SBG University – The Importance of Isolation

SBGU has launched, along side the SBG Archieve. This massive and ever growing libary of over 500 videos is now avallible around the world. Visit SBGU  [Click Here] for more details. In this short video, available along with a huge amount of varied content at SBG University, SBG President Matt Thornton discusses the importance of Isolation in the BJJ training method. Isolation, drilling positionally against increasing resistance, is the only way to fully understand all the positions and possibilities available in BJJ. It allows new techniques to be tested against a variety of different skill levels and body types, and for it to be incorporated into a student’s arsenal, instead of bypassing the majority in favor of a limited A game.

Matt Thornton took his approach to SBG Norcal this month, where he hosted another of his seminars on the fundamentals of closed guard. As usual, the seminar was game-changing:

“3 days, 10 hours of focused training on a fundamental position of Jiu Jitsu, closed guard. The improvements were measured and obvious. Athletes were able to understand and perform better! Matt’s approach to Jiu Jitsu transcends sport vs street, gi vs no-gi, as he only focuses on the fundamentals that an athlete needs to know regardless of the rules or environment. Thank you Matt! ~This is SBG, you’ll be ok”

Make sure to check out SBGU, even if you can’t enroll there are still some free videos and promo’s on SBGU that are not to be missed.

P.s. keep your eye on SBGU as this is the platform for the up and coming  release of Matt’s “Mastering the mount” instructional series. Fifteen video lessons all around twenty to thirty minutes long, breaking down all of Matt’s Mount material.

Coach Cane Prevost: What Happens In Jiu Jitsu

“There is a camaraderie that happens in jiu jitsu that is unique and primal. We are descended from tree swinging primates and this creative play of domination/ submission grappling has been going on long before we had language. It is a way of creating unity and cohesion in the tribe while allowing us to find playful and creative ways of expressing our aggressive tendencies.

When you roll with someone for hundreds of hours you know them in ways that can’t be experienced any other way. There is a bond there that goes beyond words. There are people who I intimately know by their movement. There is a physical communication that happens that includes questions, call and response, emotional and rational movements. It’s as complex as language because it pre dates it. I’ve logged many hundreds of hours of these primal conversations and the bonds I’ve developed with those whose movements I know as well as the sound of their voice mean a great deal to me. This is what tribe means to me.”

Charity Seminar ‘Breaking Barriers’ in Reno

SBG Reno helped a charity seminar entitled Breaking Barriers in the month of June, and this seminar was a very special one indeed. The seminar welcomed elite BJJ coaches from around Nevada, regardless of gym affiliation, to take part in the three hour spectacle, all to raise money for one special kid.

Breaking Barriers sought to raise money for Ben Anderson, an eight year old boy diagnosed with a rare terminal genetic brain disease called X-link cerebral ALD earlier this year. 100% of the donations from the seminar when to supporting Ben and his family.

Among those teaching at the seminar were SBG’s own Ray Price, Jason Swanson, a third degree black belt from Charles Gracie, Scott Fritzinger from Guerilla BJJ and Arturo Espinoza from Atos Jiu Jitsu. Thank you to all from teaching and arranging this wonderful event, and everyone who attended and donated to the cause.

SBG Ireland Wins At IMMAF European Championships

The IMMAF European Championships took place in June, with amateur MMA fighters from around Europe representing their country against other nations. Team Ireland were led by SBG’s Liam Griffin, and included five SBG athletes. Here is Coach Liam’s report of a remarkable team performance:

“Team Ireland had a fantastic week with 3 Gold, 2 Silver and 6 Bronze overall. It was a pleasure and an honour to be part of the campaign. I’d go to war with that team any day of the week.

From our own crew, we had 5 athletes, who worked their asses off to wear that Irish flag and they left everything they had inside the cage. As a coach, I’m filled with pride for their progression and performances. The big man (Ryan Spillane) has overcome set back after set back over the past 18 months to clear out his division with 2 first round finishes against previous IMMAF medalists.

Back home, I’m forever grateful to the rest of the tribe who pulled together to keep the wheels on the bus for the week, between covering classes, cornering other fighters and generally keeping SBG Cork awesome. Thank you to everyone who supported the fight team with fundraising and sponsorship, support and best wishes. Every cent and positivity was felt and appreciated.

MMA may be an individual sport once the cage door is bolted but outside of those 3x3minutes rounds, it’s a family project all the way.

One Tribe”

Mark Fisher On The Pride Open Mat

Once a year, SBG Portland has been hosting an open mat in support of the LGBTQ+ community, welcoming those in and in support of the community, and allowing them a chance to practice BJJ and socialize. In response to criticism about the necessity of such an event from some corners of the internet, SBG black belt Mark Fisher shared his view on the subject and eloquently outlines why such events are a positive for all:

“Apologies for length:

One of my friends posted something on reddit today soliciting recommendations for LGBTQ+ friendly gyms that might be willing to host a bunch of LGBTQ+ folks for a camp.
The immediate response from everyone on Reddit was, “why is this needed? Equality should be the goal!”. I think I’d like to post my two cents here.

