around the Galloway area, along with a few more unusual attractions, like the excellent Cream O'Galloway visitor centre (quite cheap too, at £6.50 for entry and a tour). That used to be just a farm, but since they diversified into making ice cream back in the '90s, it's grown into a farm tour, an ice cream making experience, an adventure playground and several acres of walks. They haven't stopped innovating, as the farm is about to embark on an interesting experiment with their dairy cows: the calves are going to be kept with their mothers for nine months, rather than separated.

Aside from a pleasant holiday, I'm mainly in Scotland for Jiu Jitsu Style magazine, to get material for the 'JJS on the Road' column. Scott McVeigh is one of the few black belts in Scotland, under the man many people still credit for their entrance into BJJ: Royce Gracie. I had the pleasure of interviewing Scott about the origins of Scottish BJJ, his time with the Gracie family and plans for the future (as ever, our chat should be appearing in JJS later this year), before putting on my gi to join in with training.

Like you'd expect from a Royce Gracie school, there was some self defence to begin with, throwing them after you're grabbed from behind. The main groundwork techniques were built around the scissor sweep, or rather, what happens if they block your scissor sweep. For example, there may be an arm in the way, meaning you can't bring your leg across their stomach properly.

Instead, that knee is going to go over their blocking arm: you can then push with your leg to break their hold on your gi, simultaneously pulling with your own grips on their sleeve and collar. As soon as you bypass their arm, circle the same leg up around their neck, then move into the triangle.

Another alternative is for when you're trying the sweep, but decide to switch to a sort of reverse scissor sweep. Your shin is across their stomach for the scissor sweep, with a grip on the collar as well as their same side sleeve. Rather than pulling them onto you and chopping out their leg, switch your sleeve grip to their opposite arm (so, that will be the arm next to the foot of the leg you have across their stomach) and yank it across their body.

Next, release their collar and instead reach around to their opposite armpit, bringing them in tight. As when you're trying to take the back, you need to press your chest into the back of the arm you pulled across their body, so they can't pull it back out. On the same side as the arm you've trapped, put your shoulder back on the mat, which should enable you to fling them over with your braced leg and move into side control.

If they sprawl, you can take their back. Though their sprawl will make it hard to get the above sweep, you can now just bring your free foot between their legs and swivel around to their back. Scott advised that I should be pressing with my heels rather than trying to curl my instep and toes for grip, as the latter could get hurt should they try and roll out.

During sparring, I stayed defensive as usual. I'm already passive when training, so when visiting other clubs, my passivity gets almost catatonic (unless my training partner is inexperienced or much smaller, in which case I try and flow through a few positions). Interestingly, one of my rolling partners went for a footlock, which doesn't happen all that often. I did the usual defence of sitting up and grabbing a collar, trying to sit through to mount. It's good to have that reminder, given that even under IBJJF rules, white belts can throw a straight ankle lock.

I really liked the atmosphere at Royce Gracie Scotland, which felt informal and friendly. That's a reflection of Scott's character, who in many ways reminds me of one of my own instructors, Kev at RGA Bucks. Both of them give a strong impression that their main concern is how to improve their students' BJJ, as opposed to how much money they can make.

Thanks again to Scott for welcoming me into his class: I wish him the best of luck with his plans for the future, and hopefully either I or another JJS contributor will be up to report on the upcoming Royce seminar in April. :)

Interview: Mauricio Gomes on the Development of Competition

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Back in December, Rolls Gracie black belt Mauricio Motta Gomes was down at Gracie Barra Bristol to teach a master class, just before the submission only competition. I was able to grab a few minutes to speak with him: I'll be splitting the results into four parts over the next month or so, discussing his son Roger Gracie, teaching around the world and belt tests, among other topics. First up, Mauricio shares some of his thoughts on competition.

slideyfoot.com: If you had to pick one thing that marked Rolls Gracie as special, what would it be?

Mauricio Gomes: He was quick in his submissions. He was the type of the guy that would teach us a position, it was new for us. To show how that thing was effective, he would tell us "ok, now I am going to show how good this is, and I'm going to roll with all of you, and I'm going to get you all in the same thing." So, we knew what he was going to do, but we couldn't avoid it. He would still get us all.

Plus, he would always try to add in whatever another martial art could bring. Always. It was an amazing time, believe me. That was the end of my adolescent years, and I made the most of it! [laughs]

slideyfoot.com: Do you think that BJJ has changed for the better since Rolls' time, or is there anything that perhaps has been lost and you'd like to bring back?

