Single leg tranistion to back control

Bibiano Fernandez vs. Takafumi Otsuka from Dream 7.

Check out this sequence from his fight, a very slick transition from a takedown attempt to back control performed by Bibiano. Pay close attention to where Bibiano's head is in every photo.


1) Bibiano is in on a single leg takedown. Not the deepest shot but he has a good grasp of Otsuka's leg. Bibiano's head is on the outside and typically the idea from here is to step back and away while driving his left shoulder and head down to finish the takedown.









2) Here you can see Bibiano do just that...Steps back and away and begins driving his shoulder and head down while pulling in on the leg to get it lifted in the air. There are different variations on the grip that Bibiano has on his leg, what he has here isn't what I would call ideal but you can't always get everything perfect in a fight.






3) Bibiano now has the leg lifted and in between his legs. Often times you'll see guys squeeze their knees together from here to prevent the opponent from using his shin across the body to defend. Bibiano has so many options here. He can revert back to the single leg attempt, he can also switch from the single to the double and run Otsuka off to the left side of the screen.






4) Otsuka's energy is leaning forward and Bibiano's head is on the outside. This is a bad combination for Otsuka because his back is already exposed. Take note that Otsuka's leg in still in between Bibiano's legs.







5) Bibianos hustles to the back and Otsuka is low on options. Keep in mind that this whole sequence happens very quickly. Bibiano is almost guaranteed at least one hook in, remember the leg was in between his legs to begin with.






6) Otsuka knows what is coming so he tries hard to turn into Bibiano, hoping to salvage at least a half guard, or possibly to scramble and end up on top of Bibiano if he is able to get some separation between his back and Bibano's chest. The over and under control that Bibiano has in EXTREMELY important at this point.






7) Bibiano's back sticks to Otsuka and he stays behind, following Otsuka as he tries to turn out. It's pretty much now a done deal that Bibiano will take the back.






8)Bibiano doing what a world champion in Jiu-Jitsu can do. You absolutely cannot get lazy in this position. Just a little bit of separation between the chest and back can turn the game around right away. The over/under control shown in picture #6 is key. If Bibiano gives space and isn't good with that grip, he can end up on bottom and fighting from guard. Bibiano also has an option of posting his left arm on the mat to post himself up if needed.



9) Bibiano adjusts further to stay behind Otsuka. Moments later he is able to place his right hook to get the back fully.





Once again, the whole sequence takes place very quickly when seen in real time. Make sure you pay attention to where your head is when you are working on a single leg. One factor in this position if how well your opponent is able to keep balance on one leg. If you look at picture #2, Otsuka could have worked on the "switch" defense if he was able to keep his balance long enough to try.

Good training to you all, I hope you enjoyed this post and may it be helpful to all of you. You will be surprised at how often the back if offered from any clinching position like this. Stay healthy!

Hustle hard after a failed heel hook!

The following sequence is more about strategy and attitude than it is about actual technique. This is a fight between Tim Credeur and Nick Catone from Ultimate Fight Night 18 from last week and I think this will be very helpful for you on the mat, especially if you like attempting heel hooks. Don't be lazy when your opponent escapes your attempt!

I just got done watching the 2nd episode of this seasons Ultimate Fighter show a few minutes ago. In the first first shown between Mark Miller and Kevin Knagbjian, this exact situation happens as well! I was stoked to see it in another fight.


#1) Here is Credeur going for the heel hook on Catone, who does the typical defense of turning with the pressure. Notice how Credeur goes to his knees as he sticks to his heel hook attempt, this is a key detail to this sequence.


#2) Catone is able to pull his leg free and Credeur has lost the heel hook. So often you'll see fighters flop to their backs and end up in the infamous "butt scoot" position or back in guard if their opponent dives back in after escaping the heel hook. Those two scenarios happen time and time again but Credeur has no intention of letting that happen.


#3) Because Credeur went to his knees, he is in a much better position to scramble back to his feet. Instead of taking the lazy way out, he hustles hard immediately fights to get up and end up in a better position. Look at the position Catone is in right here. Because he had to turn to avoid pressure from the heel hook, he has his back facing his Credeur, this basically happens all the time when guys escape the heel hook, although it sometimes happens very quickly.

