I just wrote this as a Facebook Note and thought it might be worth sharing here 
Like some other MMA fighters, I’ve had some pretty good success taking up BJJ. The wrestling, competitive mindset and physical conditioning from MMA are big advantages when competing in BJJ. However, I’ve seen other MMA guys struggle, despite being very good grapplers. Here are my tips for bridging the gap between MMA and BJJ but I’m going to make some assumptions:
Embrace BJJ
Like any new sport, if you want to improve, it will help you to fall in love with it. You wear a gi, you can’t hit people, you can’t slam them and leg locks are very limited. Yes I know you think guard pulling is lame and you’d just punch or slam them. And yes, I also know that you think the gi reliant guards have little to no cross over to any other sport. Suck it up and understand that people WILL jump guard and WILL use the gi to tie you up and if you aren’t prepared for it, at best you’ll spend your match stuck there defending chokes and lose by referee decision. But if you do embrace it, you’ll find it a really fun, creative and challenging sport.
Get a coach
This may sound obvious to some but there are plenty of guys who just want to have a go at BJJ who don’t have a coach. And I get it, because BJJ can be expensive and time consuming. It’s a commitment. But imagine it the other way around, a BJJ player trying to fight MMA without coaching. They’d likely be obliterated (maybe a future topic). And so will you in BJJ if you don’t get proper guidance. Try to attend classes to learn the BJJ techniques and to roll with people who have good experience in BJJ.
Guard passing
You’d think the biggest difference between MMA and BJJ would be the gi but IMHO the lack of strikes is a significantly bigger factor. As MMA fighters, sitting in guard isn’t really a problem as we punch, elbow and generally smash our way through. The legs open and a simple scramble gets us past the guard, as our opponent has no gi to hold on to and is busy defending shots. Not the case in BJJ.
You really need a guard passing system. There are a few out there and different strategies suit different people but at least have a strategy. Having a number of passing techniques and just switching between them doesn’t really cut it in BJJ, where the guard is a very strong position. Focus on your technical guard passing and your success will sky rocket. Work on splitting a closed guard and then passing a basic open guard. As you progress, you’ll want strategies for the specific guards, such as butterfly, spider, DLR, lasso etc. You don’t have to learn to use them and your no gi MMA guard skills will work but you must at least understand the different guards so that you can deal with them.
Takedowns for BJJ
Again, the gi isn’t the biggest factor here. Yes you should learn some gripping strategies but your wrestling from MMA should go a long way. I have found BJJ takedowns are closer to wrestling than to Judo, despite the kimono. You can stiff arm people to negate throws somewhat and you are allowed to shoot for legs.
A more important point is dealing with guard jumpers/pullers. You need to be aware that this is VERY common in BJJ comps and I’d say that over half my opponents have pulled guard on me. Try to avoid the guard altogether and definitely have a method for splitting a closed guard. If you can get your shot off and score 2 points, it puts pressure on your opponent, as they MUST sweep or submit you. Be warned that stalling in guard will rack up penalties though.
Compete a lot
I try to compete at least once a month. The experience is invaluable. BJJ comps are quite different to MMA. They are usually very well organised, you don’t cut weight, there is no pressure of risking a record and you don’t have to worry about opponents pulling out, as there will be other people to fight. Everyone is very friendly, there’s no beer getting thrown and the medals are really big By that token, don’t turn up to a BJJ comp with a shitty attitude. Give a fist bump before your matches and don’t mean mug people or you’ll miss out on a huge aspect of BJJ.
Gi chokes
There are quite a few new chokes to know but in all honesty, they aren’t THAT much of an issue. Yes you can be submitted if your opponent mounts you or has your back but that’s nothing new. If you’re in an opponent’s closed guard, the basic cross choke can be killer, as well as a few others but good posture and simply preventing them getting grips will go a long way. Learn the basic chokes such as cross choke, baseball bat, rear collar chokes and Ezekiel.
Hopefully this provides some useful insight. I’m happy to answer questions on what I specifically do for each of these topics but they may not be the best strategies for you personally, which is why I have left them pretty generic.
