The Gorilla Press, Issue 97

SBG Podcast #13 – Sport vs Street

February saw legendary SBG Coach Paul Sharp sit down for a discussion with SBG President Matt Thornton. The resulting podcast is an immense 90 minute conversation covering the street vs sport argument. Very few people have the extensive, real world martial arts and law enforcement experience Paul brings to the table, and in this interview, he discusses the reality that can be learned only as a BJJ black belt and self defense expert with decades of front-line law enforcement experience dealing with real threats on a daily basis.

This really is the definitive podcast for anyone interested in learning more about the Street vs. Sport myth in regards to self defense training. Be sure to watch!

New Video Podcast This Wednesday

From one SBG legend to another, this Wednesday the next SBG podcast is released, in which Matt Thornton sits down for an in depth chat with John Frankl! John Frankl has been a BJJ black belt for over 15 years, and was the man who introduced BJJ to South Korea, where he runs academies and teaches as a university professor. The combination of his great mind, ability to teach and profound understanding of BJJ will make this podcast one not to be missed! If you haven’t already, subscribe to the SBG Youtube page for all the latest videos!

SBG Moray Teen Makes History & On Local News

Shay Montague made history back in 2017 when he headed to the IBJJF World No Gi Championships and took gold back to his native Scotland. Last month, along with other athletes from SBG Moray, he featured in a news segment covering his achievement along with a basic introduction of BJJ to the general public. Congratulations to Shay and SBG Moray!

Eryk Anders Displays True Sportsmanship

After an incredible 10 fight win streak, Eryk Anders suffered his first loss last month. However, it wasn’t until headlining a UFC card in Brazil against MMA legend Lyoto Machida that that defeat would be tasted for the first time. Little can be taken from Anders, who fought impressively, and came up just short in a tight, split decision against one of the biggest names in the sport. Post-fight, Anders showed there were no hard feelings, catching up with Machida for an impromptu photo op back stage, in the process congratulating his opponent and thanking the welcoming Brazilian fans.

Eryk Anders Helping Cancer Survivor

On the same day Eryk Anders was schedule to take on Lyoto Machida in Brazil, he was also using his new-found fame for good. Anders auctioned off some of his UFC gear to the highest bidder in order to raise money for a young girl who had tragically lost her leg to bone cancer. The fundraiser was a huge success, raising the money needed, but donations are still being accepted. Details in the post below.

John Frankl Sharing His Knowledge

“When you’re rolling, only one of you should ever be comfortable…”

…When that roll is with SBG legend John Frankl, it’s unlikely that you’ll ever be the comfortable one! This photo was taken as Frankl shared more of his immense BJJ knowledge with the SBG Portland students during a recent seminar. After, he sat down with Matt Thornton to record the 14th SBG Podcast. To absorb knowledge, while remaining comfortable, watch that podcast from the couch this Wednesday!

Rory Singer Competes At BBJ Tournament

Many BJJ students choose never to compete. Many try competition and decide it isn’t for them. Others might reach a certain point, but once they advance, are fearful of the spotlight and the blow to the ego that may come with a loss in competition. SBG Athens Head Coach Rory Singer holds no such fears. The UFC veteran competed in a recent BJJ Masters competition and came up just short in his match. Regardless, he shared the video so that all could learn from it. After last year’s storming of the IBJJF Masters Worlds, it is awesome to see the mature gentlemen of SBG leading the way at the highest levels of competition. Great job, Coach Rory!

Coach Cane Prevost: Do This, Not That

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Coach Cane took to Facebook with two pieces of advice last month. This first; if SBG founder Matt Thornton is putting on a seminar at an SBG near you, be sure to attend. This year, he is working on closed guard, and like the revolutionary mount top work he did last year, it is sure to revolutionize your BJJ.

Second, if you want to get good at BJJ, watch Krav Maga videos online and don’t do any of the things demonstrated in said videos! Thanks for the sage advice, Coach Cane!

SBG Inverness In Local News

Congratulations to the team at SBG Inverness for making it into a full page spread of their local newspaper… not once but twice!

The Inverness Courier and the Highland News both featured the team ahead of an upcoming MMA contest.

SBG Inverness, which now boasts over 100 students, is at the crest of a growing wave of MMA popularity in the region. It is good to know the students of Inverness are being introduced to the sport the right way!

Max Garrison TBT Highlights

FCFF’s “Fighter to Watch in 2018” and SBG Portland’s very own Max Garrison featured in a short highlight reel from his January unanimous decision victory over Khelsey Lyday. The victory was his second amateur win, and the tribe is excited to see more highlight-worthy footage in the near future!

SBG Spring Camp Almost Full!

The SBG Spring Camp in Athens, GA is a mere three weeks away and filling up fast! If you haven’t registered yet, be sure to do so. Early bird pricing flew away this weekend, but the value is still incredible, and reviews for SBG camps are always stellar. Sign up now for the best weekend of BJJ, MMA and self defense training you could possible hope for!

Jesse Brock On The Pro Edge Podcast

SBG Idaho’s Jesse Brock sat down in February with the new Pro Edge podcast. Over the course of nearly two hours, Jesse discusses his long fight career, from wrestling at Boise State and through 30+ professional MMA bouts. It is an incredible story and worth listening to!

Glyn Powditch & Rickson on The Street vs Sport Debate

Rickson Gracie has relatively increased his presence in the past year or so in the BJJ world, and as he does so he has become outspoken on matters of sport BJJ and the importance of ensuring a focus of fundamental BJJ for self defence. This has sparked a debate throughout the BJJ world. In the post above SBG’s Glyn Powditch criticized those who seem to be misinterpreting Gracie’s comments.

