Rolling In MMA
I still go and roll at a pure BJJ gym and notice the difference when rolling with BJJ purists over us MMA types.
The first and main thing I notice is the absolute desire that MMA people have to get of their back, as nothing good happens when you are on your back in MMA. Conversely the BJJ purists are not worried about going to their back, they are more than happy to be playing guard as that is a good position for them. I feel it is important to say that the MMA people (me) can do dumb things to get of their back and end up getting caught. Also the BJJ purists do not just roll over on to their back, they are very hard to sweep but once the sweep is on they are programmed to pull guard. Then once in guard they are thinking submission or sweep, once they have your posture broken down they are looking to either roll your over or tap you out. The person who is in guard has one goal and that is to pass guard (get passed the legs) and get to a better position. How this changes in MMA is with ground and pound. People can be quite happy to sit inside someone’s guard and just throw strikes as this can set up a guard pass. The pass is possible as the person on the bottom is now more defensive, and trying to stop getting hit in the head, rather than just thinking about a sweep or submission. More or less in BJJ when you are in someone’s guard you are on the defensive as you are trying to pass their guard while avoiding sweeps and submissions. Then in MMA the roles reverse, the person who has guard and is on their back, is on the defensive as they have to shut down the person on the top so they don’t eat too many punches.
In half guard things are different as well. In BJJ when you are on top in half guard you are trying to keep close to them, flatten then out and get passed their legs. On the bottom your digging for the under hook getting on your side and working one of many escapes. In MMA when you are on top you are trying to keep their far shoulder flat, by using your hand, you are ‘half guarding’ their leg so they can’t wiggle away which allows you to sit tall and unleash some solid ground and pound. On your back in MMA you are trying to get an over hook and lay flat so they can’t get any distance to punch. This is only a stall as they will free there arm, as soon as that arm is free you get the under hook and bury your head in to their hips, so they can’t land big shots on you, then you start your escape. Once you have dealt with the ground and pound it goes exactly like BJJ is it just a little different before you get there.
Side control, in BJJ it is very simple on top you are attacking and on the bottom you are escaping. There are exceptions but in general this is what happens. Then in MMA it isn’t really different as on top you are attacking and on the bottom you are looking at getting the hell out of there. On the bottom you do a plan just like half guard, keep them as close as possible while tying up the arms as soon as they get lose you are escaping using BJJ technique.
Mount in BJJ is bad but not as dangerous as other positions, most people have a lot less submissions in mount than side control as when you are in mount you movement in limited. Of course there are people out there who will make me tap like Fred Astaire from mount, but most people struggle to get submissions from there. In MMA mount is the glory position as the judges and crowd love it, I personally think it is over rated and enjoy other positions better. But in general the escapes and plans are the same in BJJ as in MMA, the main difference is that you have to be prepared to take a punch before you go for an escape in MMA, which is not a concern in BJJ. However I do notice that in general MMA people go harder to escape mount compared to BJJ people.
Overall you can’t be good at MMA without BJJ and you have to learn and modify it a little to make it work in MMA. I really like the subtle things that the purists do and how smooth and relaxed it is when rolling. MMA people do try and power out of moves a little more and I find against most people of smaller size or less skill it works. However when I come up against a good BJJ guy it just does not bother them and they go with it and I end up in bad spot having to fight like hell to survive. Rolling with pure BJJ people is great as they are relaxed and skilled and not really concerned about being stuck under someone. I do not mean this in a bad way they just don’t get punched and they work more technique to escape rather than trying to go ‘wrestling’ on it and go belly down and get to your feet. In any sport that is used in MMA it is modified for MMA and is used for that purpose, any of the kickboxing, Wrestling or BJJ is going to be different when training with purists as they have a more direct focus. This has always been the way and continues to be the best way to improve your skills by training with the purists. Hopefully they a get a little back from us as well.
Gareth Lewis
Head MMA Instructor