Like some other MMA fighters, I’ve had some pretty good success taking up BJJ. The wrestling, competitive mindset and physical conditioning from MMA are big advantages when competing in BJJ. However, I’ve seen other MMA guys struggle, despite being very good grapplers. Here are my tips for bridging the gap between MMA and BJJ but I’m going to make some assumptions:
- You have decent takedowns
- You have decent basic submissions (armbar, triangle, RNC, kimura, guillotine etc)
- You have decent escapes
- You can use the guard
Embrace BJJ
Like any new sport, if you want to improve, it will help you to fall in love with it. You wear a gi, you can’t hit people, you can’t slam them and leg locks are very limited. Yes I know you think guard pulling is lame and you’d just punch or slam them. And yes, I also know that you think the gi reliant guards have little to no cross over to any other sport. Suck it up and understand that people WILL jump guard and WILL use the gi to tie you up and if you aren’t prepared for it, at best you’ll spend your match stuck there defending chokes and lose by referee decision. But if you do embrace it, you’ll find it a really fun, creative and challenging sport.
Get a coach
This may sound obvious to some but there are plenty of guys who just want to have a go at BJJ who don’t have a coach. And I get it, because BJJ can be expensive and time consuming. It’s a commitment. But imagine it the other way around, a BJJ player trying to fight MMA without coaching. They’d likely be obliterated (maybe a future topic). And so will you in BJJ if you don’t get proper guidance. Try to attend classes to learn the BJJ techniques and to roll with people who have good experience in BJJ.
Guard passing
You’d think the biggest difference between MMA and BJJ would be the gi but IMHO the lack of strikes is a significantly bigger factor. As MMA fighters, sitting in guard isn’t really a problem as we punch, elbow and generally smash our way through. The legs open and a simple scramble gets us past the guard, as our opponent has no gi to hold on to and is busy defending shots. Not the case in BJJ.
You really need a guard passing system. There are a few out there and different strategies suit different people but at least have a strategy. Having a number of passing techniques and just switching between them doesn’t really cut it in BJJ, where the guard is a very strong position. Focus on your technical guard passing and your success will sky rocket. Work on splitting a closed guard and then passing a basic open guard. As you progress, you’ll want strategies for the specific guards, such as butterfly, spider, DLR, lasso etc. You don’t have to learn to use them and your no gi MMA guard skills will work but you must at least understand the different guards so that you can deal with them.
Takedowns for BJJ
Again, the gi isn’t the biggest factor here. Yes you should learn some gripping strategies but your wrestling from MMA should go a long way. I have found BJJ takedowns are closer to wrestling than to Judo, despite the kimono. You can stiff arm people to negate throws somewhat and you are allowed to shoot for legs.
A more important point is dealing with guard jumpers/pullers. You need to be aware that this is VERY common in BJJ comps and I’d say that over half my opponents have pulled guard on me. Try to avoid the guard altogether and definitely have a method for splitting a closed guard. If you can get your shot off and score 2 points, it puts pressure on your opponent, as they MUST sweep or submit you. Be warned that stalling in guard will rack up penalties though.
Compete a lot
I try to compete at least once a month. The experience is invaluable. BJJ comps are quite different to MMA. They are usually very well organised, you don’t cut weight, there is no pressure of risking a record and you don’t have to worry about opponents pulling out, as there will be other people to fight. Everyone is very friendly, there’s no beer getting thrown and the medals are really big
By that token, don’t turn up to a BJJ comp with a shitty attitude. Give a fist bump before your matches and don’t mean mug people or you’ll miss out on a huge aspect of BJJ.Gi chokes
There are quite a few new chokes to know but in all honesty, they aren’t THAT much of an issue. Yes you can be submitted if your opponent mounts you or has your back but that’s nothing new. If you’re in an opponent’s closed guard, the basic cross choke can be killer, as well as a few others but good posture and simply preventing them getting grips will go a long way. Learn the basic chokes such as cross choke, baseball bat, rear collar chokes and Ezekiel.
Hopefully this provides some useful insight. I’m happy to answer questions on what I specifically do for each of these topics but they may not be the best strategies for you personally, which is why I have left them pretty generic.
