Combined Fighting Systems

CFS BJJ Manchester - 4.2.12

2012-02-07T00:59:00.001-08:00

Another day of great Bjj with the Manchester crew. The standard continues to improve which led to some well deserved promotions.

New belts:
Carol Fan - Purple belt...
Don Barr - Blue belt
Paul McGillon - Blue belt
Mike Thomas - Blue belt

New Stripes:

Anna Mayne - Purple 4 stripes
Liam Wandi - Purple 2 stripes
Graeme Kidd - Purple 2 stripes
Michael Carroll - Purple 1 stripe
Andy Rhind - White 4 stripes
Damien Roberts - White 4 stripes
Tim Bowden - White 4 stripes
Lucas Gradecki - White 4 stripes
Tamas Kavak - white 4 stripes
Sam Wandi - White 2 stripes

Well done guys!!

BJJ Heroes - Biography - David Onuma - November 2011

2011-12-01T06:15:00.000-08:00

Hey Guys,

The ever popular website BJJ Heroes obviously got bored and posted a little article about me. Have a read when you are bored too :)

http://www.bjjheroes.com/bjj-fighters/david-onuma

Review of Recent Seminar by 'The Part Time Grappler'

2011-12-01T05:21:00.000-08:00

Hey Guys

Check out this great review of our recent seminar/grading

Cheers Liam

http://parttimegrappler.blogspot.com/2011/12/cfs-bjj-team-get-together-at-mill-hill.html

CFS BJJ SEMINAR/GRADING - 27.11.11

2011-11-29T12:51:00.000-08:00

On Sunday 27th November 2011, the CFS BJJ group got together for our Bi-Annual seminar/Grading. It was very well attended by all the groups which included; HQ;Bournemouth, Manchester, Barnet, Chingford & Letchworth.

Guest Instructors included Black Belt Nick Brooks, Black Belt Keith Mckenzie; Strength & Conditioning Guro Andrew Marshall and Brown Belt and no-gi expert Daniel Strauss.

Congratulations to all those whose efforts were rewarded with grades and stripes and the standard of the group as a whole continues to grow steadily.

Current Grades (of those graded):

Andrew Nugent - Brown Belt - 3 stripes
Alan Dillon - Blue Belt 1 stripe
Matt Mcguire - Blue Belt - 3 stripes
Andy Bell - Blue Belt - 3 stripes
Paul Hill - BLUE BELT
Lee Curtis - BLUE BELT
Richard Halliwell - BLUE BELT
Gerald Balk - White Belt - 1 stripe
Charles Balk - White Belt - 2 stripes
Greg Woods - White Belt - 1 stripe
Shareef Essof - White Belt - 4 stripes
Yusef Chaudhri - White Belt - 2 stripes
Gillie Barrett - White belt - 2 stripes
Humza Hussain - White Belt - 2 stripes
Lewis Renney - White Belt - 2 stripes
David Kelly - White Belt - 1 stripe
Stephen Adams - White belt - 4 stripes
Matt Dennis - White Belt - 1 stripe

It really was a pleasure and an honour to see you all and to play a part in the development of your BJJ. We have a really special group which is growing stronger all the time.

Ossssss!!

19.11.11 - No-Gi Workshop at Alliance BJJ Brighton & Immaculate Clothing

2011-11-29T12:31:00.000-08:00

On Saturday 19th November, I headed off to Alliance BJJ in Brighton to share some No-gi BJJ with my long time friend and training partner Miad Najafi. The workshop was held at ZT fightskool in Hove. There was a good turnout and we had a good session ending with the customary roll!!

I was also able to collect my hot off the press t-shirts from Miad, who has just launched his unqique clothing company. Check him out at www.immaculateclothing.com

CFS - Empty Hands - Basic striking/padwork series - Curriculum - 2011 for Instructors & Students

2011-10-12T01:02:00.000-07:00

Ok Guys, further to requests from some of you, I have put on video the current basic striking series I am using for all levels. It is essential that all students and instructors familiarise themselves with this material.

The series is centred around five pasic punches and is really useful for the pad holder as well as the striker. In my view, in order to gain a better understanding of striking you really ought to be able to pad hold in as many different ways as possible.
The videos are self explanatory but the five punches are as follows (using the numbering system)

1.Jab
2.Cross
3.Lead hook
4.Lead uppercut to head
5.Rear uppercut to head

I also want to thank Glen Akwei for his help. Glen is one of only 2 coaches on the CFS MMA program, and has extensive experience in the art of Muay Thai having trained in Thailand many times as well as in Holland. He has competed in Muay Thai as well as amateur MMA. He is a former student of Guro Bob Breen and Winston Fraser and has been training with me for many years now. He currently teaches the Muay Thai classes at Mill Hill CCA academy and assists me in the MMA classes.

Video 2

Video 3

Video 4

Video 5

Enjoy and feel free to let me know how you get on with it

OCTOBER - Video techniques of the month & BONUS interview with Master Julio Cesar Pereira - Head of GF Team - 6th Degree Black Belt

2011-10-10T05:16:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday 4th October, thanks to the kind assistance of Daniel Pintado, I had the opportunity to train with, learn from and interview another BJJ Legend. This time it was none other than Master Julis Cesar Pereira, 6th Degree Black Belt and head of the GF Team Brazil.

I was introduced to him in Nottingham at the recent ADCC without knowing too much about him prior to that. I was particularly keen to train with him but not so much because he was the teacher of Rodolfo Vieira but because he was the teacher of Huanderson Pavao. Pavao as he is commonly referred to used to reside in the UK and taught out of the London Fight Factory. He was a master technician with and without the gi coupled with awesome strength and a big heart. I trained with him privately every week for about 9 months prior to his return to Brazil. I owe him alot.

Anyway as you can imagine, I was particularly keen to see the source of Pavao's teaching and I was not disappointed. In our session we concentrated on passing the guard followed by sparring. He then kindly answered some questions about himself and put some techniques on video to share with you guys.

Rather than present the information in a question and answer type format, let me tell you what I learned about this very humble man with World class BJJ.

Julio Cesar Pereira was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on 22nd December 1964. He commenced his training in BJJ under Prof Monir Salomao in 1974 and it was he who gave him his Black Belt some 25 years ago. He was awarded his 6th Degree by the federation in 2005 and gained his Black Belt in Judo in 2001.

He describes his specialities in BJJ as takedowns and passing the guard. He knows one or two things about leglocks too!

He has an enviable competition background, and in his own words 'I love to compete'. He won the Rio state championship 21 times, the first coming in 1974. He won the Masters and Seniors World Championships in both 2005 & 2006. He told me that his greatest competition success came in The American Cup in 1996 when he contested the final with a student of Rickson Gracie. There was literally no support for him but he managed to take home the Gold. He also had 3 memorable fights with Royler Gracie, losing the first 2 by submission and the last on points.

Having just come from ADCC, I asked him his views on how much time a BJJ player should train without the gi. He told me that normally he spends the majority of the time in the gi, but obviously depending on the competition , then the training would be adjusted.

I asked him if he trained Rodolfo any differently to any of his other students. He explained that where he is from, whilst the passion for BJJ is high, the standard of living is not the same. As a result most players would begin their training after a full day of work, rather than having the luxury of training 3 times a day. He told me that Rodolfo was the first person in the GF Team to completely dedicate himself to BJJ after he completed his studies. He had many other famous students but they all had to work and could not fully commit themselves to BJJ alone.

As a result of Rodolfo's success, he now has many students who want to dedicate themselves in the same way.

I was happy to learn that Mestre Pereira is a long time friend of Mestre Ricardo De La Riva. He told me that even though he was awarded his Black Belt one year before DLR, DLR is like an idol for him and a personal friend. They trained together for many years and DLR was the first person form Zona Sul (South Zone) to open up his academy doors to teach all manner of people whether affluent or not.

This was the Mestre's first trip to Europe and was happy that through his love of BJJ he had been able to travel to Spain, france, Switzerland, Germany and of course the UK. He stated that he had met a lot of new people and friends old and new.

The GF Team currently has one official affiliate in the UK, Gabriel Rainho who is both a BJJ & Judo Black belt. You can contact him at gabrielrainho@yahoo.com.br. He is based in London.

Video Techniques

Video 1 - Escaping the De La Riva Guard

Video 2 - Passing the half guard

Video 3 - Guard passing in action

I want to thank Mestre Julio for his time and teachings and it was such an honour to spend time with such a down to earth man without the politics that rears its ugly head in BJJ.

Enjoy

Training With the best Grappler of 2011 - Rodolfo Vieira

2011-10-10T05:10:00.000-07:00

Following a great training session on 4.10.11 with Mestre Julio Cesar Pereira, 6th Degree Black belt and head of the now famous GF Team, it was time for another great session, but this time with his student, Current weight & absolute World champion, Rodolfo Vieira.

I managed to arrange the session so that he could teach the Thursday evening class (6.10.11) at the home of my good friend Prof Nick 'Sloth' Brooks and my second home, namely Mill Hill BJJ.

What was great is that we managed to keep it quiet so that the students had no idea....until he turned up. Priceless!!!

He taught a session on guard passing, covering 1 simple but very effective pass with 3 variations.

He then sparred with a lucky few, including yours truly and it really was an experience being spanked by the current no 1 ranked BJJ fighter in the World this year. One thing that surprised me most I confess, was how quickly he moved for a big guy. Very slick and very impressive.

Some pics of the crazy crew below :)

Happy days!!! - A great start to October.....

2011-10-07T05:53:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday 4th I had a private training session with none other than 6th Degree Black Belt Julio Cesar Pereira, 2 x World champion and teacher to current Mundial weight and absolute champion, Rodolfo Vieira. We went out to dinner later with a group of others including Rodolfo.

On Thursday 6th October Prof Rodolfo taught a class at Mill Hill BJJ (surprise arranged visit as the students had no idea) followed by some great rolling....

A full report, videos and pics to follow......

As I said....................Happy days :)

No Gi training with the crew @ HQ

2011-09-30T05:38:00.000-07:00

Excellent stuff...........thanks guys :)

ADCC 2011

2011-09-27T04:33:00.000-07:00

If you don't know who they are.....you really shouldn't ask.......but yes..........I did get to shake Rickson's hand,........ooooooeeeeeiiiiiiiii :)

Tatami Twins....terrible two....beauty and the beast....what ever you wanna call us....

2011-09-23T06:20:00.000-07:00

........the excellent work put into us twice weekly by our strength and conditioning coach Andy Marshall is paying off!!!

