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XTREME FIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP

ROT (Republic of Texas) Biker Rally

Austin, TX

Article by: Maribel Alkek

Xtreme Fight Championship was held at the Travis Expo Center in Austin, Texas on June 14, 2008 in conjunction with the Republic of Texas Biker Rally. This event had bikers everywhere and I mean everywhere!

DAY 1

On my way to Austin, which was a two hour drive, I saw motorcycles coming and going. I assumed some had been at the ROT biker rally and were on their way back home or to the ROT biker rally. Whichever way you looked, there were groups of motorcycles everywhere. I had a pleasant drive up, but was running a little behind time, thirty minutes to be exact. I had two buddies with me, my sister and a friend to accompany me on my journey to one of the loudest, roaring events I’ve been to.

I arrived at Grapplers Domain around 2: 15 p.m. in hopes that the weigh-ins hadn’t taken place. Well, my prayers must have worked because weigh-ins didn’t happen until 4:00 p.m. It was a little warm in the gym, but what could I expect, it’s a gym, right? That was okay, because I think I lost a couple of pounds in the process. No complaints here! As I looked around, I made my way to say my hellos to some of the fighters and folks I knew, such as, Izzy Johnson, Marcus Sursa, Warren Stewart, James “Deuce” King, Darrill Schoonover, Aaron Pendleton and Frank Frye.

Walking around I noticed a lot of hungry fighters patiently waiting to step onto the scale. Most of the fighters made weight, so after the fighters weighed in, they immediately made their way to the table loaded with water, fruits, veggies etc…

Some of the fighters loaded up onto the big black bus to be transported back to the hotel and then to be taken to 6^th Street to do the mock weigh-ins.

I headed to the hotel to go check-in, get cleaned up and get ready for the mock weigh-ins at 6^th street. I arrived at the hotel room at about 5:00 p.m. and went up to get my stuff together. I was up in the room about an hour and when I came out to my car, well, I got a nice welcome to Austin. As soon as I got in my car, I noticed my gps was missing. Yep, you guessed it. Some jerk had stuck something in the keyhole, broke in and had stolen my gps. So, lesson learned, don’t leave anything in sight. Normally, I don’t, but I guess I got caught up in going from one place to another and trying to hurry and get ready that I forgot to put away one thing. So, why cry over spilled milk. I went to the nearby mall and bought another gps.

I finally made it downtown and began walking toward 6^th street which was about 7 blocks away. I stopped and asked an officer for directions and I saw another officer who looked familiar. I started walking away and looked back one more time and told my sister that he looked familiar. Well, it happened to be a friend from back home. I didn’t know he and his wife had moved. Goes back to that old saying, it’s a small world. We spoke for a while, until some woman came and said her old man had hit her. Her husband came over there and said, she’s mine so I can hit her. They were a little wasted or something of the sort. They just sent them on their “separate” ways.

Sixth Street looked like it had been taken over by motorcycles. It was amazing, bikers, biker chics and cycles everywhere. The sounds of the cycles were almost deafening, but it was all too cool.

The XFC mock weigh-ins took place about 9:00 p.m. on the concert stage in front of a crowd of thousands and I literally mean thousands!

A view from the stage.....awesome!

I went on the stage along with Shannon Rich, Ricardo Futch, Kenny Trevino, Jennifer Babcock and Brandi Welch to take pictures of the mock weigh-ins. I looked out to the crowd to take a picture and I couldn’t believe the number of people out there. It seemed the crowd went on for blocks! They were really pumped up about the whole thing which made it even more exciting to be a part of this event.

Shannon Ritch-Commentator for the night

On stage as well, were the Miami Ink guys, Ami James and Yoshi. They seem to just be hanging around and were checking out the weigh-ins. At one point it looked like they were taking pictures of the crowd with their cell phones. I jumped at the chance to get a picture with them as did my sister and friend. Actually, my sister spotted them first and was so excited she tried calling everyone on her cell phone she knew.

DAY 2

XFC ROCKS THE TRAVIS EXPO CENTER

I got up around 10 a.m., got ready and headed over to the biker rally. Again, I saw nothing but motorcycles everywhere on the way to the rally. The event is so huge it’s unbelievable and to know that XFC was a part of this was even more exciting. We went to the Travis Expo Center where the fighters were hanging out. Events were happening all around and it was still a couple of hours before XFC would get their event started. The event was to start at 4:00 p.m. and outside the doors of the expo center was a long, long line waiting in the 100 plus degrees to get inside. Lucky for those who were able to attend the event because what XFC had in store for them was a packed house, rocking with wild and crazy fans and some very well match fights. I’m estimating there must have been about 8,000 in attendance.

The event started off with the Marines marching in andJoy Davissinging the National Anthem which gave me chills. This girl could sing and had the personality to go with it.

With the fans anxious to see what was in store for them, the fights got underway.