#4) Catone is at a big disadvantage now because he has to turn 180 degrees in order to face his opponent. That split second it takes him to try to do this is more than enough time for Credeur to clinch him from behind.

#5) At this point, Catone has already lost the position. Maybe he can break away Credeur's hands and square back up with him, but that just isn't very likely. Credeur is up on both knees now and finishes by standing up in the next two photos.


#6) Credeur on his way up to both feet.

#7) Credeur's desire to scramble pays off. He went from a missed heel hook to a standing rear clinch, a great position. That is a definite fight changer right there. Try this out next time you train, you will see that missing a leg lock can actually improve your position if you work at it. The general idea is that leg locks leave you vulnerable, play with this scenario on the mat! good training, stay healthy and be smart.

The next UFC pay per view show is April 18th. Check your cable listings for more information. The official UFC website is www.ufc.tv

Vitor "Shaolin" Ribeiro uses a beautiful sweep in MMA

This fight is between Vitor "Shaolin" Ribeiro and Katsuhiko Nagata which took place at DREAM 8 in Japan. I will be breaking down one simple sequence in this post that had a huge impact on the fight. Please check back often because I have a few more posts already finished but will wait to publish them since my blog is just starting out and I want to insure some longevity. As far as the fight strategy here, Shaolin knew he would win on the ground, so from the clinch, he pulled half guard. Remember, in DREAM, you get a 10 minute first round.



Position #1 right here shows Shaolin in a half guard. First, notice that he has the underhook. Not only does he have the underhook, he has a DEEP underhook. When you have this underhook, you want to act like you trying to reach for your opponents trap muscle! So often, you see people get lazy with that underhook and settle with being able to reach the middle of your opponents back or reaching for that muscle right below their armpit. I'm not saying that won't work and that is isn't effectgive, but reaching for the trap muscle is key. Being lazy with an underhook gives your opponent a chance to use his whizzer more effectively.

In this picture, Shaolin is all the way hipped out to his side, so not only does he have a deep underhook at the time being, but he is always feeling very little of Nagata's weight on him. If he didn't hip out so far, Nagata would be able to use his weight better and Shaolin would be force to carry much more of Nagata's weight. In this photo, I promise you that Shaolin is extremely comfortable and has a big advantage at this point. Sure Nagata can punch him on the top of the head, but Shaolins face is well protected here.



#2) Here is the next position which takes place just a split second after the previous picture. Shaolin swings his left leg up to get leverage. This is basically the same kind of motion that you use when you do the basic flower sweep. If you don't know what the flower sweep is, you probably suck and have no business reading my blog = ) Shaolin has several options from here. You might be wondering why Shaolins right hand is near Nagata's crotch in this photo....For one, it gives him leverage to hip out and swing his leg out. It also gives him a chance to sweep here (there is a flower sweep variation that is possible here). Let's go ahead and move onto the next position. I can already tell that I am starting to over analyze things!



#3) Because Nagata doesn't have the underhook (remember Shaolin got the DEEP underhook reaching for Nagata's trap muscle) he isn't able to keep Shaolin flat on his back. This is serious danger for Nagata as Shaolin is able to come out the back door just enough to post his right hand down on the mat. As is the case in many positions, Shaolin posts his elbow first, even though the goal is the post the hand. You'll often see this when people attempt the hip bump sweep or even the kimura from guard. It's not really the preference, but you've gotta do what ya gotta do! Nagata still has a tiny bit of a whizzer, but it's basically useless at this point. Shaolin already has way too much of his body out from under Nagata. He's not carrying any of Nagata's weight and the fight is about to be all his.



#4) Here is another image just a split second later. You can see that Shaolin is able to fully post his right hand on the mat which stabilizes his ability to stay on top. He only use the elbow on the mat for a quick moment. Now that he has the space, he posts the hand which is far more stable. Nagata is still trying to hang on to the very last bit of his whizzer, but Shaolin can easily take his back at this point. Notice how his left foot is already being inserted as a hook. Nagata is in a whole lot of danger!