Hehehehehe!!!

When Black Belts unite........16.9.11

2011-09-17T00:48:00.000-07:00

Great training with the Guro Bob Breen Blackbelts new and old................We trained advanced aspects of the knife as well as foot sectoring and sweeps from Guro Dan's Maphilindo Silat.

A great way to set up your weekend :)

MMA students try their hand at Filipino Stick fighting - 13.9.11

2011-09-17T00:42:00.001-07:00

The MMA class at Mill Hill BJJ Academy had no idea what hit them when they turned up for their regular MMA class.

I introduced them to the training methods of the Filipino stick fighters which directly crosses over into the regular striking seen in boxing and other striking arts.

They also found out that stick training is actually far more exhausting than they thought as they quickly built up a sweat and developed some blisters on their hands, but they certainly seemed to enjoy the idea and concept of swinging big sticks :)

New CFS BJJ Manchester Blue Belt - James Stafford - September 2011

2011-09-14T08:52:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to James on his promotion to Blue Belt. It was given to him following recommendation by Manchester Head Instructor Martyn Cahill and well deserved by all accounts.

Well done ;)

Bob Breen Academy - Black Belt Grading - 11.9.11 - Report

2011-09-12T03:35:00.001-07:00

Julian Getting choked out by Winston Fraser just before he got hit again...

Rich Lee getting pounded in 2 on 1 by 2007 Blackbelts Corey Donoghue and Lloyd Walters.......

The Happy Group with the Guro

Sunday 11th September was an important day internationally for a number of reasons an indeed it was also for the 12 participants selected to take the infamous Bob Breen Academy Black Belt test.

Let me begin by giving you a little bit of history about the test and what it invloves.

In order to be able to take the test, you will ordinarily have been training with Guro Breen for several years and have taken the tests at the previous levels. There are 2 at Brown belt level. The test is normally reserved to those who are class members but on the odd occasion Guro will allow students who train with him on his instructor camps and who have shown the appropriate level of skill, determination and heart to test. Taking and passing this test gives you the right to say you are a personal student of Guro Breen and hence claim lineage back to Guro/Sifu Dan Inosanto and SiGung Bruce Lee.

The main arts taught at The Academy are :

Filipino Martial arts

Jun fan gung fu/JKD concepts

Boxing

Muay Thai

In addition techniques and strategies are also drawn from

Silat

Wing chun

Combat submission Wrestling

It is because of this, it normally takes along time to reach the level suitable for testing.

The test itself is HARD and long, typically lasting 4-5 hours. You need to know your stuff and you need to be in shape. The test respects no one. Men, women, old and young are all treated equally. If you have any weaknesses....they will be exposed...whether you knew they pre existed or not.

There are technical elements tested:

Padwork - Boxing and Muay Thai

Empty hands techniques - Kali & JKD

Trapping - Wing Chun/Jun Fan

Weaponry - single & double stick, knife

Then there is sparring:

Boxing

Kickboxing

Stick

Grappling

2 on 1

*you may spar in all areas or some but must be prepared for all at the direction of Guro Breen.

2 on 1 is a heartbreaker. There is no where safe to hide from the experienced Black Belts who seemingly push you beyond your limit.

The Muay Thai padwork is not for the faint hearted either especially when you are 'worked' over by 2 x European Muay Thai champ Winston Fraser or Long term Black Belt and student of Guro Inosanto, Savash Mustafa.

On the day....

The twelve called...answered and were successful. All were tested, rocked, pushed but came through the other side as individuals and as a group. The oldest participant was 49 years of age who told me he had been training 5 times a week for the past 6 months and was now going to take it a bit easy and cut it down to 4 times a week......Class!!

First of all I give praise to Guro Breen for his leadership and training over the past 30 plus years. Anybody who is anybody in JKD/Kali in the UK has been taught by him at some point. Secondly I praise the group for their hard work and entertaining the spectators. Thirdly I am extremely proud of Husna Nessa (the only female), Richard Lee and Barry Harte all of whom I have had a hand (or arm) in training over the years.

In closing....I say what I have said many times before in the past....attaining the Black Belt is fantastic, but it is ONLY the beginning. It all starts from here, as did mine in October 1996. Where will you be in 10 years time?!!

Oooooossssss!!!

Good times......

2011-09-12T03:29:00.000-07:00

It was good to get a visit to 'HQ' from Blue Belt Coach (and 2 time European Champion Steve Payne) and a couple of his students. It was the first time his students got to roll with a purple & Black belt. Great to have them time and as we say.......Good times :)

Technique of the month - September 2011 - Special Bonus Video - Mestre Ricardo De La Riva

2011-09-10T06:03:00.000-07:00

This is a special bonus technique and one not to be missed. The Mestre does what he does best and shows an innovative way to deal with a person who tries to counter a reverse DLR sweep by standing up.

Enjoy!!!

WEKAF European Stickfighting Championships - Warsaw, Poland, July 2011 - More CFS Success

2011-08-30T07:21:00.000-07:00

A Big Congrats to CFS Associate Instructor Carl Jackson(a personal student of mine for over 10 years and one of only 4 people awarded the rank of Guro by me in the Filipino Martial arts FMA).

He Travelled to Poland in July for the 9th WEKAF European Stickfighting Championships where after solid performances, he secured Silver in Adult Welterweight division (single stick), Bronze in the double stick and Silver in the team event!!

The team event is open weight with 5 fighters from each country selected to fight one round each of non-stop carnage. The UK team beat Hungary and Germany losing only to Italy.

I understand there was a great showing from the UK team with a large presence from the 'Strike Team', now led by Damien Mills but taught by the fallen warrior, World, European & British Champion Guro Roger Barnes (deceased)

Great job guys :)

CFS Rashguards selling out!! - Get yours Fast!

2011-08-26T03:19:00.001-07:00

Hey Team.....Those of you that have not picked up or reserved you RGs need to hurry up as they are going fast. This quality product made by ARMOURTECH (TATAMI FIGHTWEAR) is really good and the feedback so far has been all positive.

I can't promise you'll look as good as the guys in this pic but give it a go ;)

Daniel Strauss - ADCC Preparations

2011-08-26T01:27:00.000-07:00

The training so far has been going really well. His S & C training is still at the highest level under the guidance of Fitness Guro Andrew 'Android' Marshall. We continue to work his ground and standup game at CFS HQ but now enters the final phase of training.

The 'Team' have sent The Raspberry Ape to NYC to train with Renzo Gracie, Roger Gracie and GSP to name but a few.

This is just what he need to be taken to the next level.

We wish him all the best ;)

CFS BJJ Manchester/Fighting Fit - London Road trip - August 2011

2011-08-26T01:22:00.000-07:00

Earlier on this month, a hardcore group of 'guys n gal' came to london to sample some of London's finest BJJ as well as celebrate the birthday of one of their own.

We had a great training and sparring session on the first day followed by training and sparring facilitated by my compadre Nick Brooks of Mill Hill BJJ.

Check out their report :)

http://parttimegrappler.blogspot.com/2011/08/bjj-road-trip-roger-gracie-hq-cfs-hq.html

CFS BJJ Manchester - Competition Success - 20.8.11

2011-08-26T01:09:00.000-07:00

On Saturday 20th August 2011, the CFS BJJ Manchester/Fighting Fit team entered and fought in the 'Grab & Pull' North West open BJJ competition.

They did themselves proud ending up on the podium for their efforts. Competition is never easy for a number of reasons and indeed it's not meant to be. but that's what makes any type of success sweeter.

Below is a link to a fantastic report of the event by CFS Purple Belt Liam Wandi AKA ' The Part time Grappler with pics and vids

http://parttimegrappler.blogspot.com/2011/08/bjj-tips-winning-bjj-competitions.html

Well done guys!!

Lockdown Submission 1000 - 2.7.11

2011-07-04T06:35:00.000-07:00

It was a great night of competiton which proved to be even more thrilling and nail biting than the build up.

There is a great write up of the competition by Meerkatsu which can be found here ; http://meerkat69.blogspot.com/2011/07/event-report-submission-1000-ii-at.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Meerkatsu+%28MEERKATSU%29

All fighters left it all on the line...but in the words of highlander..."there can only be one".

Congratulations to my former classmate Claudio on his submission victory and his domination of the other fighters. Having rolled with him many times in the past (unsuccessfully :) ), I know how his adversaries must have felt facing his skill, strength and pressure

Daniel Strauss continued to show why he is highly regarded as one of the best submission grapplers in the UK defeating 2 black belts in this last outing to add to the one he beat in the first competition. This will be a great warmup for the ADCC and provides all the incentive to do better.

I am so proud of the way he has developed both mentally and physically as a fighter and as we say in the trenches......'it's only just begun'

Lockdown II - Submission Fighting Championships - 2nd July 2011

2011-07-01T09:03:00.000-07:00

This weekend I will again be cornering for student and friend Daniel Strauss when he returns to Liquid Envy to collect £2000.00

It will be a tough and difficult competition but he is well trained and up to the task. See you there

European Stickfighting Championships - 2nd & 3rd July 2011

2011-07-01T09:01:00.001-07:00

We send our good luck to Carl Jackson who will be flying the flag for CFS this weekend at the Euroepan Championships in Poland. I know he will be looking to improve on the Silver from last year, and if anyone can do it....he can!!

The Patches are here - made by Tatamifightwear.com

2011-07-01T08:57:00.000-07:00

Team coaches please contact me to arrange to get yours for your students :)

Wednesday 29th June 2011 was a great day...

2011-07-01T08:55:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to CFS Instructor Corey Donoghue who fought in his first amateur boxing competition which was put on by Tieu Promotions. He fought 3 rounds and convincingly beat a more experienced boxer on paper.

Further congratulations are due to Daniel Strauss of Mill Hill BJJ who was awarded his Brown belt in BJJ by none other than Mauriciao Gomes (7th Degree Red & Black Belt) and Roger Gracie - Multiple time World Champion (2nd degree Black belt). This probably makes him one of the youngest Brown belts in the country at 20 , if not the youngest. Well done to both guys!!

BJJ Seminar for Cancer Charity - 24.6.11 - Nick Brooks & David Onuma

2011-07-01T08:54:00.000-07:00

On Friday 24th June, Nick and I , together with able Brown Belt Chris Hearn, Travelled to BK Fighters in Colchester to teach a BJJ workshop for free in order to raise funds for charity.

Thew whole thing was organised by Clinton O'shea who I think managed to raise £180.00 on the day.

