Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is often referred to as human chess. Improving at this martial art requires a mix of physicality and intellect. Athleticism and strength are respected, but the crafty, technical, smart practitioners are universally recognized as the best representatives of the sport. BJJ is unique because it does not just attract athletic people. It attracts nerds, bookworms, philosopher and thinker types. Yes, yes. No wonder the best BJJ coach — Jon Danaher — is a philosophy PhD. People often make parallels between BJJ and chess, mostly because of the importance of strategy and tactics. Here is another similarity, which is not discussed very often — the importance of calculation. In chess, a player who can see 3 moves ahead will almost always beat the player who sees 2 moves ahead. How far you can see is infinitely more important than how much theory you know. Similarly, in jiu-jitsu, we marvel at the ability of some practitioners to almost read the opponent’s thoughts. No matter what you try, they are ready. They give you this cheeky smile and you know you are in trouble. Of course, unlike chess, jiu-jitsu has the speed factor. In chess, each side makes only one move at a time. But in BJJ you could execute several moves before the opponent can respond. Sure, many factors play into this other than the speed itself — cardio, the level of fatigue, the mental state we are in during sparring, and so on. But in any case, in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, it pays to have an elaborate game where you have a plan, then a response to each of the possible reactions of the opponent, and then answers to their reactions to your responses, and so on (Marcelo Garcia is a strong proponent of this). As your “jiu-jitsu tree” grows deep and wide, your skill level increases. You start “seeing further” and doing precisely what you admire in high-level practitioners. You can calculate further and further. You guide your opponent exactly where you want them to go. You set cunning traps and trigger reactions to which you already have well-prepared responses. Yes, jiu-jitsu has a certain level of chaos to it — after all, your opponent is not a training dummy and has his or her plans, moves, tactics, and strategies. But having a plan is almost always better than not having a plan. Those of us whose game and skills are best prepared for multiple possibilities, usually end up winning. In this article, I want to describe a concept that I have used, successfully, in both offensive and defensive positions. It is relatively simple, hence something that can be practiced and mastered reasonably quickly, even by white belts. It is simple but difficult to counter — so the time you invest in practicing this pays off in sparring and matches. Enter the 1–2–1 principle. Essentially, it is an advanced trap setting. You use two different moves that have different and usually opposing directions of force. Think about the push-pull principle, or creating dilemmas that Jon Danaher and Gordon Ryan often talk about. You probably already do this — you try a move, which, when countered, opens an opportunity for the second move. You try to push, the opponent resists, then you pull. You attempt a sweep to the right, and as the opponent adjusts the weight and positioning, you sweep to the left. BUT. I see a lot of people who stop at move two. They are missing out. Let’s take it one step further: Do the first move, As the opponent reacts, do the second move (in the opposing direction), And as the opponent reacts to that and overcorrects, go back to the first move. The logic for this is simple: First move — EASY TO COUNTER. Second move — HARDER TO COUNTER if followed right after the first move, but can still be done by a decent opponent. Back to the first move — QUITE A HEADACHE. Let’s look at a few examples. Example 1. Mount Escape 1.1 Try the Elbow Escape As part of the elbow escape (for the sake of the example, let’s say you are turning right), you have to turn a bit sideways and start bringing your head and your knee (on the side you are trying to escape) closer together. One of the most annoying and effective ways to counter this is a cross-face. As the top player uses the cross-face to straighten you up (towards your left) and move your head away from your knee, it is easy to give up on the elbow escape — because it has no chance of succeeding. And that is precisely what most people at white and blue belt levels do. But let’s think about what is the opponent giving you—the arm under your head. 1.2 Switch to Trap and Roll Now that your opponent can’t easily post, use your right hand to block the opponent’s arm under your head, trap his left foot with your right foot, and execute a bridge over your right shoulder. All of a sudden, your opponent has a different problem. Sometimes this is enough to reverse the position. But most of the time, the opponent (sometimes violently) pulls the arm from behind your head to post or raises the left