Matt Trejo: Blast from the PAST!

Where does time go? This photo was taken almost 14 years ago after Matt Trejo won 2nd place in full-contact continuous fighting at the Canadian Open Martial Arts Championship in October 2004. One of the most exciting things about this particular division, however, was that Matt was a Green Belt in American Kenpo, and all other competitors were black belts. Matt took 2nd place in a very close final match, and really dominated one of his fights against a high-ranking Kung-Fu expert.

Today, I am 43 and Matt is 34. I'm totally fine with that, but don't we look the same age in the picture? I think I've aged!

Crossing your feet from the back mount

As a jiu jitsu practitioner, you need to avoid crossing your feet from the back mount. Crossing your feet allows your foot to get broken through the use of a figure-four foot-lock. In general, if the opponent's left foot is crossed on top, we use our left (top) foot to wrap over their foot (not ankle), before using our other leg to apply the figure-four position.

Establishing your back mount hooks from the turtle position

If your opponent is in the turtle position and you are having a tough time getting your hooks in on the opponent's legs, punches to the head, submission attempts to the neck, and spreading the opponent's base are three methods which should allow you to get your hooks in.

Strong side vs. weak side back mount

When you take someone's back and you have back mount control, falling to the over-hooked arm (strong side) generally means your control is not as strong, although it's better for chokes. Conversely, falling to the under-hooked arm (weak side) means that your control is better. Also, falling to the under-hooked arm means that you not only have chokes, but arm isolation techniques, triangles, and arm locks.

Single or double leg takedown?

Generally speaking, it's best to go for a single leg takedown when an opponent is in a wider and lower stance because it's more challenging to drive in and get both legs since the opponent's rear leg is too far back. Conversely, when the opponent is in a more narrow stance and is relatively upright, a double leg takedown works well.

When to go for a takedown

An ideal time to try to take your opponent to the ground is when they are striking because the weight transfers to their front foot which makes it more easily accessible for a grab. It is much more difficult to take someone to the ground when their weight on their feet is light and equally balanced, without any transfer of weight to their front foot.

Defending against a club

If someone is approaching you with a club in their hand, one of the best moves to do before the opponent has a chance to swing at you is to charge in and clinch them. If, however, this is not possible, and the opponent swings at you with a typical forehand strike, shuffle back, then charge in and clinch them on their backhand strike, similar to the American kenpo technique Returning Storm.