Mauricio Gomes: I think what has been lost in jiu jitsu over the years...I think that much is different, we used to train a lot for competitions in a different way. I don't know, sometimes I look back and I try to compare our competitions to the competitions of today. What I see is that there are a lot of people training situations where they can hold on for dear life, or holding a fight up to a situation where you'll try to score a point, a half point, this or that, just before the finish of the fight, to become the winner.

I think that everybody should train to finish the fight. That should be the main goal of everybody. I would never encourage my students to just hold on to something, four minutes, five minutes, six minutes, whatever. "Then you can do this, and obtain the victory." That's a mistake. I don't know what happened, I don't know if jiu jitsu grew too much and there are too many competitors. Now you've got advantages and a lot of people started to stall, or don't want to finish the fight. They want to stay there forever. Obviously they put in time limits, advantages, they got this, they got that.

At the end of the day, I think that the focus should always be to finish the fight, how to get there as quick as possible. No stalling, no this, no that. Unfortunately, the competitors of today got to a point where the higher level fighters, there is no difference between them and an Olympic athlete. They train like they're going to the Olympics. They're really up for it. If you're going for these competitions and not prepared physically, you will lose. Even if you know a lot, today, that's not enough. It's the knowledge, but it's also your body and mind, are you physically fit.

You go to a competition these days, and you have like eight or nine fights, if you're looking at your weight and the absolute – I'm talking about black belts, right? It is usually like that, eight or nine fights over the weekend. You've got to be fit. They are ten minute fights, so if you don't finish your opponent right away, that goes on for ten minutes, then another ten, then another ten. So if you're not really fit, then over those two days you'll gas out.

slideyfoot.com: Was that less the case back when you were competing?

Mauricio Gomes: Yeah. We trained a lot, absolutely, trained like warriors, and we did a lot of physical conditioning. Running, walking on the soft sand on the beach, swimming. But nowadays it is just another level, it isn't like it was. It's the evolution, you know? That's normal, nothing stays the way it used to be. In this case, it changed for the best. The competitions are very competitive, the fighters are athletes, proper athletes. If you want to be a very good competitor, you have to have a good sponsorship. You require money.

You know how long a fighter prepares themselves for one competition? Obviously they never start from scratch, they maintain a certain level. Two to three months, at least, before a competition they start increasing their sparring, their fitness level and all that, to go all the way up to the level they want to be at to go for that competition. They have to sacrifice a lot in order to do that. They can't have a proper job, because they're training all day, so they need money to survive all this.

It's money for food, to pay for other people to train you. In the old days, you just think you do a run in the morning, something else in the afternoon, but today, the levels are completely different. You have a guy that is actually your instructor, for conditioning, for fitness, for the muscular part, a nutritionist, you know? All of this comes together to make you the proper athlete, fit and ready for the event. In the end, to reach this level requires a lot.

Next week, the discussion moves on to Mauricio's thoughts on his son Roger Gracie's success in competition.

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15/03/2012 - Teaching (Passing Spider Guard)

Teaching #046
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Can Sönmez, Bristol, UK - 15/03/2012

[Strange: I must have forgotten to publish this post before I left for Scotland. Anyway, here it is, on the off-chance any of the students were waiting for this one to pop up]

There are several ways to clear off spider guard grips. If they are in an orthodox spider guard, then there are four handy techniques you can use, all of which are covered in Beneville and Cartmell's excellent Passing the Guard. The first two relate to spider guard when they have one foot pressed into your bicep, the other on your hip. On the bicep-foot side, step up your knee. Still on that same slide, bring your trapped arm down.

You want to angle your knee and your arm so that you bring their ankle across your knee. Continue to bring your arm down, leaving their foot behind stuck on your knee. Dip in low with your shoulder, under their leg, in order to underhook with the same side arm you just freed from their control. You can then immediately move into a single stack pass, gripping their opposite collar and driving your weight through their leg.

A similar option is to again step up your same side knee, but this time, press it into the back of their knee. Thrust your hips forward to really push that knee in, in order to pop their leg off your arm. Then as before, dip and underhook the leg, moving around for the stacking pass on that leg.

Another common version of spider guard is to control both of your arms with their legs, one extended, the other bent. This requires a different but still related pass. As before, you're going to drive your knee into the back of their knee, focusing on the leg they have bent. Pop that off your arm: Beneville recommends underhooking, or you can simply free the grip.

