





Since I started BJJ, I’ve always dreamed of becoming a black belt competing at the highest level and win my matches by submissions. It is one of the hardest things a BJJ competitor can do; Everyone's skill level is very close at the black belt level.

My submission percentage has increased a lot over the past two years. My chances for a submission improve as I develop my control and understanding of BJJ further – 16 years in and I’m still learning every day. . Instead of focusing on getting the submission, I am focused on trying to win positions during the match. I believe that if you win the positions, you will get closer to the submission. Little by little your opponent will leave you openings that you can take advantage of.

For example, getting the submission right in the beginning of the match is difficult. The match is probably still tight on points. Your opponent is likely still fresh. He is going to give everything he has to avoid tapping to you. However, once you get a sweep or break his defenses, it becomes much easier to get the submission. Your opponent will open up the game to try to escape, and you will have a much better chance to catch him.

Everyone who competes at the highest level is there to win, nobody is there to lose. If you can dominate your opponent and score points first, little by little he will start trying all he can to win. He or she will start making mistakes. As a result, they will give you various opportunities to get the submission.

For example, in my last tournament Pan-Ams 2016, the match started pretty tough. I started losing by 2 points, and my opponent played a very aggressive game. If I tried the submission at the beginning of the match, I would probably not get it. He was winning, and he would try all he could to do to avoid tapping.

Instead of the submission, I focused on trying to dominate the positions. I got a sweep, and I stayed on top for as much as I needed. Eventually, he made mistakes. Once I got on his side, I went to his back. Even though I was already winning by points, I was still hard pressed to get the submission. In my opponent's mind, he still believed he could turn the match into a win.

Once again, I focused 100% on controlling the position that I had. My goal was to stay on top and in control of the match, not giving him any room to move. Little by little I was progressing on the positions, getting the mount. Then I got his back again, came back to the mount. Little by little, I started to feel that the submission was getting closer. Suddenly I found his neck opened, and I went straight to the choke.

The key is control of the position. I like submissions that allow you to keep control of the position even if you miss. For example, when the match is even the only submission I try is the knee bar. It is my favorite way of passing the guard and the over under passing. I know I have nothing to lose in trying it. And it pays off too. In my last 14 matches, I got 14 wins and 13 submissions. In my last 25 matches, I got 24 wins and one loss. Eighteen of the wins were by submission. The key to this control is focus. Specifically- focusing on the control instead of the submission. By focusing on control, the submission eventually follows.

Training for this strategy can be a challenge. Nowadays I think I'm getting more submissions in tournaments than in training. People don't care too much about winning or losing in training. Even if you pass the guard and get the mount, your partner still closed and waiting the right moment to escape. In tournaments, everyone wants to win. Once you start to control the match, they will take risks to try to gain the upper hand. As the match progresses, they start going all or nothing.

It takes time to draw your opponent out for a successful submission. That is why I don't agree too much with this "Submissions Only" tournament. It is not really "Submission Only." It can come to a draw when the time limit runs out. I believe that if you want to see submission only, you have to take out the time limit.

I know that it would be hard to make an event like this, but that is the reality. "Submission only" is only submission only if there is not a time limit. Sooner or later someone will have to tap or give up. In comparison, a BJJ tournament with points will have more submissions than a tournament with a time limit. Nobody wants to lose, and they will open up the game to try to win.

That's my opinion about submissions in BJJ tournaments. I hope you guys enjoyed it. You can check out more of my blog posts at www.bjjfanatics.com/blog