leg to prevent the reversal. You failed. At Trap and Roll. Yes. But what opportunity opened up? Now there is a lot of space to work with on your right side. 1.3 Switch back to Elbow Escape! As the opponent counters the threat of reversal by trap and roll, you know have a lot more space than you had the first time you tried the elbow escape. This time, it is going to be significantly easier to execute it. Give it a try. Rather than just trying singular moves — which are easy to stop, once you connect the moves that have opposing directionality, things become very different. Suddenly you are practicing jiu-jitsu at a much higher level. Example 2. Butterfly Guard elevation 2.1 First attempt to elevate Get a 2 on 1 grip, let’s say on the opponent’s right arm. As you move your hips close and attempt to elevate, a decent opponent will resist. They may move their hips back, or use a cross-frame, but a frequent reaction is to move their upper body backward. Faced with this, a lot of people give up on trying to elevate. But look at how the opponent’s body is misaligned. 2.2 Switch to a push to takedown The second you see the opponent’s shoulders directly above the hips, or even behind the hips, stop pulling and start pushing. It is simple and very effective. People will just fall and you may score a takedown. However, if the opponent is agile and quick enough, they may recover their balance and use their arms on you to start leaning, or even pushing forward to prevent the takedown. Now the opponent’s head is moving ahead of the hips. What does that allow us to do? 2.3 Second attempt to elevate Switch to 2 on 1 again and make the second attempt to elevate. In my experience, this is when if you are not careful, your opponent may fly over your head. :) This is because, unlike your first attempt, here you are starting not from a static point where the opponent can relatively easily stop you, but from a situation where the opponent’s body is on a forward trajectory. Whether from here you enter into leglocks, take the back, or whatever else you are into — up to you. Do you see where I am going with this? Example 3. Triangle and Reverse Triangle 3.1 Triangle Say you have locked a triangle from the bottom. And while you can control the opponent’s posture, their frame is strong enough to provide space and they also don’t let you get the right angle by not letting you get to a perpendicular position. If you have already locked a triangle, be patient. You can try different things to tighten the lock, to get rid of the frame, to get the right angle. If all of it doesn’t work, let’s see how we can take advantage of precisely what makes it difficult to finish the triangle — the stubborn frame. 3.2 Switch to Reverse Triangle Remember, make sure you keep control of the head at all times. Now switch to Reverse Triangle. Once you do that, you change the direction of the attack. The very frame that was saving the opponent has suddenly become the problem. With the reverse triangle, you can attack a kimura, an armbar. The opponent will now focus on protecting the arm, radically changing the arm’s position. Often, the arm goes across, precisely where you were trying to get it in the previous step. I’m sure you know what comes next. :) 3.3 Switch back to Triangle As the opponent is trying to hide the arm, it is likely that the overcorrection will now make the regular triangle deadly. Swing back (make sure to control the posture!), switch to a regular triangle and you will, most likely, have a much easier time finishing the submission. Example 4. Single Leg X Sweep 4.1 Single Leg X sweep attempt So you get into the Single leg X position, wrapped around the opponent’s leg, your hips high, everything is tight. You try the sweep and the opponent shifts the weight the other way in order not to fall. In the process, the leg you are wrapped around becomes light, but sweeping is close to impossible. Problem? No. Opportunity. 4.2 Push in the opposite direction You could try a false reap, or try to attack with a heelhook, but let’s keep the feet where they are. Just push the opponent in the direction OPPOSITE to the direction of the original sweep attempt. If the opponent falls, great, get on top. But usually, the opponent will try to push back and will put the weight back on the leg that you are wrapped around. 4.3 Re-try the Single Leg X sweep As he opponent’s weight shifts back, it usually goes a tad too far. There is also the momentum of course. Now, try the sweep again and most of the time, you will find that it is much easier to make the opponent fall since you will go in the direction toward which the opponent’s body is already moving. Example 5. Snap-down and Takedown 5.1 Snap-down attempt Snap-downs are tough against an opponent of the same size and strength. But there is a good reason to try it — at the beginning of a BJJ match, both opponents’ bodies are bent forward to be ready for a potential takedown attempt. With the head far ahead of the hips, a snap-down is a real threat. But when you try a snap-down, there is an instinctive reaction where the opponent will try to stand straight and align the head and shoulders with the hips. This creates a new vulnerability — now the legs are accessible. 