A nice bunch of guys.........OOOSSSSSSSS!!!!!

Bournmouth BJJ Open - 18th June 2011

2011-07-01T08:53:00.000-07:00

First of all i'd like to congratulate Alex De Souza and his wife/team for putting together a great competition. It was organised well from start to finish, and even with unexpected hiccups, it still finished ONE minute before scheduled at 5.05pm.

As a referee, I witnessed some really good fights and an ever increasing standard of BJJ. There were 7 Blackbelt refs plus the ultra experienced Oli Geddes.

So far as the reffing was concerned I think it would be fair to say that on the whole the standard was good although there were probably one or two errors around the mats made including by me. It's a difficult job and I hope that nobody was disadvantaged as a result. I was disappointed that I had to disqualify a fighter for slamming in the white belt division, even AFTER I had warned him once already, but I guess he'll learn.

I congratulate the team champions Checkmat and also those that took second, third and fourth spot. Great performances by all and it was good to see the various team t shirts & hoodies floating about the place.

The superfights were good and continue to become a much looked forward to feature at BJJ Comps. Marco Canha and Andy Roberts put on a good fight which went the distance. Canha's experience came through but Andy showed why it is he wears a Black belt round his waist, particularly with his dangerous leg attacks.Neto and Luis battled it out, also going the distance. Neto took the early lead and held it, but he too faced very dangerous leg attacks from luis which a lesser man would have given in to.

Finally I'd like to thank my 'young' CFS BJJ team who put their all into their fights against more experienced competitors and their coaches Matt Benyon and Gary Baker who are doing a fine job. Our team came joint 12th out of 39 teams and I am very happy with that.

Team results:

John Beaves - white master - GOLD
Anthony Jayakody - white adult - BRONZE
Bradley Knapp - white adult - SILVER

CFS BJJ Seminar - 12th June - Late report

2011-07-01T08:50:00.000-07:00

On the 12th June at Mill Hill BJJ we held the first seminar and grading for the year with students from:

CFS BJJ London
CFS BJJ Letchworth - Instructor Andy Nugent - Brown Belt
CFS BJJ Manchester - Instructor Martyn Cahill - Brown Belt
CFS BJJ Hertfordshire - Instructor Corey Donoghue - Purple Belt
CFS BJJ Bournmouth - Instructor Gary Baker - Blue Belt

It was great to see everyone and also present was Roger Gracie Black Belt Nick Brooks who also promoted oneo of his own students to Brown belt.

Even though there were no other belt promotions, congrats to all who received stripes on their belts. Keep up the good work and see you at the next one sometime in November

New Official CFS BJJ Logo, Patches & Rashguards

2011-06-09T04:28:00.000-07:00

Hey Guys. This is the new CFS BJJ logo which will shortly be available via patches and rashguards for all the affiliated schools and students. The rashguards are £30 each and are currently in production by none other than Tatami fightwear. They are also producing the patches which will cost £12 for a set. A set includes the large back patch, the leg patch and the lapel patch. Can't wait!!

CFS BJJ - Manchester Labs - Seminar/Affilliation - 5.6.11

2011-06-07T02:48:00.000-07:00

It is with great pleasure following 6 months of training, that I formally announce and confirm that the BJJ program/team at Fighting Fit, Manchester Labs, Manchester are now officially affiliated to me via the CFS BJJ Team.(http://www.fightingfitmartialarts.co.uk/)

The group in Manchester are a great bunch of guys and girls headed by Brown Belt Martyn Cahill who was awarded his Brown Belt in April 2009 by Karl Tanswell. They have been on their own path for quite some time now and I am glad that it eventually led them in my direction.

The team has a strong group of purples and blues as well as white belts and I look forward seeing them go from strenght to strength.

On Sunday 5th June there were some promotions:

Martyn Cahill - Brown Belt - 2 stripes

Liam Wandi - Purple Belt -1 stripe

Graeme Kidd - Purple Belt - 1 stripe

Paul Bodley - Purple Belt - 1 Stripe

Ian Wilson - Blue Belt - 3 stripes

Jay Cahill - Blue Belt - 3 stripes

Jake Cross - Promotion to BLUE BELT

Martin Matiasko - Promotion to BLUE BELT

James Stafford - White Belt - 2 stripes

Neil Kirwan - White Belt - 1 stripe

Congratulations!!!

Technique of the month - June 2011 - Mestre Ricardo De La Riva

2011-06-06T07:39:00.000-07:00

This is the Third in the series by Master DLR - Fitting as he teaches the triangle trilogy from the 'Split Guard ' position. Enjoy

CFS BJJ - Technique of the month - May 2011 - Mestre Ricardo De La Riva

2011-05-02T01:51:00.000-07:00

Hey Guys

Kicking off May with the second of the series of techniques from Mestre Ricardo De La Riva. Enjoy!!!

Submission 1000 - 2nd July 2011

2011-04-27T01:15:00.000-07:00

Here is the latest from Lockdown FC.......Here we go again!!

PRESS RELEASE 27th April 2011Lockdown Fighting Championships announce the second MMA and nogi grappling event - July 2nd, Liquid & Envy Nightclub, Stevenage. Tickets on sale soon.The eight fighters who have been chosen to take part in the Submission 1000 nogi grappling event for the prize of £2000 are:Daniel Strauss -Roger Gracie purple belt - defending his title as winner of the first Submission 1000.Henrique Santana - BJJ black belt Michael Russell - Zaid Mirza BJJ Black beltClaudio Henrique Da Silva - Checkmat BJJ black belt, Chico Mendes - Checkmat BJJ Black belt ,Oli Geddes - Roger Gracie BJJ Brown belt, Kenny Baker - SBG BJJ brown belt, Liam Corrigan - submission and MMA fighter from Leicester Shootfighters. This promises to be an spectacular mix of styles and action with some of the best grapplers in the UK right now.Stay tuned for further info on tickets on the Lockdown Fc website: http://www.lockdownfightingchampionships.com/

Technique of the month - April 2011 - Mestre Ricardo De La Riva - The first of a series.

2011-04-25T13:07:00.000-07:00

Easter Strength & Conditioning training with Andrew Marshall

2011-04-25T12:37:00.000-07:00

De La Riva pics - CFS BJJ & Mill Hill BJJ - April 2011 - Part 3

2011-04-25T00:32:00.000-07:00

De La Riva pics - CFS BJJ & Mill Hill BJJ - April 2011 - Part 2

2011-04-25T00:28:00.001-07:00

De La Riva pics - CFS BJJ & Mill Hill BJJ - April 2011 - Part 1

2011-04-25T00:25:00.001-07:00

Carl Jackson - April 2011 - British Single stick champion - Again!

2011-04-12T09:19:00.000-07:00

CFS Associate Instructor Guro Carl Jackson did it again in a fine display of Filipino Stick. A credit to himself and the CFS fight team

Daniel Strauss - Lockdown submission 1000

2011-04-12T09:17:00.000-07:00

A video of Dan's first fight against Black Belt Marcos Nardini

De La Riva UK Trip Round up - 12.4.11

2011-04-12T03:21:00.000-07:00

Wow!!! My head is still buzzing!! What a week. As you guys know, 6th Degree Black Belt Master Ricardo De La Riva came to the UK to share his knowledge with us for a week. The week went all too quickly and he returned to Brazil today with his student 4th Degree Blackbelt Marcello Vanusa. The Master was hosted by Roger Gracie Black belt Nick Brooks and myself, and indeed it was only because of his very close relationship with Nick that he agreed to come over. He taught a series of daytime and evening classes at Mill hill BJJ as well as the 2 seminars on the 9th & 10th April 2011. Some pracitioners were lucky enough to get private classes from him and i'm sure the lessons everyone learnt will stick with them for a long long time. Whilst here he was interviewed by the UK's newest specialist Martial Arts/BJJ publication Jiujitsu Style and I know that he will appear in that magazine in due course. In addition, I filmed a series of techniques with him as well as a series of techniques with Marcello Vanusa which will appear on my blog once edited etc. Look out for them because they contain some really really nice and new stuff including his 'new' variation of the DLR guard which was adjusted to counter peoples knowledge of the guard and how to counter it. Last night he gave a class at a packed Mill Hill BJJ, which was then followed by the mandatory rolling. During his trip I got to roll with many different people of all levels and that was great fun. It was good to see BJJ School's own Leoni Munslow and a roll with her showed why she is one of the best in the UK in her division. I want to thank Nick for agreeing to share the experience with me as well as the DLR BJJ he has been studying for some considerable time both here and in Brazil. David Soares for all his translation help and everyone else involved in his trip behind the scenes. If any one is interested in learning more about Master De La Riva's approach to BJJ, feel free to contact Nick Brooks or me. As I say guys.....Watch this space :)

Professor Ricardo De La Riva - 7.4.11

2011-04-07T09:26:00.000-07:00

I had the opportunity to train with Master De La Riva today for the first time and also with his 4th Degree Blackbelt student Marcello. Both of them are extremely humble and very friendly guys with a great sense of humour. There is even a rumour that they are both Justin Bieber fans but I say nothing at risk of death by strangulation, manipulation and anything else they can come up with.

Fortunately he has great taste in Kimonos!

Today was a great session on half guard with the attention to detail being of the highest level.

He will be teaching the normal classes at Mill hill BJJ tonight, tomorrow lunchtime and maybe tomorrow evening. If you are a non member and wish to go, then show up (mat space willing) and the class will on be £10 for non members! Can you afford not to go.