One fight that had the fans roaring and chanting “TJ”, “TJ”, was Anthony “TJ” Waldburger (Grapplers Lair) from Temple, Tx. vs Ricardo Futch (Team Link) from Ludlow, Ma. First off, before the fight began, everyone had their eyes on the big screens where XFC had given TJ’s dad an opportunity to give his son well wishes for his fight from Iraq. This was a touching moment for many fans and there were a lot of them whom I saw wiping tears from their eyes.

TJ's dadin Iraq

Although this fight didn’t go as the fight fans had wished, it was one of the best fights of the night. The fight began with TJ taking control of Ricardo in the first round. TJ started off landing some punches and a straight right on Ricardo, eventually taking Ricardo to the ground and gaining back control and attempting a rear naked choke. Amazingly, Ricardo escaped the hold, rolled over on TJ, then stood up while TJ lay on his back. TJ threw some upwards leg kicks and landed a hard kick to the face of the already bloodied Ricardo Futch.

Round two was the total opposite of round one. Ricardo seemed to have gotten a boost of energy when he heard the chants of the packed Travis Expo Center cheering on TJ. Ricardo came out with a vengeance, landing multiple shots to TJ who did not look like he expected Ricardo to come out with that much force. Talk about an exciting fight, this had the fans on their feet, screaming for TJ. Ricardo took TJ to the ground and unleashed some massive blows on TJ, which ringside meant getting some of that blood splatter on me and several other people who were ringside. The referee stepped in to stop the fight and being ringside after hearing some bone crushing blows, that was an excellent call to declare Ricardo Futch the winner and new 170lbs. Welterweight champion.

Ricardo Futch-Welterweight Champion

Another fight that had the crowd making some noise was Josh Baker vs. Warren Stewart. Warren was hungry for this title in the 145lbs. weight class and he was out to prove it. Round one had Josh landing solid knee strikes to Warren’s midsection. Warren took Josh down and worked to maintain Josh’s back. Warren got back control to execute the rear naked choke to become the new Featherweight champion. Okay, this is where the crowd let the fighter know they did not like what he did after the fight, but if you know anything about Warren “Baby Dynamite” Stewart, you’ll know why he did this. After his victory over Josh Baker, “Baby D” as his friends and fans know him, threw himself on the mat in the cage and humped the mat, not once but twice. So, “Baby D” is just crazy like that. In his defense, that is who he is, you never know what to expect and this kid has a heart bigger than Dallas.

He meant no disrespect to his opponent and did apologize for his actions immediately. He’s exciting to watch as a fighter and has the heart, skill and determination as you can see. So, for those who “Booed” Baby D, this is what he’s all about and you’ll never know what to expect out of him. He’s harmless, well, except in the cage.

Shannon "The Cannon" Ritch

&

"Baby D"-Featherweight Champion

XFC had the first female fight in Austin, Texas and it was Jennifer Babcock (Jackson MMA) from Albuquerque, Nm. vs. Brandi Welch (Team Fight Quest) from Henderson, NV. The thousands of fight fans were pumped up and excited to see this event take place. These two fighters stepped into the cage and were ready for war. Immediately after touching gloves, Brandi had Jennifer up against the cage throwing some knees. Jennifer blocked a couple of knee strikes and utilized her skills for a beautiful takedown on Brandi Welch. Jennifer had good side control and moved into a full mount and then to an arm bar which had Brandi tapping out immediately. For the short while the fight lasted, they made a good impression on the thousands of people who were excited to watch them get it on.

Jen Babcock executing the arm bar.

Brandi Welch & Jennifer Babcock

All the fighters really impressed the crowd and put on an excellent show. They are truly fighters with skills and techniques. So, until next time, you might just want to be one of the first in line to get your tickets for Xtreme Fight Championships event. “Xtreme” for a reason! The fighters definitely gave the fans a taste of it.

Brian Beard-Middleweight Champion

Patrick Miller-Heavyweight Champion

Darrill Schoonover-Lightweight Champion

Results at a glance

Main event Welterweight Title Fight-170 lbs.

Ricardo Futch def. Anthony “TJ” Waldburger 2:35 of R2 Ref. Stoppage due to strikes

Light Heavyweight Title Fight-205 lbs.

Darrill Schoonover-Fighters Forge (Copperas Cove, TX) def. Doug Williams-All Around TX (Bossier City, LA) 1:57 of R1 by leg armbar

Middleweight Title Fight-185 lbs.