5.2 Double-leg takedown attempt As the opponent straightens up, feint a double leg takedown. You could fully commit, of course, that is another option. Once you feint, the opponent will immediately bend back down and aim to put arms low to protect the legs. Again, like in previous examples, the momentum and the overcorrection help you. 5.3 Second snap-down attempt Try a snap-down for the second time. This time you are far more likely to succeed as you will catch the opponent’s head during the downward motion. Be careful, because opponent can face plant into the mat — that’s how effective this can be. Whether you want to try the guillotine, attack the turtle, go to the back, your choice. ··· You can, of course, apply this to a wide array of different positions. You can also, instead of the 1–2–1 schema, go for 1–2–3, 1–2–1–3, or any other combination of moves that work for you and for the position you are working on. In fact, you should. If I know that all you do is 1–2–1, it will be progressively easier to defend it. This is just one option to expand your repertoire, you can add many others. The point I am trying to make is, don’t just go 1 and that’s it — anyone can counter that. Or 1–2, where most decent practitioners will be able to deal with this too. 1–2–1 is one of those things where you make a claim that you are serious about becoming an advanced practitioner of the art. Now. How to make it work? You have to drill it. No avoiding that. You drill it first, against a cooperative opponent. Then, when you get reasonably comfortable, try it in sparring against lower belts. Then try against the higher belts. Take the feedback and see how to improve. Maybe you need to adjust your grips. Maybe a slight change in body mechanics will help. Drill again. Try again in sparring. You can see from the examples, you don’t need to be a black belt to apply this method. And you will find that it works quite effectively even against higher belts. The reason it does — it overloads the opponent’s processing capacity. It also immediately elevates your level by helping connect different techniques into a coherent approach where one technique flows from another. We usually learn all techniques in relative isolation, so it needs work to connect things. Good luck!

History, Memorable Moments, and Lessons for PractitionersADCC 2022. Gordan Ryan is on top of the world. Source: Flograppling Launched in 1998, Abu Dhabi Combat Club — ADCC is today the greatest grappling tournament in the world. While wrestlers, judokas, MMA, and sambo practitioners, have traditionally competed in ADCC, it has always been seen as the prime arena for Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioners to display their skills. In this article, I want to give a quick overview of the ADCC history and some of the notable lessons for practitioners. The 1990s and Jean Jacques Machado The first few events in the late nineties saw notable wins by legends of the sport — Renzo Gracie, Royler Gracie, Jean Jacques Machado, Saulo Ribeiro, and others. One athlete worth attention is the nephew of Carlos Gracie (the older brother of Helio Gracie) — Jean Jacques Machado. He stands at the very origins of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and is known as the coach of Eddie Bravo and Joe Rogan. Perhaps the most incredible thing about Machado is that he has been able to compete at the highest levels of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu despite his disability — the amniotic band syndrome — he has only a thumb and a little finger on his left hand. While obviously affecting his grips and jiu-jitsu ability, it did not stop Machado from competing at the highest levels — he won the Brazilian national championship for 11 consecutive years (!), and made his mark on ADCC by winning his division in 1999. He then won silver in 2000 and silver again in the absolute division in 2001 with a total record of 11 wins and 4 losses. 9 of his wins are by submission, while all his losses are by points.Jean-Jacques Machado Eddie Bravo once remarked that Machado’s disadvantage forced him to develop an extremely strong overhook since he could not grip with his left hand. Jean Jacques Machado’s jiu-jitsu was far ahead of its time, so much so that his matches do not seem extremely old-style even today. In addition to all the classics of the Brazilian jiu-jitsu of his time, he used the seated guard and butterfly guard, sumi gaeshi sweep from butterfly guard, particularly combining side-to-side sweep threats and even using the shoulder crunch sweep that has been re-popularized by Gordon Ryan.Machado chokes his opponent out. ADCC 1999 final Quick Lesson for BJJ practitioners: Find a way to turn your disadvantages into advantages. Recall how Machado worked around his