Looking forward to my early morning daily class with him starting tomorrow as well as the seminars on Saturday & Sunday

Guro Dan Inosanto teaches the reality of knife attacks

2011-03-10T03:42:00.000-08:00

Terere.........Return of a champion

2011-03-10T03:25:00.000-08:00

Roger Barnes Anniversary etc

2011-03-08T08:14:00.000-08:00

Guro Roger Barnes

Today......marks two years since he passed away........two whole years.......
In that time he has never left our hearts, minds and spirits and never will.
Whenever I think of Roger I am both happy and sad. Sad because of the loss and happy because my life was enriched by virtue of the time I got to spend with him. Just think of how many people who never had the opportunity to be touched by his being.
Reminds me of that phrase.......it's better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.....
I wish all my very best wishes on this special day....knowing that you too will take some time out to reflect... and remember Roger, Susan, Kim and Daniel

The benefits of training S & C with Android Andrew Marshall :)

2011-02-14T05:25:00.001-08:00

Review of recent BJJ Workshop - 5.2.11 by Liam Wandi, The Part Time Grappler

2011-02-08T01:34:00.000-08:00

6.2.11

BJJ Seminar with Mr David Onuma, aka when the Lab Rat met the Meercat
BJJ seminars are awesome. The good ones are great (I never forget how small BJJ is in the world and how lucky I'm to meet a good teacher) and even the bad ones are an opportunity to meet grappling friends, old and new, and do some rolling around in jammies.
This Saturday, aka yesterday, Fighting Fit hosted a BJJ / grappling seminar by Mr David "Malandro" Onuma, black belt in BJJ under Ricardo Vieira and multiple European Championships medalist. My first impression of talking to David over the phone was that of balance, open mindedness and maturity and meeting him confirmed all that and more. He is in his early 40s, and a busy full time job. He is also fully immersed in a number of other martial arts and disciplines. Add to all that the list of achievements above and it becomes clear that:a, he must have a strong sense of structure and organisationb, he's full of energy, focus and enthusiasmc, he's very selective with whom he spends his time.The seminar was scheduled for a 10 o'clock start and, after a thorough BJJ-based warm-up (oh my god so many drills!), David covered both gi techniques (spider guard entries and techniques) and no-gi (pummeling and clinch) techniques and strategies. The techniques and tactics were awesome but David's delivery really topped the charts.David was generous with his time and while we had only booked him till 1 he was happy to stay and roll for another hour. I had the pleasure to roll with him and he toyed with me. He was everywhere. He used simple BJJ fundamentals but executed them with such timing and fluidity that I felt helpless. If you want to organise a seminar with a black belt who's done it all and has a great sense of humor and structured teaching and delivery, Mr David "Malandro" Onuma is your man.Many can show you how to sweep with the spider guard, but no one will finish it with such a manly pose. Many will armbar you from mount, but no one will highlight the importance of exposing the embroidered name on the black belt. I already look forward to his next visit.The seminar was also very important to me as it gave me the long-sought opportunity to meet with my very good friend Seymour "Meerkatsu" Yang who was kind enough to trek all the way from London to attend and report on the seminar. Not only did I get a chance to pick Seymour's brain about a couple of techniques and strategies and had a couple of rolls with the "Escapologist" himself but I also got to drag him with the Labs gang out to lunch. I'm happy to say the meercat came to rainy Manchester a guest but left it a friend, brother and honorary Lab Rat. I bid him good bye and took my bag home to bore my wife with tales of my adventures. I feel so lucky.
Thank you David, Seymour, Ian and Martyn for making this happen and to all the attendee Lab Rats who made the whole event a success. We hope to have David back at Fighting Fit / the Labs very, very soon.----Did You Like This Article?--- Click here to add The Part Time Grappler to your Favourites / Bookmarks

The Art of BJJ - Marcelo Garcia and Ryan Hall Grappling

2011-02-03T09:03:00.000-08:00

My skills are every good as these two guys and I move exactly as the do until.............................I wake up :)

Enjoy

MMA Trailer - Mill Hil CCA - Tuesdays @ 7pm

2011-01-18T05:27:00.000-08:00

TRAINING UPDATE!!!!!!

2011-01-04T03:12:00.000-08:00

Happy new year to everyone. This is just a quick message to let everyone know that training resumes as normal from today at the usual times.

Take care and see you soon

David

CFS Promotion - 20.11.10 - Suleyman Cetin

2010-12-17T05:02:00.001-08:00

Congratulations to longstanding CFS student Suleyman Cetin who was promoted to the level of Trainee Instructor in the Filipino Martial Arts after completing Phases 1-3 of the curriculum. Not an easy task as those already on the program will attest to.

He is now looking forward to honing and sharpening his skill by starting a small group in Bradford whilst remaining on the program.

Congrats again to a very humble and dedicated student

CFS Italy - Promotion - Dec 2010

2010-12-17T04:50:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to Fabio Pampana who was promoted to apprentice instructor level 1 in the Jun Fan arts as well as the Filipino Martial arts. He had been a trainee for over 3 years and was ready to take on the next challenge. An excellent ambassador for CFS and a dedicated instructor.

Anybody in the Florence area looking to train can check him out. Details are to be found in the instructor section at www.davidonuma.com

CFS BJJ Promotions - 13.12.10

2010-12-17T04:33:00.000-08:00

Congratulations are due to both Corey 'Doninho' Donoghue and to Jesus Lopez who after extensive periods of hard training, dedication and skill were awarded their Purple and Blue Belts respectively.

Corey is the first person to be awarded his Purple Belt by me and therefore it was also a great day for me too.

Corey and Jesus look forward to testing their belts out on the competiton circuit!

New Tatami Fightwear Advert - The finished item :)

2010-11-29T08:24:00.000-08:00

Recognise anyone????

Tatami Fight Wear from Chris Reason on Vimeo.

Promotions at CFS BJJ Bournmouth - 27.11.10

2010-11-28T14:27:00.000-08:00

CFS BJJ Bournmouth had its first grading on Saturday. Congrats to all the guys as the standard is high and I was proud to award some belts and stripes as follows:

Gary Baker - Blue Belt & 1 stripe
Luke Arnold - Blue Belt
Stacey Arnold - Bue Belt
Aaron Davies- White belt - 3 stripes
Lee Curtis - White Belt - 3 stripes
Kristian Wanstall - White Belt - 3 stripes
John Beaves - White Belt - 3 stripes
John Snooks - White Belt - 1 stripe

Tatami Fightwear - Film/Photo shoot - Nov 2010 - Wales

2010-11-21T15:58:00.000-08:00

The Crazy Tatami Fightwear Crew..........Can you name them all?
Pippa and I looking mean :)
Yours truly in fine Estilio attire!

Check out some of the filming........

Things you can't easily tell...

1. I was bloody freezing!! - Wales in November and no top!!!
2. They sprayed water on me as sweat.......that was bloody freezing too!
3. I was in pain - nearly broke my right toe 2 weeks ago....bouncing on it = PAIN!
4. How much fun did we all have - IMMEASURABLE!!!

Thanks to Lee & Gareth of Tatami fightwear for their hospitality and a great day out. Also thanks to my fellow sponsored athletes for a great time;

Pedro Bessa
Kevin Cox
Greg Creel
Daniel 'Vaseline' Agard (Don't ask!!)
and the wonderful Pippa Granger

CFS BJJ - Technique of the month - November 2010 - Bonus Technique with Professor Leo Vieira

2010-11-21T15:14:00.000-08:00

Hey Guys,

I trained with the Master in June this year but due to technical issues (all mine) I couldn't get to upload the video before now. Now that it's sorted, we get 2 techniques this month.

Please enjoy the techniques shown by Leo, who has an understanding of BJJ that few people can actually comprehend. When I think of some of the things leo taught me and how he broke it down, it reminded me of a phrase I started to use many years ago....."My complexity is my simplicity"

CFS BJJ - Technique of the month - November 2010

2010-11-21T13:35:00.000-08:00

Hey Guys,

This month's technique is performed by my good friend Professor Pedro Bessa who kindly gave his time in sharing some of his BJJ technique and variations.

Pedro is of course a World class BJJ player who is one of the UK's leading exponents of the art, as well as being a Tatami Fightwear sponsored athlete.

Enjoy

Andrew Nugent - English Open BJJ Champion Nov 2010 - Brown Belt

2010-11-10T02:14:00.000-08:00

Carl Jackson - British Stickfighting Champion - Nov 2010

2010-11-10T02:02:00.000-08:00

Congrats to the 'CFS' Fight team - 6th & 7th November 2010

2010-11-08T04:23:00.000-08:00

This weekend gone was a good one for CFS.

First of all, Guro Carl Jackson, the defending British Stickfighting Champion fought again in the British championships, but this time in the veterans division which is much harder as the fighters are exactly just that...veterans and seasoned champions.

Carl took Gold in the Double stick division and Silver in the Single stick division, which in fact was a repeat of his success last year. Very well done adding to his earlier success in the Mexico World championships earlier this year.

There was also success at the English BJJ Open which took place at Dartford over both days with fights at all belts. The competition was very well attended and very well run as usual. Congrats to the principal organisers Blackbelts Dickie Martin & Simon Hayes.

White belts Jesus Lopez Lara & Darren Owen took their first steps in competitive BJJ. Darren fought first facing a tough opponent who mangaged to pass his guard which was later replaced and then just missed completing a very close armbar. He then fought in the repercharge where he also lost to a memeber of our sister team at mill hill bjj, but tried hard.

Jesus had a very tough first fight and got kicked in the mouth whilst passing guard. He secure an advantage for an X choke attempt from guard but couldn't do much more thereafter as he popped his already injured rib in the fight. He won the fight but I wihdrew him from fighting further due to injury.

Next up was my old training partner Andrew Nugent who although a Brown Belt, was making his first step into the competitive BJJ arena. He fought veteran BJJ player Austin Gardner also from the Checkmat team. It was sad for me to see 2 people I know well to have to fight but fortunately for them they did not know each other. Big props to Austin who normally fights at under 76kg for taking on Andy who weighed in with the gi as a 'light' Middleweight at 79kg. It was a close fight with Austin locking onto Andy's ankle but Andy managed to tough it out and dominated mostly from the top after an excellent footsweep. Congrats to English Champion, Andy Nugent!!

As always it was good to see so many friends at the tourney with Blackbelts galore present.....my how times have changed. I can't count how many were there but even allowing for the 4 that fought in the superfights, in no particular order I saw:

Jude Samuel
Edwardo Azevedo
Marco Canha
Luiz ' Manxhina' Ribeiro
Neto
Dickie Martin
Simon Hayes
Nilton Garcia
Jackson Fortunato
Felipe Souza
Arlans Siqueira
Luiz Tosta
Nick Brooks
Marc Walder
Eamon Madden
Ivam Marciel
Marcus Nardini

My apologies if I missed anyone out because I forgot or didn't know them.

What was also good was that whilst there were a number of different gis out there on the mat, Tatami fightwear gis seemed to be everywhere! Clearly the choice of champions :)

I want to send out a big thank you to all the guys who put it on the line this weekend, as whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

Intelligent Combat

My Teacher - Guro Dan Inosanto - October 2010

2010-11-02T04:08:00.000-07:00

Dan Inosanto and the "Harmless" Malong ;) from ricky d on Vimeo.

Improving standards.......