Brian Bead def. Izzy Johnson-Round One (Carlsbad, NM) 2:40 of R1 by Tap Out-RNC (Rear Naked Choke)

Heavyweight Title Fight

Patrick Miller-Grapplers Lair (Temple, TX) def. Matt Thompson-All Around TX (Austin, TX) by split decision

Jennifer Babcock-Jackson’s MMA (Albuquerque, NM) def Brandi Welch-Team Fight Quest (Henderson, NV) :46 of R1 by arm bar

Matthew Green-Round One (Carlsbad, NM) def Kenny Trevino-Warriors Trng. Center/Grapplers Domain 2:07 of R1 by RNC (rear naked choke)

John Hester-Grapplers Domain (Austin, TX) def Josh Scales-Capital Punishment (Austin, TX) by unanimous decision

James King-Grapplers Domain (Austin, TX) def Devon Miller-Solidarity MMA (San Marcos, TX) 1:04 of R1 by K.O.

Casey Hobson-Capital Punishment (Austin, TX) def Levy Green-Round One (Carlsbad, NM) 1:06 of R1 by arm bar

Hector Mallogance-Round One (Carlsbad, NM) def Trey Stewart-Grapplers Domain (Austin, TX) 2:06 of R1 by Tap Out (Guillotine

Visit www.XFCfights.com for future events or join the XFC community at www.xfconline.com.

http://fight.proelite.com/kimbo-slice-vs-tank-abbott.html 

 check it out everyone!

Urban Rumble Championships

Boxing & MMA

Pasadena, Tx.

April 04, 2008

by: Maribel Alkek 

Day 1

The Urban Rumble Championships took place in Pasadena, Texas on April 4, 2008, but before the fights got under way, the weigh-ins had taken place at Hooters the day before.

I drove almost three hours to get to the weigh-ins, through tolls at $1.50 per toll, three or four maybe. I pissed off some woman who crept through the toll and I suppose she thought I was going to run into her car.  Apparently, she must have forgotten that you need to merge left because the lane ends at one point or another. Okay, I know I made her a bit angry because she was flapping her trap and I could only imagine what she was trying to convey to me. For some reason, I thought it was funny. She raced her car passed me like a streak of lightning.  Sorry, I’m not into road rage, so again I found it amusing. But, the best part was when I drove about a mile up the road; Mrs. Thing was sitting in the medium stalled out. Now, I wouldn’t have mind helping her out, but one, this was Houston, two, Mrs. Thing might of not been too happy to see me. So, I went on my merry way to the weigh-ins.

Hooters

I arrived about 3:45 p.m. at Hooters and was greeted by Joe Tamez and David Landry of Urban Rumble Championship.  As soon as I walked to the patio area I felt like this was a mixed martial arts reunion for me. I saw a lot of folks I knew, like Paul Glasco and Adam Villareal with Beat Down TV (www.beatdowntv.com), Tony Orozco from Silverback MMA, Justin “The Viking” Wren from Dallas, Chris Reed out of League City (League City’s Administrator), Warren “Baby Dynamite” Stewart from Austin and many more. The weigh-ins got underway and if you ever want to know how to lose 34 pounds in 8 days, just ask Izzy Johnson.

Food

Salad, pasta and of course wings were set out in the patio for everyone to enjoy. All the fighter’s chowed down some good eats and I did to. Most were ready to eat and get the weigh-ins over with.  I hadn’t eaten all day and was walking around on two hours of sleep. I was really surprised I wasn’t disoriented with the lack of sleep. I even stopped on my drive to Pasadena and picked up a 20 oz. cup of coffee which I didn’t drink and a 20oz. coke which I took only a small sip.

The Weigh-Ins

During the weigh-ins, the fighters squared off with their opponent. Daniel “Lil Pit” Pineda and Warren “Baby Dynamite” Stewart were two fighters I couldn’t wait to see because of some bad blood between them. This would be the second time these two fighters would meet.  Chris Reed squared off with Josh Lee and this was another fight I couldn’t wait to see because of the size difference in the two.  I just knew Chris was going to hurt Josh, but things didn’t happen that way.

Beat Down Tv

As the evening neared, all the fighters were gone and I hung around at Hooters with Paul Glasco, Adam Villareal, Don and Eric who were helping out a bit with Beat Down TV. I had no place to be so there I was just hanging out. We went inside to grab a bite to eat. David Landry sat with us for a short time and then headed out. 

Beat Down TV had a show to do at 8:00 p.m. out on the Hooters patio.  The show got underway with an interview with two of the Hooters girls. It was fun watching them do the interview and listening to some of the fans on the patio enjoying the live show.  They somehow came up with a sign that said “Show me your tits”. They were having a blast with it. Go to www.beatdowntv.com and view the show from April 03, 2008.

I finally, headed in the direction of the Marriott to get a room. I hadn’t even done that yet, but lucky for me they had rooms available. The day was beautiful, sunny, and breezy and I also got to spend the afternoon with some great people. What more could I have asked for.

Day 2

Friday morning seemed to roll around early.  I got dressed, watched a scary movie, got my camera batteries charged up and had it ready to go for the Urban Rumble Championships.  I went to my car about 11:00 a.m. and as I was going to get in the elevator I ran into Justin Wren and Cleburn Walker who was one of the fighters on the fight card.  I then ran into another fighter on the card, Warren Stewart. We sat in the lobby and talked about the fight, fighters, sponsors and martial arts, since we have both done the tae kwon do tournaments at one point in our lives. 