Either way, you then want to turn to face that leg, bringing your hips towards the other leg. That also means you can bring your knee on the other side into their other leg, where again you can use that pressure to remove their grip. From here, you could maintain your grips on their trousers, pushing them over to the side to pin their legs to the mat, then pass.

If they are being a bit lazy with their spider guard grips, so both legs are relatively square on and both either extended or bent, there is another option. Circle your hands inside their legs, palms facing towards you. Squat, then simultaneously drive your hips and arms forwards. This should knock both of their feet off your biceps. You can then keep driving forwards until you can sit on their legs. That puts you in a good position to pass.

Before I finished, I wanted to make sure I quickly covered removing a deep spider guard lasso. The main problem is that your hand is pulled past their leg. Therefore, you need to pull it back, until you can walk your hand around the outside of their leg and break the grip: you may find it useful to bring your knee to bear, as in the grip breaks above. Make sure you immediately bring your elbow back inside, sufficiently tight that they can't re-establish the grip you've just broken.

08/03/2012 - Teaching (Maintaining Spider Guard, plus a sweep)

Teaching #045
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Can Sönmez, Bristol, UK - 08/03/2012

There are three main variants of spider guard, all of which require you to grab both sleeves: this guard isn't commonly used in nogi for that reason, though it is possible to adapt. You will also normally have your feet curled around their biceps. For the most common variant, put your feet on their same side biceps, pulling their sleeves towards you, then push one leg straight, while keeping the other leg bent. This is intended to break their posture, keeping them off balance.

That is true whether or not they are standing up. There are several basic spider guard sweeps, which begin by pushing one arm out to the side, that work in either situation. You also don't have to push your feet into both biceps. There are numerous spider guard variations, such as pushing into one arm while also hooking behind their same side leg, or pushing into an arm and also holding a collar, which can set you up nicely for a triangle or omoplata.

A second option is to use your knees rather than your feet. While you could use this when they stand, it is more typical to do so when they're sat in your guard, given the obvious point that you've got a much smaller tool to work with when using your knees rather than the full length of your legs. The same sweeps can work here too, except that you're shoving their arm out to the side with your knee rather than your foot.

In nogi, you could grab around the back of their arms, just behind the elbow. In gi, you can grab the sleeves. This is something that you'll see pop up in Gracie Combatives, where it is part of the punch block series. I don't really use this one, but it's an option, and there is a bunch of stuff you can do from here: for example, the series Big Mick taught when he was visiting us.

The third option, and the one I and Dónal prefer, is known as the lasso grip. Circle your leg around the outside of their arm, so that your lower leg is on the inside, then wrap your foot so that it hooks the outside of their arm. You can then either keep your foot there, or Dónal's option of going deeper, hooking it under their armpit and around their back. That gives you a bit more control over their posture.

In terms of your sleeve grip, it's important to get that fabric as far round the front of your thigh as you can, clamping your elbow tight to your side. Braulio uses the metaphor of tying up a boat at the harbour: to pull their arm free, they have to not only fight your grip strength, but your thigh and your elbow as well.

As before, you don't have to keep both feet against their arms. You can also switch grip on their non-lassoed arm from the sleeve to their collar, slide your foot to their shoulder, or indeed push on the hip. That's useful if you find that you want to create some distance, as well as keep them off-balance. Pushing into their non-lasso side knee is another option to disrupt their base.

I decided to put all those variations into the first technique segment of the lesson this time round, running through a basic sweep for the second. It's very simple, as basically if you know how to do the scissor sweep from closed guard, you can do much the same thing from spider guard. The main difference is that rather than loading them up onto the shin you have across their stomach, you'll be bringing their weight forward with the foot you have on their bicep.

The typical situation is that they are on their knees. You have the orthodox spider guard, with one foot on their same side bicep and the other by their hip. Pull them forwards: just like the scissor sweep from closed guard, you want to bring your elbows right up by your head, to get them as far forward as possible.

This will take their weight off their knees, which means you can take your foot off their hip and chop through their same side knee. Help them over by kicking into their bicep, so that you're pushing diagonally towards your opposite shoulder. Roll through and settle into mount, or possibly side control if they end up too far.