2010-11-02T03:14:00.000-07:00

This weekend gone, I was fortunate to travel to Bournmouth and check in on Gary Baker and the CFS BJJ Bournmouth team. They really are developing there and it's great to see people enjoying the martial arts that they study.

I also checked in on Andy Nugent's team in Letchworth where I bumped into some old familiar faces including, my good friend and fellow Guro Dan instructor, Fraser Kyne. Also got to meet Gez, the head instructor of Cambridge freefight. A really nice fellow with solid Purple belt BJJ skills.

Keep up the good work guys :)

New T-Shirts - Combined Fighting Systems - 21.10.10

2010-10-21T02:28:00.000-07:00

Hey Peeps!!

Hope you all good. This morning, Doninho, Longrinho and I had another maaaad S & C session with the Android Andrew Marshall. Was crazy.........presses and windmills with 24kg. Floor presses with a 32kg and double swings with 2 x 24kgs.......aaaaarrrrgggghhh!!

And to finish it all off, he took my brand new CFS t shirt from me........modelled it (as apparently he looks better than all of us ...parp!!) and then took it home. Hehe. I was in no fit state to argue.

Hope you like it and if you are interested in one or a hoodie then give me a shout!!

Kombat Clinic interview (without pics) - Published at kombatclinic.com on 17.8.10

2010-10-06T08:07:00.000-07:00

David Onuma interview
17 August 2010 4 Comments

David Onuma talks to The Fighting Photographer
David Onuma is a complete martial artist, who combines Brazilian Jiu Jitsu with the Filipino Martial Arts and runs the Combined Fighting Systems Academy in London. David has trained with the best in the world in martial arts and is constantly striving to improve both himself and his students and has took some time out of his very busy schedule to answer questions about his life as a martial artist.

Carl Fisher: David, huge congrats on receiving your Black Belt earlier this year; how did it feel to receive the belt and where did you get the promotion?

DO: Thanks a lot Carl; it was a great honour to receive it. I had attended the European Championships 2010 to fight at middleweight Brown Belt in my division. I had originally planned to fight in my division as well as the absolute but decided against fighting in the absolute in the end. I was on the podium receiving my medal when Thiago “Monstro” Borges tied the Black Belt around me on behalf of Ricardo Vieira and Rodrigo Cabral. Simply receiving a BJJ Black Belt is a fantastic achievement but getting it on the podium in that way in front of my peers at the European Championship is something that I never would have imagined.

CF: How did you view Jiu Jitsu and your understanding of it as you moved through each of the belt colours?

DO: Well my BJJ journey to Black Belt has been a long one compared to others. I received my Blue Belt from John Machado in 1999, my Purple Belt from Roger Brooking in September 2005, my Brown Belt from Ricardo Vieira in March 2008 and finally my Black Belt on the 31st January 2010. I was never really a White Belt for long because I obtained my Blue Belt after training extensively with John Machado on a tour he did of the UK back then as well as a tour of Italy. Whilst we did complete his basic programme covering all of the Blue Belt material, I think he felt a bit sorry for me at the end of training and decided to give it to me before he returned to the USA. The problem was when I returned to the UK as you will know, there were no BJJ schools around at that time and at that stage I would say that I was one of a handful of people ranked as Blue Belt in the country. Because of this and my other interests, I effectively gave up training with the Gi even though I did do submission grappling and I only started training again with the Gi when I joined Roger Brooking’s Academy some time at the end of 2002. It was in fact like starting as a White Belt again, because I was caned by all the Blue Belts and even the White Belts gave me problems. The most significant period of development I would say was in-between Blue Belt and Purple Belt and that was when I really began to understand what Jiu Jitsu was all about. Whilst I have obviously learnt new techniques between the various belts, it has been more a case of refinement and deeper understanding as time has gone on.

David & Jean Jacques Macahado in Los Angles in 2000

CF: Were there any epiphanies through these belts; when the clouds parted and all of the secrets of Jiu Jitsu came down from the skies? Or was the secret merely, train, “train, train, train”?

DO: It’s funny that you should ask that question. If I was to get a pound for every time that people have said that I was a “natural athlete” I would be very rich. I have always believed in “intelligent combat”. The majority of people in life always tend to think that hard work automatically equals results, and I am afraid that that is simply not true. In business terms if you have to work very hard to earn your money then actually you are probably doing something wrong. The point I am making is that there is nothing wrong with hard work but whatever work you do you must do intelligently in order to maximise the results of that time that you have invested. There have been times when I have been taught a particular technique which has really helped me or changed my game, but the things that helped me the most have been the principles that I have been taught in any particular situation. As a result of this I am able to recall all the different principles taught to me by various teachers I have had over time because of the effects that they had on my game. Fortunately that is still an ongoing process.

CF: What team do you train with now and who is your chief instructor?

DO: Politics is something that I am usually very keen to avoid because as you know it creates so many problems but I am a member of the Checkmat team and the chief instructors are Ricardo and Leo Vieira. The team has been through a series of name changes over the past few years and certainly since I have been training with them, but effectively I have always recognised them as the team heads. The Checkmat team is very well established in the world and the UK now has something like 10 UK based Black Belts with the majority being in London.

CF: Where do you teach now David?

DO: The majority of my training is done with close friends and other practitioners and the majority of my time is taken up with my full-time job as a lawyer and my other personal commitments. However I do find time to share my knowledge with various groups either in classes or at seminars. Details of whatever I am doing can always be found on my blog.

CF: Combined Fighting Systems; when did this come into being?

DO: I would like to begin by actually explaining what CFS is. CFS is just a name that I chose to host the arts that I teach and the people that are associated with. The very first school I ever had in a church hall back in 1986 was the Women’s School of Martial Arts and Self Defence. I later coined the phrase “The Garage” as that is where I was training and finally settled on the term CFS maybe 10 years ago. I do not train or teach ‘my style’. What I do is pass on the knowledge that I have in relation to each of the arts that I am qualified to teach. I teach each art in its pure form therefore enabling individuals to gain certification or qualification in those arts. However in keeping with the principles of Sigung Bruce Lee and Master Teacher Guro Dan Inosanto I have my own personal expression as to how I use these arts in combination and I try to help people develop their own personal expressions. It becomes dangerous in my view when teachers put together a series of techniques or training matters from different styles, create a syllabus and then teach it to a student telling them that that is what they need to do. All that happens in those circumstances is they teach students to be clones of the teacher and it may not even be the right thing. It would be impossible for any of my students to be a clone of me quite simply because they are not me and they have not had my direct training influences but of course they will pick up things which other people will be able to identify as coming from me.

CF: Do you have any people at CFS who have been instrumental in shaping CFS as it stands today?

DO: CFS has particular training methods, which make it in my view unique. I do not say that we are the best Martial Artists out there even though we clearly hold our own, but I think what sets us apart is our ability to structure and organise the training and learning which puts students in the best possible environment to succeed. CFS has become more recognised by the fantastic job that the authorised instructors have done personally and with their students. Within the Filipino Martial Arts we have many high ranked instructors who are skilled in competing and teaching. The best stick fighter that we have ever produced was Guro Roger Barnes. Unfortunately he passed away in March 2008 completely unexpectedly leaving a big hole in all of our lives. He was the World, European and many times British Stick Fighting Champion and his personal students have also gone on to replicate those same titles. More recently we have Carl Jackson who was recently promoted to associate level and just came back from the World Championships in Mexico with a silver medal in the single stick division. As far as BJJ/grappling is concerned we have Blue Belt and current British Open Champion Corey Donoghue who is going from strength to strength. He has taken Gold in SENI, fought at the Europeans, won at Grapplers Showdown and so on and so forth. Steve Payne has only been involved in BJJ for about 19 months and has already won the European Championship two times, one at White Belt and one at Blue Belt (2009 and 2010). I thank all of these guys for putting their trust and faith in me and helping others to learn of our existence.

CF: You have an eye-watering amount of Martial Arts teaching credentials; can you tell the readers when you started your path on the Martial Arts?

DO: This September I am going to be 43 and I started training with my older brother who had a background in Taekwondo and Hapkido when I was 12. I then started training in Kickboxing with Master Kingsley Morgan and at the age of 16 I started Wing Chun. Along my journey I have studied the Filipino Martial Arts, Silat, the Jun Fan Arts and of course boxing and Thai boxing. The teaching credentials that I have obtained simply flowed from remaining consistent in my training of each of these arts.

CF: Who are your influences within the Filipino Arts that you practise?

DO: My four biggest influences in the Filipino Martial Arts have been Guro Bob Breen, Guro Terry Barnett, Guro Dan Inosanto and Guro Desmond Watson. Whilst I have trained with other Filipino Martial Arts teachers, these four are the ones that have really helped me to understand different aspects of those arts both historically and combatitively.

David & Guro Dan Inosanto in 2008

CF: Bob Breen and Dan Inosanto are two of the most well respected teachers in JKD/Filipino circles; do you keep in touch with these guys and others in their field?

DO: Master Bob Breen I would describe as my Martial Arts mentor and father. He was the one that literally opened all the doors for me in terms of Martial Arts training and also knowledge wise. In fact I actually got into grappling because of him and my introduction to Guro Dan Inosanto came as a result of him. He was ever so kind as to share a lot of his time with me over the years on a private level and that really helped to accelerate my understanding of Martial Arts. Not only did he train me privately, he took me with him to a number of seminars all around the world which enabled me to see him in action, learn some more things and also to meet a whole new group of different people.
As much as he is well known and respected throughout the world, I can still honestly say that the majority of people really don’t know how good he is. It has been a privilege for me to teach at his academy and to be a student of his and I first started teaching at his academy in 1998 continuing to this present day. In March 2008 he honoured me by promoting me to a level of Full Instructor, which is the highest rank that he has ever given to any of his students. I think I ought to make it clear at this stage that Guro Bob has produced so many world class students and almost anybody that you can think of in the UK who has become recognised in the Filipino Martial Arts and JKD has had the tutelage of Bob Breen at some point or another. I am fortunate to be one of that very elite group of his top students and I certainly do not claim to be the best. When Guro promoted me to the level of full instructor, he made the point of stating that he felt that of all of his students, I was the one who most closely knows and understands his personal style and approach. So far as Guro Inosanto is concerned I have been on his instructor programme since 1999. He remains as an inspiration to me and to countless of many others just because he is who he is. Even at the age of 74 (July 2010) his work ethic would embarrass students even a quarter of his age. Again a lot of people don’t realise really how skilled and knowledgeable he is. Even within the BJJ world, whilst his is not the first name that would come to your lips for obvious reasons, but I can tell you that he was promoted to Black Belt in I believe November of 1999 and is still training Brazilian Jiu Jitsu three to five times a week even now. Even though he has trained with all of the Machado brothers extensively he has extended his knowledge to train with many, many Black Belts (many of who are his junior) but continues to train in order to improve his knowledge. When you have somebody like that around who still continues to learn and is of that age and experience, it becomes very difficult to start thinking that you know it all because plainly you don’t.