It was getting late and we were getting hungry so Warren and I decided to grab a bite. We found a Seafood restaurant down the road.  After we finished eating we headed to the hotel and about an hour later to the venue.

I mingled and chatted with the fighters, coaches and did some networking. 

The fights finally got started with three boxing matches that were really exciting.

The first boxing match took place with Larry Pryor and Cornelius White exchanging some powerful body punches. Both fighters went full force, but Cornelius White proved to be the stronger of the two, landing more hits that rocked Larry Pryor. Of the two, Cornelius White would be the victor.

Ross Brantley surprised me when he hung on to Justin Jones’ leg like he was begging for mercy at the beginning of the boxing match.  I’m not sure what he was trying to accomplish, but it didn’t seem like he came prepared for a boxing match.  He did that several times and the ref. ended the fight in R1 at 2:21.

Third Boxing match of the night was Jerry Perez from Rosenberg, TX and Ramiro “Rambo” Cano out of Houston, TX.  These guys were here to fight and that they did. It was a constant exchange of body punches and it seemed like neither one was going to let up. This boxing match was very different that the previous one in that it was real. Neither fighter hung on to each other much, but just kept boxing.  At one point, I thought their sweat had landed on my hand while taking pictures, but as I later looked down on my notepad there were blood spots on it and on the table.  Now you know you are ring side when that happens.  In the end, Ramiro Cano won by decision.  This was an excellent fight.

 Chris Reed (Bushi Ban) 185 lbs. weight class and Josh Lee (Adrenaline Fight Club) took their fight the full three rounds. I couldn’t wait to see this fight because the size difference between the two made me wonder whether Josh Lee could take on Chris Reed. Josh had a mission as did Chris and he proved he could hold his own. Chris Reed was in control of all three rounds and at the end he had won by unanimous decision.  This was a very exciting fight to see. Chris is sponsored by Furia Fight Wear.

Cleburn “The Spartan” Walker (Team Owen) fighting Matt Rangel (Bushi Ban) in the 185 lbs. weight class ended this fight in R1 tapping out his opponent due to strikes.  Cleburn Walker looked relaxed and ready to rumble; almost like he was right at home.  Cleburn is sponsored by Choke Combat Gear.

Jose Santibanez (Silverback MMA) and Steve Garcia (Elite Martial Arts) fighting in the 155 lbs. weight class took the full three rounds to end this fight. Round 1 Jose landed knee strikes to Steve’s midsection and Steve returned the knee strikes as well.  Both fighters mixed it up with stand up, leg kicks, and ground work. These two fighters had the fans cheering throughout the three rounds. Jose Santibanez was the winner by unanimous decision in this battle. 

The next fight was a long awaited fight just waiting to happen and seemed to be long overdue for both fighters.  The gestures made in the ring before the fight had the fans in an uproar and that was just the beginning.

These are the two fighters that had a lot built up between them and whatever else for that matter. They were meeting for the second time for another mixed martial arts fight.  Daniel “Lil Pit” Pineda (4 oz. Fight Club) and Warren “Baby Dynamite” Stewart (Grappler’s Domain) were on their way to face off for what probably seemed like a lifetime of waiting.

Daniel and Warren squared off and it was time to prove who had the skills to submit the other.  Warren came out with a powerful right that connected to Pineda. After that connection, Pineda took the fight to the ground and mounted Warren’s back and never let up from there. The ref. stopped the fight in the first round which sent Warren off on a frenzy.  Warren jumped up and was in awe of the whole situation. He stomped out of the ring but came back to shake hands with the opposing coaches.  This was one fight Warren had his mind set on winning, but Pineda had a thing or two to show.  Pineda would win by TKO due to strikes. 

Jon “El Jaguar” Kirk (DeLeon Fight Club) and Izzy Johnson (Badboy Freestyle) 185 lbs. weight class were the main event of the night.  This fight lasted only a few seconds as Izzy Johnson took a kick to the head soon after touching gloves with Jon Kirk. Seems like that plan of attack worked well as Jon took Izzy’s back and landed strikes that gained the victory for Jon Kirk.