#5) Nagata decided to "bail out" and fall to his back instead of giving Shaolin his back. Not a bad strategy by Nagata at the time because he'd be happy to end up with a half guard at this point. If I had Shaolin on me I would have done the same. Notice how Shaolin uses his right hand to post on the mat to make sure he ends up on top. Shaolin is driving his hips down hard at this moment. It's one of those things that you need to do to understand, but the whole "race to the top position" is decided by Shaolin's hips. I've seen many scrambles from this positon and if Shaolin doesn't use that right arm to post, it isn't out of the question for Nagata to overpower Shaolin and end up on top again.



#6) The sequence ends with Shaolin on top in Nagata's half guard. So to recap, Shaolin went from the bottom of the half guard to using this sweep to ending up on top of Nagata in half mount. Such a slick move! Chances are, 99% of the people reading this will never be as good as Shaolin, but that doesn't mean that you can't pull this move off. I've seen black belts who were purple belts at certain techniques and positions, and I've seen purple belts who were straight up black belts when it came to certain moves. It's all about how you train and develop them.

Hopefully this blog entry has been of help to some of you. Please leave comments for me. Also, feel free to send an e-mail to freddyfatlas@hotmail.com if you want to hate on me or show me some love. I got no sponsors to thank at this point so all I got to say is...Train hard, stay healthy and take care of yours!

Why do they call me Freddy Fatlas?

Chances are, you're familiar with who Teddy Atlas is. This guy is a genius when it comes to the sport of boxing. He can literally watch two people do nothing but shadowbox for 5 minutes, and then tell you exactly what each persons weakness is, and what each person needs to do in order to beat the other person. He is thee absolute genius when it comes to the sport of boxing. Well, I love boxing, but I suck at it. I try to do what I can and I know the basics, but when it comes down to it, I'm no good at it and I have no problem admitting this. However, when it comes to MMA, especially grappling in MMA, I am borderline GENIUS!

Okay, that may very well be a "slight" exaggeration but I love breaking down film and explaining what is going right and wrong, and that is what I will be doing on this blog. It irks me when I see people make simple little mistakes tn positions that ends up costing people fights. It also gets me jumping out of my seat when I see competitors take the time to be technicians and do the right things on the mat. So yeah, That's right, they call me Freddy Fatlas, and I am the Fight Professor.

This blog will be an educational tool for people out there who watch MMA, especially those who train in the arts. Please check back often, as I will be posting useful information on a semi-regular basis.

I have helped train several world class Jiu-Jitsu/grappling competitors and a number of MMA fighters as well. I have been an instructor at a couple of very well known MMA gyms over the years. I am not here to toot my horn, but I'm lucky enough to not have to do this for a living. I have been blessed with a good, stable job, a great family and I am happy to call MMA and Jiu-Jitsu a "hobby" that I just so happen to be addicted to. My hope is to get this sport continue to evolve at a technical level. So often, many subtle details are overlooked and this is the place where we will examine them and break them down.

For reasons that I would rather not have to fully explain, I will remain completely anonymous on this blog. This is a work in progress and I have high hopes for it. I am not here to sell you anything, I am not here to brag about who I am and how many famous people I have tapped out. I am not here to tell you what I have seen happen to famous fighters in the gym. I am only here to try to help everybody who gets on the mat and puts in work by using words and and pictures.

Admittedly, I will be posting images on this site that I do not own the rights to. I will post links and information to give due credit and publicity to the ones who do own the rights, but if any of you folks out there have a problem with me using an image that you own the rights to, please e-mail me @ freddyfatlas@hotmail.com and I will delete them from my blog if you really wish. For the most part, these images will be coming in the form of snapshots from sites like youtube, which are already free for anybody in the world to view, but like I said, if you gotta problem and want me to pull them down, hit me up and I will do so.

Like I said earlier, I am not here to sell anything and I am not here to make a name for myself (hence the alias) or anybody affiliated with me. I am somebody who has put in a lot of time on the mats for this sport and this blog is my way to giving back to those who will be carrying the flag for generations to come. Hopefully that is fully understood and you will realize that it is my passion for the sport that drives me to take the time to do this.