CF: Which art is your number one favourite?

DO: [Laughs] “Now you are just trying to get me in trouble!” I honestly cannot answer that question because they all give me different things. The Filipino Martial Arts, particularly the weapons’ training really helps to develop the eye and brain speed. This is because you are dealing with weapons that travel upwards of up to 80 mph and you can’t afford to let your attention wander or you could be seriously hurt. There is obviously also a very functional aspect to the weapons training given that most confrontations in the street now involve the use of a weapon and more than one person. I obviously love the striking arts because they are essential and necessary in any form of combat and it is necessary to keep those basic skills sharp. As far as BJJ is concerned, it is great because it is an art that helps to keep me in shape and most of the time you can test the skill in sparring in all competition without the risk of any serious injury. BJJ in my opinion is far from a complete martial art on its own, but because of the other martial arts that I study, I have never bothered to concentrate on the “self-defence” aspects of BJJ because on the whole those are not the methods I would use to defend myself. As you can see Carl I used the politician’s tactic and didn’t really answer the question!

CF: How do you keep on top of all your training in the various arts? Do you have any free time?

DO: Do I have any free time: No, that’s the simplest question you’ve asked me so far! Keeping on top of the various arts has been difficult but again in a sense not so difficult. They say once you learn how to ride a bike, you never forget and therefore I would say the secret is to learn how to ride the bike properly first. This is what I have done in relation to all the martial arts that I have studied.
I have spent time with them more particularly when I was younger, studying in-depth and prepared to spend as much time as possible with each art to become proficient. It was never really my intention in any art particularly to get the Black Belt, “as the goal”. I am not saying that I never wanted to obtain a Black Belt or instructor level status but more important to me was to be good enough to achieve that level. This is why for example with BJJ it took me 12 years to get my Black Belt because I was not training in it full-time five times a week as my only art even though I have placed a heavy percentage of my time on it over the past few years. I have also tried to see the common links between all of the arts so that when I practise striking, I do so having regard to how I might use it in boxing, kick/Thai boxing, MMA or even on the street.

CF: You have an outstanding BJJ competition career; what have been your most memorable moments on the path to Black Belt?

DO: Thanks Carl but I think you are being a little bit kind with reference to my competition career. If the truth be told I have not really done lots of competitions over the years particularly due to time constraints, living my life generally and having regards to my priorities, but one thing I always wanted to do in relation to BJJ was to improve myself in any way possible and that also included testing myself in competition. There are many, many, many practitioners in this country who certainly compete more than I do and in fact are probably better competitors but then again that’s their journey and this is mine. Having said that there are many BJJ practitioners in this country who hold ranks of Purple Belt and above who have never competed and that is something that they have to deal with themselves. In my view, subject to any physical ailment, every BJJ practitioner should compete at least once or twice at each belt regardless of the outcome because it is a necessary part of the BJJ journey. I also feel it’s a bit difficult to try to explain to a student how she or he should react under the pressure of a competition and what kind of problems they might encounter if that instructor has never had those pressures themselves. I would guess that my most memorable moment on the path to the Black Belt was winning my first European championship when I attended in 2008 and fought as a Purple Belt. I was encouraged to go and fight by my good friend and Roger Gracie Black Belt Nick Brooks who gave me the courage to go out there and put myself on the line and so I did. I am ever so grateful to him for that because I am not sure that I would have actually gone to fight without him pushing me. I was then fortunate enough to win the following year as a Brown Belt and then also in 2010 to take the Brown Belt title for the second time. I have fought and won at every belt prior to achieving my Black Belt save for white belt, as I wasn’t really one for long.

David receiving his black belt on the poduim of the 2010 European Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Championships

CF: Do you change any part of your training when heading for a competition?

DO: Yes I obviously increase my cardio training and centre my game around the principle things that I plan to do in competition. Obviously I make sure that my diet is what it should be and basically I try to keep myself in prime shape for the competition.

CF: Are you going to compete as a Black Belt this year?

DO: I will of course compete as a Black Belt but at this moment in time I am not sure when that is going to be.
CF: Have you competed in other Martial Arts formats?

DO: I competed in the British Kung Fu Association competitions when I was younger and I have done some amateur inter-club MMA competitions whilst in the States.

CF: BJJ training and competing can take you round the globe; where have you trained and competed abroad and where is your favourite destination?

DO: I have trained in many places around the world. I have been fortunate to travel to most of Europe including Belgium, France, Italy, Portugal and Germany and I have also trained in Canada, San Francisco and Los Angeles. I really enjoy going to Canada because that is where one of my best friends and Filipino Martial Arts teacher Guro Desmond Watson lives.

CF: You have recently trained with Leo Vieira in June this year; what was this like and who else was there?

DO: Yes Leo was recently over in the UK. He took a couple of seminars for the Checkmat team. One was at their London HQ at Diesel Gym and the other one was at a Checkmat gym in Rochester. There were several Black Belts there including Monstro, Eduardo Azevedo, Claudio and others. He taught Gi and No-Gi. It was a fantastic seminar and then I also managed to train with him in a private lesson the following day. Funnily enough even though he taught me some really useful stuff for my game, it was what he told me more than what he showed me, which stuck. He said that every year he works on a new position and its variable for a period of one year, and then after he has perfected it, he teaches it to all his students. It really made so much sense and I have already started to incorporate his approach into my training already.

CF: What’s your connection with Mill Hill David?

DO: Mill Hill Jiu Jitsu is the academy of my good friend Nick Brooks. We have been friends for a long time and have been training together as friends since we were both Blue Belts even though at different schools. Neither of us can stand politics. Through our friendship, I have taught many times at his academy because it is close to me and very often he shared techniques with my group of guys. I am currently the Head MMA coach at their academy and helping to develop that side of things.

CF: You have a conditioning coach, Andrew Marshall; how long have you been training with him? What benefits have you gained from your time with him? Has the training helped improve your BJJ and other arts?

DO: Strength and conditioning training is very much an under-rated part of Martial Arts. It obviously has become more and more important because competing has become more and more important and more professional and therefore people have had to adapt their training to that kind of level, however it is still far from something everybody does. The first person who really got me into conditioning and training is my very close friend and student Corey Donoghue (Doninho). He is an ex-professional football player and also a football coach. His never give up attitude has really influenced me and even though I was his Martial Arts coach he became my conditioning mentor. That then led me to train with Leon Baillie of Highgate Fitness Studios. I started to train with him on a one-to-one basis and he took my fitness to another level pushing me harder and harder, but I was unable to do as much as I would like to do with him because of the pressure of timetables. For the past six months or so I have been training with “Android” Andrew Marshall. I am not one to sing praises easily but this guy is absolutely fantastic. His knowledge and understanding of fitness, strength and conditioning is far beyond my comprehension. No two sessions are ever the same and being a Kettlebell Champion and Martial Artists himself, he is able to appreciate the sort of things that I need.Training with him has increased my strength, stamina and explosiveness. This has definitely crossed over to all of my Martial Arts training. He is the head S & C coach and joint owner of the Mill Hill Combat and Conditioning Centre and anybody looking to improve their fitness and get a better understanding of their body would do well to contact him.

CF: You have embraced the Internet and have a well-followed blog. How do you find the blog as a way of communicating with the outside world?
Very simply it’s a great way to communicate and keep in touch with people that you obviously wouldn’t see on a daily basis. It’s also great for sharing information with people who have an interest in what you do. Generally any video material I have is posted on my blog because that way if people are interested in me or in what I do they can go there and look for it rather than posting it myself on a YouTube account (not that there is anything wrong with YouTube).

CF: You post on the EFN Forum as ‘Malandro’; any meaning behind the name?

DO: It is the BJJ nickname given to me by 9 times World Champion Ricardo Vieira in 2004. Unfortunately Malandro, which is Portuguese, can have a negative as well as a positive meaning. He told me that he was giving me that name because he felt that my game was well rounded and that I was adaptable to all situations and therefore I took him at face value, unless of course secretly he was trying to tell me that I was dishonest and a scoundrel.

CF: You’ve had some guest instructors on your blog in the Technique of the Month section, can you name a few of your learned colleagues?

DO: For those that have appeared on the blog so far in relation to BJJ as guest instructors include Nick Brooks, Alan “Finfou” Do Nascimentl and Eduardo Azevedo. There will be many, many more as time goes on and I have footage of Leo Vieira to upload.

CF: Are you active on the seminar circuit?

DO: I do as much as I can time willing and also subject to demand. If anybody is interested they are more than free to contact me and will find my details at the foot of this interview.

CF: Moving to BJJ again David; do you feel that the art has a high dropout rate, especially at the White Belt/Blue Belt stage?

DO: Many people get to Blue Belt and then give up, after years of training and dedication, spending a lot of time and money on their training. I know this from my own experience as a coach and from talking to other coaches unseen, which I think is unfortunate to see all that hard work going to waste. What is your opinion on this? Have you had similar experiences yourself?
I am not necessarily sure that there is a higher dropout rate in BJJ then there is to other arts but I suppose it might seem like it mainly because it takes longer in BJJ to progress to the next skill or belt level and therefore if somebody leaves it is usually more noticeable. In other arts where it can be easier to obtain a Black Belt people still drop out but then they tend to stay towards gaining their Black Belt, as they know that there is probably a realistic opportunity for them to get it in the not too distant future whereas this is obviously not the case with BJJ. It is always a waste when anybody invests time and effort into something and then drops out but then if it isn’t for them then so be it.
I would hope that nobody drops out of BJJ simply because they didn’t like it or because they didn’t get on well with their teacher but as I say, it does happen. I tend not to worry too much about those who drop out but rather those that remain.

CF: Have you ever hit a plateau in your training, and, or teaching, and if so, what have you done to overcome them?

DO: Oh yes, in both. It has happened to me many times and sometimes it can seem extremely difficult to overcome them particularly when you yourself don’t know the answer. The secret really is to find the answer and that answer may come from a friend, a training partner or even your teacher. There is always an answer to everything. It is easier to find an answer to a problem when you know that there is an answer as opposed to when you have a problem and you think there is no answer because therefore it will never materialise. In short I have always sought the answer and it has always come.