1). The question my friend asked was NOT, “do you think this is needed?”. Consider Grice’s Maxims flouted.
2) I absolutely understand why this might seem to the casual reader that this request is “otherizing” or divisive. But consider this:
Men married to women, do you occasionally like the idea of a, “guy’s night out”? Women married to men, do you occasionally like the idea of a, “girl’s night out”? Women who train (even at elite levels), does the idea of rolling with other women in a dedicated class occasionally appeal to you?

If you answered, “yes” to any of these questions, you get it. Does this mean that you dislike spending time with your wife/husband/male training partners? Of course not! That is insane.

Now imagine, if you would, for just one second that you’ve spent most of your life reading books where the love interests don’t share your orientation. The movies you watch invariably involve lovers who don’t share your orientation. The people around you are comfortable sharing small affections in public without inviting negative or positive reactions (even though the latter is great!) because they don’t share your orientation. You spent your younger life obsessing and worrying about this. You spent literal decades trying to blend in. Especially if you were involved in athletics.

And now that you’re proud of who you are and you’ve found others like you and for five fucking minutes out of the year, you want to share mat space with people who share your orientation or part of your experience, people’s only question is, “why are you trying to be different from us?”.

Does this help explain why?

I guess I’m not really inviting discussion here because I’m so tired of talking about this. It comes up like clockwork every few months. It divides even LGBTQ+ folks.

If it still doesn’t make sense, that’s ok! Some people don’t need a, “guy’s night out” or a, “girl’s night out”. That’s cool. I’m just trying to extend that branch of understanding with what I hope is a useful analogy.”

Coach Cane Prevost On Tribe

SBG Portland black belt and coach Cane Prevost shared some great thoughts on the importance of tribe last month. Tribe is a recurring theme at SBG, and rightly so, as it is the reason that SBG has been able to grow into a worldwide family of students who improve each others’ lives. In much the same way that the SBG ironman belt promotion symbolizes the role each tribe member plays in the path to promotion, so to, Coach Cane points out, the belt belongs not just to you, but your tribe as a whole:

“Tribe matters. Your belt is 20% yours and 80% your tribes. Don’t ever forget that. If we are not careful we can think that we did it all on our own. My belt belongs to my coach for showing me the way. It belongs to my peers for giving me an example of how to progress. It belongs to my students for keeping me engaged in the learning process. It belongs to the extended tribe for sharing ideas, techniques, concepts, and principles across continents. My Jiu Jitsu is not mine alone. Only a small part of it is mine. That’s why it is my responsibility to care for it and share it freely with my tribe. That’s why I will never forget that responsibility and honor. “Leave your ego at the door” means not attaching too strongly to outcomes on the mat. It also means not forgetting the role that others have played in your development and passing that on. The tribe grows individually together. Every member has an important role to play and we should never forget that. Make everyone else around you good and your game will take care of itself. Each of us owns a small part of everyone else’s game and it’s our responsibility to nurture it. We collectively own the Jiu Jitsu knowledge of SBG. It is ours and not mine or yours. That is the power of tribe.”

Christ Haueter Seminar At SBG Portland

“Guard pulling is like masturbation. We all do it. But if you’re proud of it, you’re a f’ing sicko.” – Chris Haueter

The month of June ended with a particularly special event at the SBG HQ in Portland, as the grand-father of SBG himself, Chris Haueter, came to town for a two day seminar. Haueter is one of the first Americans to receive a BJJ black belt; one of the original “Dirty Dozen”. He is also Matt Thornton’s coach, and presented the SBG President with his purple, brown and black belts decades ago.

Haueter is an immense figure in the history of SBG and also of jiu jitsu in America more generally, having been there since the start and having watched its rise in popularity through to today.

His depth of knowledge, sharp wit and entertaining anecdotes make every visit he makes to the SBG HQ special, and as always, his seminar left students, from white belt through to black, with improved games.

Haueter on the SBG Podcast

During his stay in Portland, SBG was lucky enough for Chris Haueter to sit down with his pupil and SBG President, Matt Thornton. The conversation was recorded for the 19th episode of the SBG Podcast.

In the podcast, the pair tackle the subject of teaching style, and how it has evolved over the decades of experience that the two have amassed. They also dive into Haueter’s wealth of knowledge, discussing his history in Southern California, training with the Gracies, and the jiu jitsu debates of the time that still persist today.

Henry Akins Due To Visit SBG Portland

To any and all SBG’s or fan of SBG on the west coast this seminar is NOT to be missed. Registration will be limited so contact Zach or Justin ASAP to register.

John Kavanagh on Grappling

“It’s hard to argue that wrestling’s not the core sport for MMA. Which is older, wrestling or taekwondo? Taekwondo’s a generation old, yet we call that a traditional martial art. Wrestling is THE traditional martial art…”–John Kavanagh

The Death of A Celebrity BJJ Student, Anthony Bourdain

You made the world a little smarter. You will be missed, Chef.