For those who may believe the opinion of one of the greatest fighters of all time is becoming outdated, they need only read son Kron Gracie’s account of his last roll with his aging father to know traditional, Gracie jiu jitsu, and it’s main exponent, still have their place.

Matt Thornton On ‘The Process’

In one Facebook post, SBG Founder Matt Thornton succinctly captures again what makes SBG’s approach so unique, and critical to its success. The focus on fundamentals not only teaches what is most important regardless of delivery system, it also allows for each student to find their own unique style, based on their body, mind and temperament.

Coach Cane On His Modified 3 P Method

Coach Cane Prevost once said that a thing he enjoyed about being a black belt was the fact that it allowed the freedom to dive into subjects at greater depth than ever before. Cane has certainly taken full advantage of that, this month releasing a new blog post that comes on the back of content he has been working through since a Rickson Gracie seminar from nearly a year ago!

In his latest post, Coach Cane discusses the concept of “Connection”, and how that fits into the 3 P Model for BJJ he has been teaching previously. Posture > Connection > Pressure > Possibilities is now the requirement, with the importance of appreciating how bodies are connected once posture is achieved being essential to success. Read this post, alongside his previous post on ‘Connection’ itself, for a fascinating high level look at how BJJ works.

Coach Cane On Tournament BJJ & Fundamentals

Coach Cane returned to the keyboard to share his thoughts on a recent video doing the rounds online of young competitors, one of whom pulled an inverted guard before submitting his opponent with a heel hook in a local tournament.

The video (in the blog post) has received some praise but also much criticism, especially from old school BJJ practitioners who hold it up as an example of the problems of sport BJJ. Coach Cane discusses the issue as a teacher of the art, quoting fellow SBG black belt, coach and teacher John Frankl, and has interesting thoughts on where these elements of the game fit in. Be sure to give it a read!

Matt Thornton’s SBG Australia seminar

Another SBG first occurred this February as SBG President Matt Thornton flew out to Australia to give his latest seminar. The Australian seminar now means that SBG, and Matt’s incredible mount top material, are now available on every continent except Antarctica! Matt shared both his mount top game and his latest material from closed guard with the welcoming Aussies, and had this to share about how the seminar had taught him more about the material and how to present it:

“I’ve been teaching my closed guard curriculum in Portland for the last four months. Last weekend in Australia was the first time I spent an entire day taking one group through it. I always find things to change and modify. Not the techniques, but the progressions, the order it’s presented in, which I’ve always found important; as well as the emphasis. Some things being more essential, others less. This process will continue every time I teach the course, from the cliff notes preview at the upcoming Spring Camp, to the seminar after, and the one after that. It never ends. Every time I teach it I’ll learn a little bit more about the closed guard. Every time I teach it I’ll be reminded that when it comes to the depth of fundamentals in Jiu-Jitsu, I’m still very much a white belt. And I love it.”

SBG Student, Cate Harris, On Her SBG Transformation

Join The SBG Ladies League

Are you a lady? Yes. Are you a member of the SBG tribe? Yes. Great! Then join the SBG Ladies League Facebook group! The group is already over 200 members strong, and is a place for SBG ladies from the world over to build, support and grow together. Join now!

Dustin Driver – “Bonkers for BJJ”

SBG Portland student and tech writer Dustin Driver turned his writing abilities to a new-found passion this past month when he wrote a piece on BJJ for Medium. Dustin tells the story of how he found a fascination for BJJ at SBG Portland, during a time in his life where he needed a new challenge and something to get him out of his comfort zone. Contrary to the aggressive, macho image some may expect of a BJJ and MMA gym, Dustin found a close bond and fun camaraderie while learning how to choke his classmates to death; an experience that will ring true for many who have tried BJJ and fallen in love with the art.

Hopefully at least a few of Dustin’s followers, many of whom will not be familiar with BJJ, will now feel comfortable walking into an academy near them, and finding a new passion themselves…

Matt Thornton On Who You Surround Yourself With

“First generation immigrant and self-made billionaire Elon Musk, just inspired a generation, and in doing so said: “We’re doing ok for a bunch of monkeys. Humanity rocks!” And he does. And then we have this.

Same planet? Yes and no. There’s enough sadness out there. But I found watching this helpful. Maybe some of you will too.

Check out the laughing, the smiling, the selfies, observe the behavior carefully for the entirety of the clip. They are filming themselves in it because they actually think it’s cool. Think about what these people are doing with the precious life they’ve been given. Think about what they find funny, or fun. Think about where the majority of them will be in ten, twenty, thirty years.

Karl Tanswell Honored In Title Defence

SBG’s Karl Tanswell was honored after SBG Manchester’s George Smith defended his Cage Warriors title last week. In the post-fight interview George took a moment to dedicate his performance to Karl and say that he had felt a duty to perform for him, and all at the SBG Manchester gym. Karl Tanswell died a few short weeks ago and it is an emotional time for the team at SBG Manchester. It has been tough for the tribe globally too, as Karl Tanswell’s reach as one of the early members of SBG meant he was influential across the organization as a whole.

Karl Tanswell’s impact was felt far and wide. Here he is the inspiration for a new piece of artwork commissioned by a former student. His influence, not on BJJ or MMA, but on the hearts of his family, friends and students will live on with each of those he touched. Karl held all the values of a truly special SBG tribe member and was loved by all. He will be sorely missed.