22/08/2017 - BJJ Globetrotter Camp | Heidelberg 2017 | Avoiding sweeps when passing (Priit Mihkelson)

Class #880
BJJ Globetrotter Camp (Olympiastützpunkt Rhein-Neckar) Priit Mihkelson, Heidelberg, Germany, 22/08/2017

I struggled with Priit's classes in Leuven, finding it difficult to take in the concepts. Will open guard standing make more sense than half and turtle? Let's find out. :)

It turns out that the classes he taught in Heidelberg suited me much better. I felt a lot more comfortable with the class this time, as not only was I prepared for Priit's megalong lectures, the position was plenty familiar. The whole class was built around the tripod sweep, but in terms of countering it.

Your first option is what Priit calls the Elvis, turning your hip in. Second is the buttsprawl, a sort of modified reverse technical stand up, dropping to your butt with a leg stretched forward. I was a little concerned with the impact on my wrist, but the concept seems sound. Finally, if you've already been swept and want to beat them to the punch, you can bring your other leg over to spin, then run away to break their grips.

As ever with Priit, the concept can be quite simple with a limited set of mechanics: it then gets complex when you try it, learning the right application through a lot of drilling. So I'll need to get stuck in with these once I have some open mat drilling time back home.