MMA Combination 7 and the Z-Guard (diary entry)

03.03.2022 Wednesday night's junior MMA focused on the seventh of our series of MMA combinations. Again, I addressed maintaining an active and effective guard throughout the transitioning as well as a balanced stance. Jab - cross - switch-kick - jab - cross - switch-stance - right hook - double-leg shoot We then finished 2 x 2 minute rounds of MMA sparring. The senior submission class continued our work with the rubber guard. This time we looked at setting up the guard as well as some revision on the gogoplata. We decided to move matters back to the set up and began with the Z-guard. This guard always looked like a hybrid between the half-guard and butterfly guard to me. I didn't realise at the time that it was a type of guard when I first learned techniques from the position in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. The Z-guard uses a single inside leg hook, as you would find in butterfly guard and knee/shin shield as you might use from half-guard or from full guard when attempting a scissor sweep. From this position, the fighter sets a trap by pressing with the shield. He then removes the shield enticing the opponent to squash and get a single underhook. This allows the fighter now have an underhook/overhook position required for setting up the rubber guard. After removing the shield, the fighter should put on a lockdown and stiff arm the other leg beginning what Eddie Bravo calls "the battle of the knee". The opponent is prompted to move his stiffed knee inwards to his other knee. Here the fighter switches to a conventional half-guard position before wriggling the inside hook out and prompting the opponent to shift back. From here the fighter achieves "the catch", sitting up with the under-hook/over-hook hold in place and can transition to the rubber guard. The lesson was finished 2 x 5 minute rounds of guard sparring, starting from the Z-guard. https://clubbchimera.com/services/