CF: What advice would you give to other BJJers that hit a plateau or maybe feel like they are losing motivation to keep training?

DO: I would always say don’t give up. Talk to someone as I have suggested above and maybe all that is needed is a change in the way that you train. It is easy to hit a plateau or to lose motivation if you never had a goal or a game plan in the first place. Goals and game plans help you to structure yourself in order to move your journey forward. If you don’t have one it’s easy to feel that you are floundering in the dark and in reality that’s probably what you are doing.
Thanks for taking an interest in what I do and me and I wish all the readers every success in all they do - “Intelligent Combat”.

Contact details for David Onuma
E-mail: info@davidonuma.com
Website: www.davidonuma.com
Blog: http://www.combinedfightingsystems.blogspot.com/
Carl Fisher (AKA The Fighting Photographer) is a BJJ/MMA journalist, photographer and referee; a purple belt with the Combat Base UK network, Carl’s work can be found on the internet and on his Blog: http://thefightingphotographer.blogspot.com

Corey 'Doninho' Donoghue - Bournmouth BJJ Open - Blue Belt Champion (senior div) - 3.10.10

2010-10-04T01:49:00.000-07:00

A big congratulations to Corey who won his division on Sunday despite having a hidden but badly injured rib. He had one fight but was still the victor in very convincing fashion dominating throughout and losing no points. He fought in the mixed absolute division too but couldn't on this occasion manage to get past the 20kg difference between him and his opponent.

CFS BJJ Bournmouth also had a very small presence at this competition. They didn't quite perform as well as they could but watch out....it's early days. Good effort!!

The competition was well run and there was a decent turnout even though I understand it was not quite as busy as last year.

I was refereeing pretty much the whole day and managed to assess the general standard of BJJ. As a whole, It was very impressive at all levels (white to purple). Being as honest as I always am, there was a particular team present with some very very good white belts, who upon further investigation, have perhaps TOO much experience as white belts and really shouldn't have been entering at that level.....not a good trend developing there I suspect.

There was good unity from all the refs and Instructors and the following Blackbelts were in attendnace with their respective teams:

Alex Machado
Ivan Marciel
Eduardo Azevedo
Thiago 'Monstro' Borges
Abel Martinez
Luiz 'Manxhina'
Marco Canha
Luis Tosta

(apologies if I missed anyone out)

I had a great day out particularly travelling there and back with Doninho, Strauss and the Android Andrew Marshall (the kettlebell guy - hehehehe!), who next time won't forget his T shirt!

Tony Ligorio - Second Full Instructor under Master Bob Breen - 26.9.10

2010-09-27T03:26:00.000-07:00

This weekend, my teacher Guro Bob Breen held another of his infamous 2 day Instructor camps in London. As usual it was well attended with locals as well as students from Germany and Italy. One of those students was Tony Ligorio, who is the official representative of Guro Bob in Italy and has been his student for nearly 20 years.

On the second day of the camp, he was formally promoted by Guro to the rank of FULL INSTRUCTOR making him only the second person to receive that honour.

It is a fantastic achievement and if Tony felt anything like I did when I was promoted in March 2008, I can say it's a feeling that cannot easily be described.

Tony is a dedicated family man and martial artist. I have trained and sparred with him countless times over the years both here and Italy. He is very humble and unassuming but many people get a real shock when he turns it on as he really knows his stuff in practice as well as in theory. I have been on the recieving end of a few of his right hooks over the years.

Tony is a long standing and very accomplished martial artist. Below is a summary of some of his achievements but certainly not all:

*Full Instructor - Guro Bob Breen

* Black Belt - Took the infamous test and passed - Guro Bob Breen

*Coach Level 1- CSW under Sensie Erik Paulson

*World Stickfighting Champion - 1998

*2 x European shoot boxe champion

*7 x Italian Kung fu champion

*Tai chi Instructor

*Kicboxing & MMA record of 81 fights with 73 wins

*Owner and operator of one of the largest schools in Italy

*has written books on Shoot Fighting

Once again - Congrats my friend

www.tonyligorio.it

Martial arts illustrated - October 2010

2010-09-14T03:01:00.000-07:00

Apparently, some guy called David Onuma is in the October Issue coming out on 16th September 2010 :)

One Year Anniversary - Mill Hill BJJ - 12.9.10

2010-09-13T01:03:00.000-07:00

It was an honour and pleasure to attend the one year anniversary of Mill Hill BJJ on Sunday 12th September. The plan was for Roger Gracie to attend in order to teach a few techniques and officiate the grading that was also due to take place. It was more or less standing room only with what looked like 50 plus people in attendance to show their support.

There was the full range of belts in attendance with all from Black to White. Unfortunately, Roger was unable to attend so the guys had to make do with being taught by Nick Brooks and myself, with young Dan Strauss taking care of the warm up

(see vid below for numbers/warm up)

Nick (despite recovering from recent knee surgery!!) kicked things off by teaching a series of techniques fresh from his recent training with Master De La Riva.

He taught a variation of the lapel/posture break and arm wrap when the person is in your guard leading to a very slick back take and then an even slicker armbar if they manage to avoid the back take. It was niiiiicccce!

.....the set up....

....the armbar

I taught some of the principles and concepts from the half guard position both top and bottom. Rather than concentrating on loads of techniques, I wanted to emphasize the need to understand what each hand and your legs are supposed to be doing from the top and bottom position. I then taught the way that I attack the Kimura from half guard which seems to have a high percentage success rate for me

After this began the formalities of the grading:

Andrew Marshall - Blue Belt

Steve Carr - Purple Belt

Steve Griffiths - Purple Belt

Rob Connor - Brown Belt

There was also a number of stripes given out to various people from white to Purple Belt. Parabens to them all!!

We then had some great rolling followed by the long awaited sushi trip in Edgware where some people ate like there was no tomorrow!!! Hehehe!

A great day

CFS BJJ SEMINAR/GRADING - 29.8.10

2010-08-30T14:02:00.000-07:00

On Bank holiday Sunday, we gathered together for a day of fun, training, meeting new people and finally formally recognising the progress of some individuals personal BJJ journey.

The CFS BJJ family is a combination of different people and groups both here in the UK and abroad. It is a relatively small group but with a big presence. Apart from the group who train with me directly, we have the group based in Barnet at Gary Hoptroff's academy (Herts Martial Arts) taught by Corey Donoghue, Vitaliano Sestito in Italy, Affiliates Andy Nugent also based in Hertford and Gary Baker/Scramble Academy based in Bournmouth.

Congratulations to all who were promoted in one way or another:

(In no particular order)

Corey 'Doninho' Donoghue - Blue belt 4 stripes
Tim Harding - Blue belt 1 stripe
Steve 'Longrinho' Payne - Blue belt - 1 stripe
Savash Mustafa - Blue belt - 1 stripe
Gary Hoptroff - White belt - 3 stripes
Jay Walker - White belt - 2 stripes
Pad Beillard - White belt - 1 stripe
Mark Kelly - White belt - 1 stripe
Darren Owen - White belt - 1 stripe

And last but not least, congrats to 41 year old MMA fighter Alan Dillon who was promoted to Blue Belt with my blessing by his instructor 1 Stripe Brown Belt Andy Nugent - He did get a whipping.

Apologiies if i have missed anyone out but if i have let me know as it's easily rectified.

A big thank you to my good friend Nick Brooks for allowing us to use his excellent gym

CFS BJJ SEMINAR & GRADING REMINDER - 29.8.10

2010-08-27T07:33:00.000-07:00

Hey Guys,

Just to remind you that we have the seminar this weekend from 11.00 to 3.00pm. Bring your cameras as we will be having great fun

See you there

Daniel Strauss V Raphael Narv - Brighton BJJ Open 2010 - 21.8.10 - Purple Belt Ultra Heavy Division

2010-08-23T02:38:00.000-07:00

A great fight at the competition - perhaps a classic example of David and Goliath especially bearing in mind Daniel is NOT ultra heavy!

MMA Training - MHCCA - 17.8.10

2010-08-18T05:26:00.000-07:00

Great training last night guys!!! An hour of sparring with very little breaks and constant changes of partners.

I think almost everyone took home a momento of their training in the form of a bruise, knock, sprain or shin clash including yours truly but it was all in good spirit.

We will formalise the team for the MMA league next week

"Intelligent Combat"

New Interview @ Kombatclinic.com - 17.8.10

2010-08-17T09:35:00.000-07:00

Hi Guys,

I was interviewed earlier this month by none other than Carl Fisher aka the fighting photographer and that issue can now be found on line in this well known UK based on line magazine.

I hope you enjoy it

http://kombatclinic.com/2010/08/david-onuma-interview/

A 'centreline' punch from the past....

2010-08-10T06:49:00.001-07:00

I recently got sent this photo by Sifu Segun Johnson (on the right in the pic). The picture was taken sometime in the very late eighties at Sifu Nino Bernardo's famous Basement Kwoon in North London. Segun even then was one of Sifu Nino's top students and (from memory) was one of only 7 students at that time that had completed the whole system under Sifu Nino.

The picture really takes me back and I notice and remember many things:

1. Segun was giving me a pasting :)
2. I had an AFRO..... Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahha!!!!!
3. Geeez my arms were big in that pic!! Wouldn't it be great if I could cut n paste onto my body now

CFS Promotions - Filipino Martial Arts & JKD Concepts - 6.8.10

2010-08-09T07:49:00.000-07:00

On Friday 6th August 2010, it was my honour to promote Carl Jackson to the level of Associate Instructor in the Filipino Martial arts and in the Jun Fan arts.

Carl has been studying with me for 11 years and I have seen him transform into the World class martial artist that he is now. He has a Black Belt under Master Bob Breen and is also authorised to teach a family system of FMA direct from the Philipines. I have watched his eagerness to learn and test himself manifest into the realisation of his current being. Approximately 2 years ago he started travelling to Northampton to train with fellow CFS Instructor and World, European and British Stickfighting Champion Guro Roger Barnes to develop his armoured stickfighting skill.

Following that training he became the British Champion and obtained a Silver medal in the European Championships. This year, he trained mentally & physically for the World Championships which just took place in Mexico and he took Silver in the Single stick division. An outstanding achievement.

Becoming an Associate Instuctor (let alone an Apprentice) in my organisation is something that few people achieve mainly because of the high standards I have set in accordance with the standards set by my principal teachers (Masters Inosanto, Breen and Barnett). All of my students are my friends but the standards expected are never compromised by that friendship. Carl is an excellent student, and competitor with a promising future as a communicator of these arts.

