Competed in the 139 intermediate no gi and 139 blue belt divisions at GQ this past weekend. Came away with a silver medal and narrowly missed a bronze.
Actually, the tournament was a huge stepping stone in my career, as there has been a huge discrepancy between my tournament rolling and training rolling. During regular training, I've been able to be incredibly technical, relaxed, efficient, quick, etc. But during tournaments (only done two before this- all last year)- I've frozen up and underperformed.
While I know I could have done better, I actually got over the hump and was feeling comfortable and confident this time. Gotta keep at it and tighten my game up.
no gi-
first match- we touch hands, start handfighting, and then he starts clubbing me in the head. I club him back, and then he seems to get pissed. I try to butt scoot, the ref tells me to get up. He feels weak, so I try to snap him down into a guillotine. Somehow we end up on the ground during a scramble, and I end up on top either in half guard or in the middle of passing his guard. I pass and establish side control, and start putting the pressure on. I try some submission attempts- americana, brabo, etc, but I don't get anything and he gets half guard back. I get an underhook and 101 pass, and continue to drop pressure. I can tell he's winded, and there's no way he's escaping. I move to north south and am working a n/s brabo choke when time expires. I win 8-0 I believe.
second match- semi finals- i am WINDED from the first match, even though i dominated. it's more the adrenaline than anything, but i am DONE. i try and recuperate as much as possible before i get back to the ring. my opponent is larger than me- he says he normally walks around at 155 (+15 lbs on me). i saw him do a flying armbar earlier, so i anticipate some sort of similar thing. i was right- he jumps guard and we land. i make a critical mistake and reach for his hands near his chest in his guard, and he traps and arm and puts on an armlock and cranks it. it's not all the way on, and i lift up. the ref tells me to not slam, so i put him back down, and he rotates his body and puts enough pressure to make me tap. i could have probably gotten out, but i didnt want to risk damaging my arm (no health insurance, etc). he was good, and moved on to the finals in the division. i should've jumped guard on him!
third match- bronze medal match. i am even more dead than the last match, but i drag my body into the ring. i jump guard and work to attack. at one point i almost get a triangle, but he defends by sitting down and then bodylocking over my body. i can't apply any more pressure, and the armlock is out of reach. i should've either swam through the legs or attacked the armlock, but i wasn't thinking clearly. i let go and then turtle to my knees, and i think he gets my back in the scramble. he gets one hook, and then two, and then RNCs me. i don't put up much of a fight and end up tapping.
gi-
first match- i get matched up against the guy i beat in no gi. he's pissed, and is walking back and forth and punching himself in the face while staring me down. i know there's probably no way he can beat me, so i'm not worried. we tie up with the gi grips, and he tries to come for a single leg. he gets ahold of a leg eventually and runs me into the judges table, knocking over the scoreboard and whatever else. lots of people are pissed. we restart, and i just jump guard. i attack a hip bump sweep and look for some combos, and almost take his back. eventually i get a triangle on, tighten it up, pull his head down, and get the tap.
second match- i'm matched up against the guy who won the intermediate no gi, and he looked really dangerous from before. i jump guard and start attacking, almost get the collar choke (don't commit, i don't know why). he stands, i almost get a tripod sweep, and then move to footlock x-guard. i almost sweep, but don't get up fast enough and don't control, so i get an advantage. i think i eventually do sweep him and almost pass, but i don't flatten him (damn, i wasn't thinking clearly- i heard mike yelling "finish the pass" but i didn't react properly), so he gets to his knees. he takes me down from the knees, and we are tied up 2-2 with my advantage. he starts trying to pass again with a double underpass, and i go to my knees to avoid the side control. he spins around and takes my back, and i again don't put up much of a fight as he gets the bow and arrow choke. i think going in i was just content with the silver, and didnt have the drive to finish the fight. it was well within my reach, but i just didn't finish. silver medal.
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lots to learn from this experience. a few key things.
-must relax and be loose in tournaments
-must be more aggressive and assertive
-must figure out standup
-need to be able to sweep in a tournament
gotta ruminate on this for a bit.
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i felt like i could have won every single match i was in, as the margin of victory was so slim. i didn't have the extra push to get over the hill this time, but now i know where i'm at and what i need to do. this was a huge confidence booster, as now i feel like i can hang with the best at my weight and skill level. gotta focus in training, get stronger, and work on my conditioning. this experience will no doubt raise me to the next level.
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