If you only read and keep the teachings presented here, you’re not going anywhere with your ground techniques. The following advices – useful in tournaments with gi, grappling, MMA and for the athletes personal evolution – ought to be studied between trainings. On this case, our little script here can change everything you had been doing wrong – or simply didn’t know existed. Aiming at bringing you a large and carefully wrought guide (whether you are or not a beginner), we have asked the main masters of the sport: what would you like to have found out earlier? What’s behind the gold medals and amazing titles? What are the shortcuts? What are the secrets? Each Jiu-Jitsu exponent brought their own delicacy to this feast. Enjoy, therefore, this manual if you wish to evolve. In Jiu-Jitsu, life – everything. 1. Exercise your ears “The first rule to perfect your Jiu-Jitsu is to never be deaf to other people’s knowledge,” says Renzo Gracie. “It’s common to see guys who deem themselves professors decline a new teaching, ignoring a pupil who shows something new. To grow better you must understand how people think and how they got to that position. Even if it’s not perfect, it’s up to you to enhance it.” A clear example was a coup with which Gracie surprised Canadian fighter Carlos Newton in the Pride Bushido 1: “I nearly submitted him on the foot lock, in a position a white-belt had taught me. Starting from the tip I perfected and developed the leg attack, from the knee lock to the foot lock.” To Renzo, it doesn’t matter whether the student is a blue-, white-belt, or someone who’s never fought: the moment they show you something, shut your mouth and pay attention. “Even if the move is not efficient, the concept might help your play. When you don’t allow yourself to accept any other form of knowledge, you become a limited professor,” he teaches. 2. Always believe in the move If you follow Rodrigo Minotauro’s MMA bouts, you can probably figure out his tip to make your Jiu-Jitsu better. A combative athlete, always with a surprising coup at hand, he shoots: “Fight to get a grip on your opponent.” How do you do that? Well, the Brazilian Top Team star suggests that every fighter ignores the clock and the points during the combats. This measure may result in defeats in the beginning, but on the long run it’ll leave the fighter “light and loose” (Nogueira’s definition). “There is nothing better than fighting naturally and pressure-free,” he says. “The secret is to believe He’s got to believe,” adds Wallid Ismail. Carlson Gracie’s black-belt’s advice is based on three elements: stamina, attitude and will to win. “At the time of the position or the fight, the main thing is to believe. To make the move work, you’ve got to believe it will work. And it doesn’t matter who’s on the other side, because there lies the difference between winner and loser. The winner is never intimidated. He may even fear, but he must have something greater inside – the attitude.” 3. Practice an outdoor sport Soccer, jogging, outdoor work out – there’s always a healthy activity waiting for the athlete who takes off the gi after hours of grappling in the academy. One can then dive into a commonplace sport (surf, for instance, is practised by nine in every ten fighters) or even invent their own distraction. This strategy keeps the body in shape without making the fighter stressed from the training routine. “Every physical activity, not only Jiu-Jitsu, is useful for working out heart and mind, leading the guy to thinking that, instead of smoking a joint or using drugs, he can dedicate his time to exercise,” says Royler Gracie, who has since 1999 been climbing the Rock of Gavea, at Rio de Janeiro: “It’s a workout similar to the Macacos Hill trail at Teresopolis, which I would cross with Rickson when he was preparing for MMA fights,” he recollects. 4. Repeat the moves over and over Leaders of victorious academies in Jiu-Jitsu and MMA, Andre Pederneiras (Nova Uniao) and Sylvio Behring (Winner-Behring) don’t fear being repetitive when they assure that the motto is to persist and persist and then persist some more when it comes to position-training. “Definitely the key is the positions. In judo, the athlete makes 1,000 takedowns on every session. It’s sad to see that in the Jiu-Jitsu milieu people think it’s a waste of time. We repeat the basic positions in the warm up about 5 times before every practice”, says Pederneiras. Master Sylvio corroborates: “Every title we conquered in the last years with Mario Reis and Fabricio Werdum were due to this philosophy: repeating the basics and go through a training fight under supervision, which is the sparring game. One of the athletes executes every type of attack, arm, triangle, and the other tries to defend from the blitz”, says Marcelo Behring’s brother, who demands 90 seconds or a series of 100 repetitions after training. “Thus the athlete reaches exhaustion and lets the movement flow naturally.” After all, as professor Jean Jacques Machado puts it, it’s better to repeat a position a thousand times, working on it for a month, than learning one a day. The phenomenon Nino “Elvis” Schembri also agrees on the tip: “More and more I convince myself that one should pay attention to the positions, from the white all the way to the black belt. The main thing in Jiu-Jitsu, a sport in which, I believe, the most technical player gets the advantage, is to repeat the positions. Everybody does that in boxing, judo, but in Jiu-Jitsu the guys are a little lazy. Including me.” To Nino, it’s reasonable to reserve the beginning of the practice to repeating 50 positions for each side, thrice a week. “And don’t even think of giving up”, he smiles. 