He now joins the ranks of the few:

Guro Roger Barnes (Deceased but never forgotten)
Guro Terry Clark
Guro Fabrizio LaRacca
Guro Carl Jackson

I also congratulate Terry Clark who in continuing his studies, has moved to Associate Instructor Level 2 (year 1) and is now in his 3rd year as an Associate.

Congratulations guys and thank you for making me proud

Me, Carl and Terry
Terry and I
The new Guro, Associate Instructor in Filipino MA and Jun Fan, Carl Jackson

UFC Fighters watch out - Star in the making

2010-08-06T06:19:00.000-07:00

Gary Baker Academy/Scramble BJJ - CFS Affiliation

2010-08-06T05:31:00.000-07:00

Hey Guys,

Please check out this article which is self explanatory and contains a good report of the last workshop I did in Bournmouth

Thanks

http://www.thegrapplingdummy.com/2010/07/david-onuma-seminar-affiliation/

The ZERO moment!! - Very nice pics kindly taken by Seymour Yang on 2.8.10

2010-08-05T06:00:00.000-07:00

BJJ Drilling - 26.7.10

2010-07-28T01:28:00.000-07:00

The first drill is one I use when I have managed to pass the guard but my opponent is shrimping away and pushing on my head. I react by posting off my head which is on the floor and hopping over to the other side. This can be done continuously for a minute or so or simply by the numbers

The second drill is practicing 'floating' from side to side keeping knee contact. I normally do this on a grappling dummy or heavy bag on the floor. The idea is to be able to react to the movement underneath and then adjust. This can then lead to submission openings etc without losing the control

Intelligent combat

Promotion to Senior Associate Level 2- FMA & Jun Fan/JKD - July 2010

2010-07-26T02:51:00.000-07:00

This month saw the completion of 11 years as an Instructor under Magulang Na Guro/Sifu Dan on the following martial arts programs:

Jun Fan Gung Fu & Jeet Kune Do
Filipino Martial arts
Maphilindo Silat

I am currently Guro Level 2 in the Silat program and as of this month I was promoted to Senior Associate Level 2 in the Jun Fan and Filipino arts.

It remains one of my greatest martial arts achievements and honours to be a student of Guro and as always I will do my best to be the best student that I can be.

Thnak you to all who share my Journey :)

BJJ in Bournmouth - 24.7.10

2010-07-26T02:36:00.000-07:00

A great session with the group down there which is getting bigger, better and stronger. A great all round gym headed by Gary Baker and well on the way to becoming affiliated to CFS BJJ.

We covered the complete beginners standup program together with maintaining side control.

There was the mandatory rolling for 45 mins or so at the end and the standard was good and improving. Thanks to Corey for his help

World Stickfighting Championships Mexico 2010 - Silver Medal

2010-07-26T02:33:00.000-07:00

I would like to offer my congratulations to CFS and Bob Breen academy Blackbelt Carl Jackson for his Silver medal in the single stick section of the WEKAF World Championships in Mexico this weekend gone. We were of course aiming for the Gold but his achievement was nothing short of excellent and we are all proud of him.

Photos when they become available

MMA Training - 20.7.10

2010-07-26T01:06:00.000-07:00

In the last session, the focus was on clinch work and striking/defending striking in the clinch.

Warm ups:

wrist pummeling
elbow control
chest pummeling
neck control

Drills:

person A seeks the takedown whilst person B can only defend with strikes (punches only)
person A strikes with punches only whilst person B can only clinch and seek the takedown
person A has their back against the cage defending the takedown
person A has their back against the wall defending the takedown with strikes only
person A has their back against the wall defending strikes and takedown with clinch defence only
persons A and B try to strike and takedown against each other off the wall and then on the wall trying to reverse their partner when able

Floor:

In order to develop the use of your legs on the floor, the person in the guard could only use their legs to defend and control whilst the person in their guard could only strike

'Intelligent Combat'

Sunday Training - 18.7.10

2010-07-19T09:24:00.000-07:00

What a great way to spend a morning!!!

I had great training with Jesus, Oya and my good friend and old training classmate Miad Najafi of Alliance BJJ in Brighton

Conditioning training

2010-07-14T06:01:00.000-07:00

My conditioning coach Android Andrew Marshall has really made a difference to my training.

This is a vid of some of the stuff he makes me do 2 times a week but NO 2 sessions are ever the same :)

MMA Training - 13.7.10

2010-07-14T05:41:00.000-07:00

Another great session and good turnout. This week we covered some of the striking techniques and strategies as found in the Filipino Martial Arts (Panantukan) that are able to be utilised in MMA.

We covered:

Jab catch drill - basic
into the cross
catching the jab
parrying the cross
catching the jab and cross leaving a free hand

We also carried out the continuous jab cross drill with the power emphasis on the first and fourth strike........the sound was...........boom tap tap boom tap tap boom tap tap etc

The vid below is that particular drill being practiced. Enjoy!!

CFS Training - July 2010

2010-07-14T05:29:00.000-07:00

A couple of vids showing some of the empty hands and weaponry training - Good Work!

MMA Training - Mill Hill CCA - 29.6.10

2010-07-02T06:08:00.000-07:00

Good training session - Worked on some clinch work and striking from the clinch. Also trained some ground work with one person only allowed tot try to submit from guard whilst his opponent could only strike to the body.

Enjoy the vids

MMA Training - 22.6.10

2010-06-23T06:43:00.000-07:00

This week concentrated on pummeling and body control.

We looked at:

wrist control
elbow control
chest control
head control

We played using the following options:

wrist control only
elbow control only
head control only
wrist and elbow
elbow and head
wrist, elbow and head

These drills give a greater understanding of in fighting and controlling your oppopnent from hand fighting range.

MMA - 15.6.10 - Techniques

2010-06-16T02:24:00.000-07:00

Overview of last night's training:

Floor Bag work

side to side
step over
pop up to knee on belly
knee switch
back switch to mount

4 count basic muay thai striking series

jab, cross, lead round kick (LR), rear round kick (RR)
jab,cross, RR and LR
LR, RR, jab then cross
RR,LR, jab then cross
LR,cross,LR,RR
LR,cross, hook, RR
RR,hook,cross, LR
RR,hook,cross, RR

Lead hook entry (Series 1)

High jab
Low jab
High cross
Low cross
Any kick
Direct
Fake entry

Training With Leo Vieira - 5th and 6th June 2010

2010-06-11T08:08:00.000-07:00

I went to the seminar taught by Leo Vieira on Saturday 5th June 2010 at the Combat Sports academy, Rochester, Kent.

He taught half the seminar with the gi and the other half without. He demonstrated why he was rated by Graciemag as one of the top 3 grapplers in the world with his fantastic understanding of BJJ coupled with his world class ability to convey the skill to mere mortals like me!!

The seminar was well attended - 6 Black Belts including yours truly with only one being non-Brazilian, also yours truly hehehehehe!!

We had a private session the next day but i'm keeping that to myself ;)

MMA Training - Mill Hill CCA - 2.5.10

2010-06-06T08:56:00.000-07:00

In this video the guys are training some of the top control drills with a heavy bag on the floor. I learnt these from Erik Paulson and are an essential part of my grappling and MMA game.

MMA Training - Mill Hill combat & conditioning - 18.4.10

2010-04-29T01:15:00.000-07:00

As some of you guys may know, I have a very long association with BJJ Black Belt Nick Brooks and his Academy based in Mill Hill.

I am honoured to be their MMA coach and the journey to success from humble beginnings has begun.

On Sunday 18th we had our first clinic and (as promised) I set out below the things that we covered.

Basic Stance/Posture:

For MMA
Long range striking
Close range striking
Wrestling base
pros and cons of each
Ability to adapt physially and mentally

Basic Footwork:

Positioning of the feet - keeping the right distance
Directions of movement - left/right/front/back & pad circling
single steps/shuffle
double steps/shuffle
Single complete steps - forward and backwards
knee raises/bounces - vertical, outside crush and cross crush

CFS Progression No 1:

jab
double jab
jab, cross
double jab, cross
jab, cross, hook
cross, hook, cross
(slip) hook, cross, hook

BJJ Techniques of the month - April Madness

2010-04-04T08:36:00.000-07:00

Hey guys

Seasons greetings to you all. Unfortunately, I was not able to put up BJJ techniques in February or March, so I am kicking off April with a host of techniques to make up for it. I don't think you will be disappointed. Performing some techniques and helping me with mine is Alliance BJJ Representative Miad Najafi, who is a very well respected Brown Belt (From Ricardo Vieira), living and teaching in Brighton. He recently returned from Atlanta where he trained with the Alliance team and in particular Cobrinha. He is a versatile martial artist with a background in JKD & Kali (Black belt), trained in wrestling, a former amateur boxer and versed in MMA. His website can be accessed via the links section on this blog.

In this series we cover attacks from the back, sweeps from half guard and some techniques from spider guard. Please enjoy and as always feel free to comment

Attack from the back - the detail is what is all important

The same technique shown again one more time

A nice sweep from half guard shown here

A similar sweep from half guard in response to the legs being crushed prior to an attempted guard pass

Here Miad demonstrates an Omoplatta attack from spider guard

Here i demonstrate another way to attack the omoplatta from the spider guard followed by a way to take the back from the same guard

Corey Donoghue - British BJJ Open Champion 2010 - Blue Belt - Masters/seniors - Middleweight

2010-03-29T02:53:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Corey Donoghue - The new British BJJ Open Champion 2010.

Corey did himself, his team and I proud at the tournament on Sunday 28th March 2010.

He fought in a division of 19 fighters where the standard was high. He had 5 fights dominating everyone and never lost a SINGLE POINT or ADVANTAGE.

He swept four out of his 5 opponents and racked up over a total 45 points, beating one opponent 19-0. What is equally as impressive is the fact that he seriously injured his knee and ankle in the second fight and the medics told him not to fight any more.....but they didn't know Corey very well as he had 3 further fights. He wanted to fight the Absolute division too, but as his coach I had to think of his safety and called it a day.

As a team we thank all our friends and supporters who are always there for us :)

CFS Sensitivity Training - 19.3.10

2010-03-29T02:39:00.000-07:00

In this video, Corey and Jesus are training sensitivity material for speed and co-ordination. They did it very well plus had a lot of fun so I thought I would share. Enjoy ;)