06/03/2012 - Gracie Barra Bristol (Spider Guard Sweep)

Class #448
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Dónal Carmody, Bristol, UK - 06/03/2012

As always with Dónal's lessons, he started off with some great drills. The first was to practice the leg-drag pass, starting with both their feet on your hips. Grab just above their knee with your same side hand, while the other cups under their heel. Drive in with your hip and press forward. Move back, while simultaneously pulling their leg across your body. I didn't realise until today that you drag that leg high: that means you can then trap it with your arm. If you then bring your other knee into their bottom leg, you've trapped both of them, so it should be a simple matter to move around to the other side.

The other drill was new, based off the knee-cut pass. You're stood in their open guard, with one leg in between theirs. Push their outside leg down, stepping your same side leg over. Cut the knee you have in the middle across in the same direction. However, instead of completing that motion, turn your hips to face the other way, so the knee in the middle slides over the other leg. Flare your knee, so that you end up sliding your knee over their lower leg. Then switch and repeat.

Main technique was a spider guard sweep, from the deep lasso grip. So, feet on their hips, swing out, then wrap your leg around their arm, getting your instep to their shoulder blade. Pull them in towards you, but just before you pull them in, your other leg is going to drop across their hips, so the foot is on the lasso side hip. With your free arm, hook behind their same side leg and roll them over, moving to side control, scarf hold or whatever you prefer.

There was another nice tip from Dónal, which was for getting your foot back into position if they break your spider guard grip (the orthodox one, rather than the lasso). Instead of trying to shove your foot to the inside of their arm, which they'll be tucking in tightly, attack the outside. Bring your foot near their armpit, wriggle your toes inside their, then push out into the crook of their elbow.

You could then go for a triangle by switching your grip from the bicep-pressing arm to their collar. Kick that leg through, then pull the elbow of their other arm towards you so you can also kick that leg through, ready to lock up the triangle.

I'd almost forgotten, but today marks my first year as a purple belt. Unfortunately, I've still not found the 'on' button, so I don't feel any better than when I was a blue belt. On the plus side, the teaching has been really useful, so I look forward to continue refining my lesson plans and digging deeper into the selection of techniques I've been working over the last few months. :)

01/03/2012 - Teaching (Attacking Butterfly Guard)

Teaching #044
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Can Sönmez, Bristol, UK - 01/03/2012

The teaching schedule has shifted since last week. Having previously decided on sticking with one position per month, Geeza instead instituted a sixteen week curriculum which included the fairly broad designation of 'guard', which would have meant I could continue working on my previous lesson plans. That's now changed slightly, so that all the instructors are expected to work on a specific type of guard in keeping with what everyone else is teaching. That's good for consistency, though it does force me to explore some guards I otherwise would have left until later.

Butterfly is one of those guards. Marcelo Garcia has written that when passing butterfly guard, it's important to keep in mind that "unlike the closed guard or half guard, in the butterfly guard, your opponent is not trying to hold you in place." In my opinion, the ensuing dynamism and movement makes butterfly guard a more advanced position, which requires greater sensitivity and timing than closed or half guard.

So, I stuck with the most basic technique in butterfly, which is the classic butterfly sweep. There are three main grips to try. Two less common options are grabbing the neck, or grabbing the same side sleeve and collar: the latter can be useful if you want to transition to a choke, or perhaps back to closed guard to go for a scissor or knee push sweep. The orthodox method is to establish a deep underhook with your arm, reaching around their back and/or grabbing their belt.

Saulo Ribeiro emphasises that you must be close with the shoulder to generate sufficient leverage. Saulo also likes to put a hand out behind him for base, which contrasts with others who prefer to grab the knee. It is worth experimenting with several options. One of the best parts about training in jiu jitsu is that it is so individual. There is rarely a single 'right' way to do any technique, which is also part of what makes jiu jitsu so complex.

The finish is typically to drop to the side on your shoulder, rather than straight backwards. At that point, reach for their arm (grabbing either the sleeve or their elbow), then kick up with your leg to flick them over to side control. Again, Saulo deviates here from some other instructors, who prefer to hold the arm earlier. Saulo's perspective is that this 'locks you to your opponent'. As with the earlier grips, it is worth playing with several options.

Saulo also has a follow-up to the sweep, when they attempt to counter. If they shift their weight and bring their arm back out of reach, it will be difficult to complete the basic sweep. You need that arm, or they'll just post out. Instead, you can raise up, grab their knee, then drive forwards with your shoulder. Your hand prevents their knee from moving backwards, which should enable you to slide through to side control or scarf hold. If they move their knee out of reach as well as their arm, you can do a technical stand up. Reach down to grab their knee and again drive forwards: because you've stood up, you've now got gravity on your side.