Rafael Mendes: Why He Wins

Rafael Mendes is one of the greatest lightweight BJJ competitors in the world….but why?

So a few years ago, one of my instructors, Dan Faggella, put a video together on why he thinks Rafael Mendes wins. Now Dan, being the super analytic jiu jitsu nerd and BJJ scientist that he is, made this video based on some of the overall observations that stand out to him when he watches Rafael Mendes compete.

This video was made in 2010, and as most of us know, Rafael Mendes was an unstoppable force when he continued to compete in 2011 and through 2012. He is an amazing and fighter to watch, and his wins on the mat prove that he trains harder than most. Here’s the breakdown:

So here are the 3 main trends that are explained in the video:

1. Entangled positions

2. Quick to the base

3. Sagittal back takes

So right off the bat Dan talks about how entangled positions are a very common theme at the lighter weights. I would have to definitely agree with this. We see a lot of de la riva guard and 50/50 guard nowadays in the lighter weights of BJJ. These are positions that are and can be very entangled and complex.

Not only does Rafael Mendes do an excellent job of navigating through these entangled positions, but he is so good at disentangling from these positions as well. If you ever watch him in a double guard pull scenario, he is always attacking by using these entangled positions to advance on his opponent.

I would also have to agree that Rafael Mendes‘ ability to get to his base quickly plays a decent role in his game. If you watch Rafael Compete against Justin Rader in the 2012 Pan Ams, he hits a sweep very early on in the match that involves him getting to his base quickly to score on Rader. He is skilled at both bringing his legs under his torso, and also bringing his torso over his legs to take top position.

The last observation of Sagittal back takes that Dan makes is the most important observation in my opinion. Rafael Mendes is currently taking the back in some of the most dynamic ways we have ever seen, and is doing so in the sagittal plane of motion. This means that he is coming from under his opponents base and taking the back through the middle from there. 

Most of us have seen Rafael using the berimbolo technique in competitions. He is great at going inverted to enter the sagittal plane of motion and attack the back. We are now seeing a lot of competitors at the lighter weights attacking the back in this fashion, and it is becoming more and more of a trend. This is even the case in some of the brown and purple belt divisions.

Overall, I think this analysis did a good job of highlighting some key trends and strategies that Rafael Mendes uses to win in competition. I agree with all 3 observations, because each one can be seen if you watch Rafael compete.

Cannot wait to see more great matches from Rafael in the future!

DVD Review: Micro BJJ Becoming a Giant Killer

Ever wondered how to slay a giant?

If you answered yes to this question, then look no further.

This week I will be reviewing the Latest BJJ DVD that I was able to get my hands on, Micro BJJ: Becoming a Giant Killer.

I myself am a lightweight BJJ guy, so when I got the chance to grab a DVD that’s strictly about beating larger opponents, I was all over it. Lucky for me my own instructor, light featherweight Brown Belt Dan Faggella, put this DVD together. That being said it wasn’t too difficult to obtain.

This DVD is part of the Micro BJJ series that Dan has recently released. Micro BJJ is a resource for smaller BJJ fighters and submission grapplers alike. He has this DVD, which focuses on defeating larger opponents, but also has other DVDs that involve defeating other smaller BJJ guys.

The DVD is broken down into 8 sections:

1. Escapes

2. The Guard

3. Guard Passing

4. Holding Top Position

5. From the Feet

6. Top Strategy

7. Leg Locks

8. Other Attacks

The DVD run time is about 110 minutes, so it’s a ton of content! Dan goes into great detail with the many techniques throughout the DVD, and gives many great examples of different situations.

After watching this DVD many times, I can easily say that it has been a tremendous tool for me in terms of developing my BJJ game. Rolling with larger opponents is difficult for anyone, and Dan really addressed a lot of the problems that I have experienced over the years grappling with larger people.

The sections that I got the most out of were Escapes, Guard, Holding Top Position, and Leg Locks, and this is for a few reasons.

During the Escapes section, I was able to pick up a few great techniques for escaping from inferior positions like bottom side control and bottom mount. If you have ever had someone much larger than you on top of you in side control and they know what they’re doing, then it can sometimes seem impossible to escape from bottom.

Iv’e been using some of the escape techniques with great success lately against larger opponents, and I am seeing myself ending up in those positions less and ending up more in the guard. This brings me to my next favorite section of the DVD: The Guard.

The Guard section of the Giant Killer DVD is great because Dan goes into a lot of concepts of the guard against a larger opponent. He talks about movement potential, and how that affects his range and strategy. You may night understand what all of that is, but if you watch the DVD, you most definitely will.

Holding Top Position was another one of my favorite sections because of the deeper concepts as well. I know from my own experience, that holding top position on a much larger opponent might not last that long. However, after watching this section of the DVD a few times, I have tweaked my top game a little bit and have seen improvements in my overall control from there.

Lastly, I REALLY enjoyed the Leg Lock section of this DVD.

Dan is known for defeating larger opponents in absolute divisions with his leg locks, and this section gives a good outline of the best “go-to” leg locks to use against bigger guys. He actually breaks it down in a way that shows higher percentage leg locks compared to some of the less likely leg locks that can be used against a larger opponent, giving a better understanding of what works and what doesn’t.

I must say, that the Micro BJJ Giant Killer DVD is a really smart choice if you weigh less than 160 lbs and are looking to improve against larger opponents. Like I mentioned a bunch of times, Dan goes into concepts a lot, and I have found that understanding overall concepts helps greatly in navigating through positions and submissions.

If you want to get your copy of it, click this link, I promise that you will not be disappointed. Like I said, all of Dan’s Micro BJJ DVDs have become some of my best tools and resources for improving my grappling game. You won’t find anything else like this out there, guaranteed.

-N