disability to build a strong overhook game.The 2000s and Marcelo Garcia The first decade of the 2000s saw the arrival of a new generation of champions — Roger Gracie, Marcelo Garcia, Ronaldo Jacare Souza, Demian Maia, Xande Ribeiro, Fabricio Werdum, and Braulio Estima. The fighter I want to highlight in this era is one of my favorites — Marcelo Garcia. One of the legends of no-gi grappling, Marcelo Garcia’s first ADCC was in 2003. Fun fact — Garcia actually did not make it through the trials, losing in the semi-finals. He was brought in as a late alternate and made the most of this opportunity. Competing in the -77kg category, Garcia went on to win gold in 2003 (defeating Renzo Gracie and Vitor Shaolin), 2005, and 2007. He won bronze in the absolute category in 2005, defeating Xande Ribeiro. He won silver in the absolute category in 2007. In 2009, he won silver in his weight class, only to come back to win his weight class again in 2011. Garcia thus won his weight class in 4 different ADCCs across almost a decade — an incredible achievement given the pace of evolution of jiu-jitsu. What is interesting is that at each ADCC, his game would include new elements that would puzzle his opponents and catch them unprepared. He also has an insane 89% submission rate! Shockingly, his submission rate in the absolute division where he almost always was much smaller than his opponents is 100%. Garcia’s record in ADCC is an incredible 27 wins and 5 losses.Don’t let that smile fool you. Garcia also made an important contribution to the development of the technical aspects of the sport. He made positions such as single-leg X-guard, X-guard, crucifix, and north-south mainstream, his arm drags, guillotines and back attacks continue to be dissected and studied to this day.The famous Marcelotine — Garcia’s version of the guillotine. Quick Lesson for BJJ practitioners: Find a way to continuously learn, grow and reinvent yourself. Whatever your level is, studying and exploring jiu-jitsu should never stop. Recall how Garcia constantly introduced new elements to his game which allowed him to keep winning ADCC after ADCC. The 2010s and Gordon Ryan As the second decade of the 2000s kicked in, Andre Galvao, Vinny Magalhaes, Rafael Mendes, Roberto Cyborg Abreu, JT Torres, and Marcus Buchecha Almeida heralded the arrival of the new guard, paving the way for arguably the first BJJ superstar. Enter Gordon Ryan. Hailed as the best no-gi grappler of all time, no one since Rickson Gracie has been universally recognized as the best of the best as much as Gordon Ryan. Ryan has won ADCC in 2017, 2019, and 2022 in three different weight classes with a stunning 73% submission rate. He is at a level where winning alone is not enough. Only submission is something he considers success. Ryan’s opponents seem proud of their achievement if they survive the match — dominated, but not submitted. After the 2022 ADCC, Ryan’s competition record as a black belt is an incredible 94 wins, 3 draws, and 5 losses. And his last loss was over 50 matches ago. Insane.The King. In terms of his jiu-jitsu game, Gordon Ryan represents Jon Danaher’s New Wave Jiu-Jitsu philosophy and is known for his extraordinary ashi-garami and leglocks game, guard, particularly open guard, guard passing, top pressure, and back attacks. You name it, Ryan excels at it. For a few years now, he rarely seems to be in danger — a testament to his excellent defense. He has also become bigger and physically stronger, which on top of his technical skills makes it all the more difficult for anyone to withstand his attacks. Quick Lesson for BJJ practitioners: Polish and sharpen your fundamentals, and build a comprehensive game focusing on high-percentage techniques. Most importantly, have a problem-solving approach to improving at jiu-jitsu. Recall how Gordon Ryan continuously improves even in the areas where he is considered to be world-class. He works on improving fundamentals as well as devising new techniques and strategies. Another important lesson from Ryan’s experience is — to find a quality instructor. As Ryan never forgets to mention, his coach Jon Danaher is the main reason for his achievements. Re-watching ADCC matches can be an excellent way to improve your level of jiu-jitsu. This is the cutting edge of no-gi jiu-jitsu. Watching and learning from matches is probably more valuable as you advance in your evolution since it can be difficult for white belts to understand what is going on in world-class matches. Here are ten matches to give you a taste of ADCC. These are some of my favorites, but there are, of course, many, many more. 2001 — Jean Jacques Machado vs Ricardo Arona 2003 — Marcelo Garcia vs Vitor Shaolin 2005 — Marcelo Garcia vs Rico Rodriguez 2003 — Eddie Bravo vs Royler Gracie 2005 — Roger Gracie vs Ronaldo Jacare Souza 2011 — Marcelo Garcia vs Kron Gracie 2013 — Kron Gracie vs Gary Tonon 2017 — Gordon Ryan vs Keenan Cornelius 2019 — Gordon Ryan vs Marcus Buchecha Almeida 2022 — Gordon Ryan vs Andre Galvao Enjoy! :)