5. Set goals In the nineties, when he was among the best competitors in Jiu-Jitsu, Ze Mario Sperry had a notebook where he would right the goals to be reached in training, in a given period. The black-belt used to rip the leaves and leave them on all corners of his house. “I’d go to the bathroom to shave and would find a note glued to the mirror: ‘If you want to be a champion, you’ve got one week to do this or train that’,” he recalls. Sperry explains that setting goals helps in the evaluation and control of what is being produced in the training. “The ideal is that the fighter define what he wants. Afterwards, find ways to get there, reckoning the time necessary to reach it.” For an example, the black-belt recollects the time he set the goal of getting a perfect physical condition. To achieve it, he designed a series that focused on several exercises, such as squatting, weight lifting and running-sprints. “By keeping my heart-beat accelerated with this workout, I made progress until I conditioned my body to the rhythm of the combats.” This “note pursuit” enabled the BTT master to keep focus on his career’s objectives, being sure what he had to improve in a near future. Black-belt Vitor Shaolin warns his students about this up to this day: “You must set up your training in such a way that you define what are the two most important competitions for you to be in that year. No matter how much you try it, you can never be 100% in all tournaments,” he guarantees. “Then you must establish the rules: ‘I want to be well in the Brazilian and World championships.’ And prepare to place well only in these tournaments, not minding whatever you win or lose in the rest of the competitions. The body is not a machine and cannot remain on a level 8 or 9 all the time, be it in Jiu-Jitsu or MMA, which is the Triathlon of fighting,” the Shooto champion concludes. 6. Be dynamic To Amaury Bitetti, Jiu-Jitsu is like chess: you only move a piece thinking of the next move. The two-time world open champion in ’96-’97 says an attacking position during the fight must always be connected to other future positions whose objective is the submission or – just to follow the comparison – the check-mate. In order to achieve that, Amaury advises that the attack-trainings should be made in a logical progression. For instance: a takedown leads to a guard-pass, which in its turn leads us to a mount, which leads to a choke. The combinations are infinite; what matters is that your game be not static. Just as in the whiskey advertisement: keep walking. Turn your Jiu-Jitsu into a motor gear. 7. You are an athlete, not a weight-lifter Two-time world open champion 02-03, Marcio Pe de Pano strives to convince the athletes of the fact that they don’t need to look for a superathlete’s body at any cost. To the black-belt, the secret lies, above all, in training to ally technique and good conditioning. “If you train Jiu-Jitsu, you ought to work out, but not make a monstrous physical preparation,” he comments. “If you fight MMA or wrestling, you might need such a body. In Jiu-Jitsu, physical preparation is not all: one must work to become a technical and conditional athlete.” Therefore, don’t go try anything silly. 8. Strengthen your grip The first attitude necessary to follow this hint by Vitor Shaolin is: tighten that rope well! After all, the principle behind this task is to use a thick rope tied to the academy’s ceiling in order to strengthen the fighter’s grip on the opponent’s gi. An important detail is that this exercise is good to another very important muscle for the athlete: the abdomen. As Shaolin demonstrates, there are three ways of climbing, each of which improves a specific group of moves. In the first exercise (picture A), the athlete uses short grips to get to the top, which helps in the chokes executed with the hands near and the arms bent. As he shows, the climb can be made with the hand reversed (picture B). In the following task (picture C) he goes upwards with wider grips, ideal to strengthen a pull from the ground with a hip escape (bottom picture) or any position that demands a strong grip with the arms stretched. The detail is to keep the legs always elevated, which toughens the abs. “You go up, stop for a few seconds with the legs stretched, and then descend in the same fashion,” explains the Nova Uniao professor. “The wider grip is the hardest, so I do it only once a day, five times a week. The other one, easier, I repeat ten times a week, twice on one day, thrice on the next, then twice… Always after training, when the arms are more tired.” 9. Strive to be complete What good is it to get an A+ in guard-passing but flunk attack-from-the-back? To stand out in Jiu-Jitsu, the fighter can’t excel at one or two moves. He must play in the eleven, as we say in football. Black-belt Saulo Ribeiro teaches a simple way of reaching versatility: “Many people despises the warm-up before practising. Well, dedicate the first 15 minutes in the academy to doing the basic: escape from the back, from the mount, and side-mount. In the next 15, practise submission from the back, the mount and the side-mount. Do this every day in your Jiu-Jitsu career. It may be boring, but it’ll make you complete. No matter what belt. I am a black-belt and still discipline myself into doing it till today. Oh, I nearly missed it. Practise judo at least twice a week. Knowing how to fight standing is also fundamental. That it my formula for becoming complete.” 10. Posture is everything By training Jiu-Jitsu frequently, three or four times a week, our physical preparation specialist Martin Rooney’s attention was caught by a simple, though essential, tip. “It was something that changed the way I looked at workout itself: whether on the mat or with the dumb-bells, always pay attention to your posture. That is the most important, both if you are trying pass a guard or lifting tremendous weight. Without the adequate posture you don’t spare moves, you worsen the strike’s execution and augment the health hazards – or loss hazards.” In case the reader suspects on Martin for the fact that he isn’t a great BJJ star, remember that is one of the aspects Rickson Gracie stresses the most while training. So, straight neck, lined-up shoulders, firm back and off you go. 11. Learn from defeat Many fighters absorb but negativity from losses. They get depressed, blame God and the world for the result and, sometimes, deem their careers finished. Leonardo Vieira does the exact opposite. He uses the defeats (preferably in practices, of course) to reflect on what he can do better. “I’m convinced that everybody who submits all of their opponents in the trainings is actually learning nothing,” says Leo. Like the child, who only learns how to walk by stumbling, it’s by tapping that the Jiu-Jitsu practitioner improves their art. Therefore, the Brasa black-belt advises that the masters mix athletes of different graduations in the trainings. Thus the fights aren’t too even, leaving room for adversities. Martin Rooney agrees: “The athlete who reacts with bad feelings to the defeats isn’t learning the incredible lessons that have been taught him, and that would make his chances of losing again much smaller. There’s no such thing as winning and losing, but only winning and learning,” says Renzo’s and Ricardo Cachorrao’s trainer. “Only you can your reaction and spirits to grow as an athlete. I believe the person that has been submitted the most is the toughest to beat. That’s what a tough guy is made of. That’s of a black-belt is made of,” he summarizes. Leo Vieira calls the attention to the fact that the losses out of the mats are just as fundamental to form a champion, above all in what concerns character. “When there was a dissidence at the first formation of the Alliance team and I was alone in Sao Paulo, I went through one of the most difficult moments of my life. However, I became a much stronger person and learned a lot about life. I wouldn’t be here today if I hadn’t gone through that,” he evaluates. 12. Look for the best version of the move for you Master Osvaldo Alves says that up until the nineteen-seventies one only gave and armbar-in-guard by uncrossing and wide-opening the legs. “I realized this coup was vulnerable, for it enabled the opponent to flee and pass the guard easily. So I invented the climbing-armbar,” recalls the red-and-black-belt. As you can see on the image, this armlock version makes it a lot harder for the adversary to escape. “The thing is to not lock the opponent’s arm, but his/her shoulder,” clears up the master, who uses his own calf against the sparring’s shoulder, stopping him from getting up. Summarizing: if you don’t get along with a certain move, try to perfect it, adapt it to your physical and technical traits, always searching new versions for it. That’s what makes Jiu-Jitsu evolve continuously. 13. The best strategy is the attack “I always try to attack. While I’m on the offensive, my opponent can think of nothing but defending, that is, I’m protected,” Marcelo Garcia teaches. As an example, the Alliance black-belt recalls the time when he didn’t know to keep an open guard. He would cross the legs on the opponent’s back and pray for the time to elapse. “I was afraid of attacking,” he evaluates. After noticing the deficiency Marcelo started uncrossing the feet and practising sweeps. He realised that, if he went right onto the adversary, he’d run a much smaller risk of being submitted than if he played defending, applying but rare counter-strikes. Garcia also realised that, by being the first to attack, he would make his opponents abandon their former plan. If he prolonged the blitz, Marcelo also prolonged this “untouchable” state. But there are those who say that repeated attacks tend to tire the athlete. “What really tires is to hold the fight back the whole time,” Marcelo argues. Notwithstanding, the black-belt gives some advice on physical preparation for those who agree that the best defense is the attack: “Climbing stairs and ramps is the best option for an amazing guard,” he reveals. 14. Don’t forget to enhance your defense Despite liking the attacking strategy suggested by Marcelo Garcia, Rillion Gracie stresses the importance of training submission-escapes (remembering that the other guy may attack first). “Look at Roger Gracie’s performances in the last World Championship. He suffered fulminating attacks right in the beginning of the battles but was able to defend like a master to then counter-attack,” Rillion recalls. The Gracie Leblon Master says that, while practising defense, the competitor learns exactly what the opponent feels like in situations of adversity. “Learning defense improves the attack. I f the lion knows how the prey can escape, it’ll capture it in a much more precise way,” he ponders. To practise defense in Jiu-Jitsu, Rillion advises the reader into forgetting s/he is strong. “Exercise your patience. Use the weight and the force of the levers,” he explains. “Start practising defense as soon as possible, to awake just as soon the survival instinct in your fighter’s soul.” 15. Stretch! Ever since he was a kid, Antonio Schembri has been used to stretching daily. And he never complained, unlike his opponents, whom, in time and practice, he began to submit in the most varied ways. “I’m very flexible, so I always take a strong session before and after training. Some people are stiffer, they don’t like it, but stretching is essential, especially the bottom half, legs, spine and lumbar,” says the Chute Boxe athlete. According to “Elvis,” stretching is vital even for improving the guard. “What I realize in competitions, even black-belts’, is that everybody gets along well on top, but not everyone can keep a good guard. So besides stretching, which improves the de-passing, the athlete must set up a schedule and program himself and persist in training every single variation, butterfly guard, closed guard, with inside hooks… You can’t let the guy cross the knee line, or else you’ll have to pull something out of your ass to stop the guy from passing,” Schembri teaches. 