Episode 2 (Part 1 of 2): Stripping the Lapel Grip/Power Hand

The majority of throws you'll face generally require your Opponent to utilize both a sleeve and lapel grip. Throws (seionage and other combinations can be done with a lapel grip) and there are a handful of Te Waza or hand techniques which can be done with only a sleeve grip but they are even more rare. As such, the power hand is the real threat because that is the harder grip to strip, and the main point of control for your opponent. This video deals with some of the higher % ways to address/remove that grip. Not shown or emphasized here, but as the opponent sells out on maintaining this grip at all costs, other options like dragging to the back, front head lock, the lat grip shown last week all become possible.

Episode 1: Basic Gripfighting Against Defensive Gripping

As the video quickly outlines, if I have zero grips on my opponent and he has 2, I made several mistakes, but nonetheless, so we begin:

There will be some form of the 3 defensive postures shown (from the sleeve + lapel grip): stiff arms, head low and hips as far back as possible, more upright and elbow flared high to prevent lapel gripping, and elbow low and in tight to prevent the recovery of the inside elbow position.

The video below covers some basic concepts for regaining grips and how the 3 positions tend to blend together in as battles for head height, lapel control, elbow positioning, stiff arms, hips back, and cutting an angle to then initiate an attack.

Add me on Instagram @zegrapplez to see analysis and breakdowns of gripping in competition and of gripfighting exchanges at length (and memes).

Tournament Proof: Uchimata to D'Arce choke in BJJ Competition

This was from a Submission Only event held by US Grappling in Virginia, November 2011.
I'm in the Blue Gi, Blue belt division, Under 149 lb's:

I cross grip for my lapel grip then as I establish my sleeve grip, I begin circling to my right, which forces my opponent to follow as he begins to search for his grips.
**** By "cross grip" I mean that I reach for his lapel with my rear hand. In Judo, we rarely reach for the lapel we desire with the lead hand as this can lead to your being on the receiving end of a footsweep. I've actually footswept guys in NoGi divisions as they reach in to tie up with me. It really does happen.****

At :17 I feel him circle into me and his posture feels weak, so use my lapel grip to reach over his back and set up a stronger, more powerful/dominating grip and begin to bend him over/kill his posture even further.

At this point, you'll notice how wide his feet are (wider than shoulder with), they are square (on the same line/plane), and he is sitting back on his hills/butt sticking out, head forward of his waist and feet. This is the ideal posture for your opponent to set up an uchimata (and ouchi gari, kouchi gari et cetera).

He than makes the fatal mistake and steps back behind what will be my reaping/lifting leg for the uchimata with HIS left foot. The rest is pretty basic:
I land in half-guard and from learning the hard way in earlier matches, immediately pummel/lace my power grip right hand back inside to hunt for the underhook on the far side (otherwise he takes my back). He beats me to it, I lose the underhook race, and I settle for bringing my elbow down to kill his underhook ("escrima" they would yell at me in Brazil).

My opponent lets me keep him pretty flat on his back despite having the underhook and his weak/lazy underhook is what sets up the D'Arce. His head is bent down and his spine curved, letting me slowly tighten up my D'Arce grip.

Unlike the way some people do it, I like to lock the D'Arce and step over into mount making it a slightly different kind of squeeze. I've been told it feels closer to a guillotine than the way the D'Arce normally feels (to me it normally feels like scissors clamping down on my neck).

At any rate, here's an example of how some basic, fundamental of Judo: cross grip, circle away, and when the opponent follows you establish a power/high/dominating grip, and take advantage of poor posture and defensive stance to land on top, score points, and begin to pass the guard.

Happy Trainingz!

Ilias Iliadis: The Will to Win & A Gripfighting Drill for your Friday

For those who don't know much about the man, Ilias Iliadis

I can't stress enough the importance of gripfighting in Judo. Following my knee injury, I've been left unable to play right-handed Judo. I can only play from a fairly extreme left-haned/left-footed stance.
Maintaining control of my opponents through gripping has become incredibly important as I simply cannot bear all my weight nor balance on my left foot, so this foot is put forward, and my right leg/foot is now the weight-bearing leg. Yet, I've managed to continue to play with other players my size and even win a number of matches in a local tournament. The ability to control the pace and the entries of your opponent is where it all begins in Judo.

That being said, here is a gripfighting drill, relatively easy to practice, that should be a beginner/basic component of every Judo player's gripping game:

And another, longer piece on some fundamentals to gripfighting from Misaki Iteya: