[First published in 2010. Scroll down for plain text.]
Raphael Abi-Rihan teaches an all-around lesson on
innovative methods to improve your guard passing
Black belt Raphael Abi-Rihan had a formidable 2009. The Grandmaster Carlson Gracie disciple crowned himself Bra zilian and Rio Open International champion in grand style.
A Jiu-Jitsu working man, Abi-Rihan gave Gustavo Aragão’s lens a
week’s worth of guard passing lessons, one of the great triumphs
of the aggressive game characteristic of his Jiu-Jitsu.
In so doing, he spares no creativity and presents a lone and
in-team effort. To finish, no less than five passes, the last of which
comes with a two-finish filling. Make the best of it and further
your game.
DAY 1
Exercise 1 – To start we aim at improving balance. Kneel on the
Swiss ball, raise your torso till erect and keep your balance.
Exercise 2 – Also kneeling on the Swiss ball, switch grips on your
training partner’s lapel, keeping your balance throughout.
Exercise 3 – In the final balance exercise, start with your knees on
the Swiss ball. One leg after the other, stand on the ball and work
on your balance.
DAY 2
Exercise 4 – The second day of activities shall be dedicated to
simulating important guard-passing movements. To start, begin
the exercise on your knees with your fists resting on the mat. Use
the support of your fists to leap forward and land standing with
your legs bent.
Exercise 5 – Again start on your knees, with one hand open-palmed
and the other in a fist. Next, raise your right leg and then stand.
Exercise 6 – On the ground, begin the exercise seated with one leg backwards and
the other forwards. Carry out the movement
raising both legs and ending in the initial
position.
DAY 3
Exercise 7 – On day three, have a training partner
help you to carry out the exercises. To begin, in your
opponent’s closed guard, take hold of the lapel and
raises your body like in exercise 5, keeping your left
leg in front of your adversary’s right arm.
Exercise 8 – On the ground, this exercise works on using pressure
and balance to stabilize the guard pass in side control. With your
arms behind you, keep the weight of your body over your opponent
and prevent attempts at escape.
Exercise 9 – Begin the exercise already in side control and perfect your
spin from one side to the other to practice positional control on both sides.
DAY 4
Position 1 – On class day four, he teaches two pass positions using the knee. In the first, grab the opponent’s lapel and raise your
body. Standing, open the guard and kneel over the adversary’s left
leg. Follow through with the motion and pass guard, landing in
side control.
Position 2 – In the opponent’s closed guard, grab a hold of the
adversary’s belt and move you body backwards to open up space
to open the guard. Bring your left knee forward and position it over
the opponent’s left thigh, passing. Secure the position with a grip
on the opponent’s left sleeve and land at his side.
DAY 5
Position 3 – Two more guard passing techniques. First, take hold
of the lapel and the opponent’s left sleeve. Raise your body and open
the guard, putting in your knee to force the pass over your training
partner’s left leg. Applying pressure, make it to the side controlling
the opponent’s left sleeve.
Position 4 – Again in closed guard, grab the opponent’s gi pants
at the waist line and distance your body to open up room. With your
right arm, pressure the opponent’s left leg and open the guard. Next,
sink grips in the back of the opponent’s gi and stack him. During
the stack, move to one of the sides and land in side control.
DAY 6
Position 5 – To close out the class week, a pass with two submission possibilities. In the opponent’s closed guard, sink a grip on
the lapel and another on the left sleeve. Raise your torso and open
the guard pushing away the adversary’s right knee, pressuring to
land with your head between the opponent’s legs and moving to
the right side till landing in side control.
Submission 1 – From side control, wrap up the left arm from under
the opponent’s neck and leap to the opposite side of the opponent,
squeezing out the arm and neck choke.
Submission 2 – In side control, when the opponent tries to create space pushing away your face with his arm, trap it and attack
with a kimura.