16. Develop self-knowledge According to Fabio Gurgel, competition-Jiu-Jitsu is so leveled nowadays that the small details can make the difference in the fight’s result. Considering that you, fearless reader, have already looked after the technique and physical preparation, the Alliance general calls the attention to a “detail” that can turn you into a giant of the mats: self-knowledge. “I advise my students to talk to themselves. Self-evaluation makes the athlete know himself better, finding out his true virtues and weaknesses. He starts being conscious of his own instincts, develops self-confidence and doesn’t chiken out. Thus the athlete can design an ideal fighting plan,” Gurgel analyses, and then describes the state of mind with which one should enter the ring: “The fighter’s self-knowledge must turn the battler into something pleasant. The Jiu-Jitsu practitioner must have fun in the championships. That way, it all becomes easy.” 17. Simulate hindrances and escapes “Back at Carlson’s academy, I always trained with partners who would attack me full-on That’s what’s bad about training in an academy where everybody wants to fight for real: you don’t get used to the opponent that hinders the fighting in the competitions,” Ricardo de la Riva points out, stressing the hard time he had developing his game against Japanese fighter Yuki Nakai in September 2004.His hint, accordingly, is to simulate fights where the opponent neither tries to pass nor to submit; to fight against a technical sparring – or one who runs away. Marcelo Garcia also has a hint for those hard situations: stretching and breathing. “The fighter has got to know how to stretch and move all of his members, besides breathing properly, for the time when he is on the bottom, being smashed and smothered by the adversary,” says the middle-weight world champion. In order to learn how to get out of the tough situations, Garcia indicates: the good thing is to practise guard with heavier mates. 18. Try! Jean Jacques Machado likes to awake his students’ creativity. The master organizes “lab sessions” during the trainings in the academy where he teaches in Los Angeles. On these moments he shows the classroom a move, asks the students to study it and to present a defense a week later. “There are many ways to get to a goal. I like my pupils to use their creativity and find out new ways to get there,” he evaluates. In other words, Jean doesn’t make his apprentices “move repeaters.” By disseminating experimentalism in his lessons, the black-bellt gives birth to classrooms full of creative and innovating athletes. Leo Vieira likes Jacques’ methodology, but presents another way of making the students open minded: “Look at the kids fighting. Notice how they’re always laughing and jumping around. That’s how I like to fight. Children invent, use unexpected moves that, if adapted to adult Jiu-Jitsu, can be fruitful. Teaching kids is a great source of knowledge to me.” 19. Regularity, always Also to 1999 ADCC champion Jean Machado, there’s nothing more important than regularity. Not vanishing from the academy is, therefore, essential for the athlete’s evolution – s/he must avoid substituting wasted weeks with overtraining periods. Nearly every one of the gi-superstars knows that by heart, as Pe de Pano Illustrates: “The secret is regularity: training over and over and over. Twice a day if possible. As I began late, I would make it up by going to the academy in the afternoon and at night.” According to him, training regularly leads to evolving and injury-avoiding. “For the fact that you keep training, the body gets used to the effort you make. It was after I began resuming and quitting that I began to have injuries often,” he completes. A partisan to that idea, Vitor Shaolin exemplifies: “Besides training often, you must divide the trainings, understand that there is a little something called resting. So if in the afternoon the practice is slower, take the chance to rest. If your body doesn’t react all that well in the morning but you know that in the morning the training is profitable, wake up earlier to get your body prepared. Practise more heavily at night, but don’t let it go on till too late, for you might go to bed tense, thinking of training – and end up not resting at all.” 20. Respect and reflect Respect and dedication are utterly necessary to Ricardo de la Riva. “The idea is to arrive with an open mind and to practise with pleasure, and not to simply want to win in the training. You must respect, above all, not only the dojo and the professor, but also your practice-mate, after all you need him/her,” says the master. According to Martin Rooney, the salutation can afford great benefits that sometimes can go by unnoticed. “In all sports, athletes create rituals that push the negative energy away. However, I realise that many Jiu-Jitsu beginners ignore that fact, maybe for seeing martial arts as just a way of defending, a game of win or lose,” he says. Martin refers to the simple and traditional act of bowing. Associated for centuries to martial arts, the act should not be seen as only a demonstration of respect or a sign that the fight has begun. As the American trainer explains, the time to bow is a great opportunity to concentrate. The bow is the moment when the practice begins, so any negative thought or attitude must be left aside – or out of the academy. “A salutation at the end of the practice enables the athlete to go back to his normal life,” he says. “Develop, therefore, a strong mental connection so that your mind is activated by the bow in the beginning. Just as in any sport, if your head is not ready to practise, it’s impossible to learn anything,” Rooney concludes. Thanks to Rafael Werneck, Graciemag.com editor, for permission to use this article!