Passing
the Guard
In
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, freestyle wrestling, catch wrestling, and mixed martial
arts, ground fighting is what separates these fighting styles or martial arts
from the striking arts, which include sports such as boxing, kickboxing, or
muay thai. A vital component of ground
fighting is positional dominance. In
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, the “guard” is what protects a fighter on his back from
being dominated in position, or worse yet, from being submitted. In order to defeat the guard of a Brazilian
Jiu Jitsu or mixed martial artist who is fighting off of his back, the fighter
or grappler who is fighting from top position must figure out a way to “pass
the guard.” “Passing the guard” is a
concept that involves maneuvering, stacking, or cutting through a fighter’s
“guard.” A guard can take the form of
full guard, half guard, quarter guard, open guard, butterfly guard, knee shield
guard, or any other position that prevents the fighter on top from gaining side
control, mount, north south position, or any other dominant top control. When a fighter “passes the guard”, that
fighter is able to shut down his opponent’s ground defense, and gain a dominant
position such as mount or side control.
In a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu or grappling match, passing the guard and
gaining dominant top position makes a submission significantly more likely than
when inside an opponent’s guard. In
mixed martial arts, passing the guard also increases the top fighter’s chances
of submitting his or her opponent, but also sets up far easier positional control
to land strikes from the ground (i.e. ground and pound). Either way, “passing the guard” is an
essential skill in any ground fighter’s game, and puts that fighter one step
closer to getting his hand raised.
FightStylez,
as we always do, have illustrated our own little twist on what “passing the
guard” is all about. In this
one-of-a-kind, customized FightStylez tee, we have a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu
fighter who is trying to make his way through security and get to the riches
that await him at a castle at the end of the road. In order to get to the castle, this Brazilian
Jiu Jitsu fighter, black belt and all, is attempting to get past the security
guard, protected in a barbed wire, FightStylez cage clad with camera
surveillance. To do so, he must not only
get past security, but he also must figure out a way to “pass the guard” of the
security guard. This is, in every sense
of the definition of the phrase, “Passing the Guard.” Be sure to show your Brazilian Jiu Jitsu savvy
by sporting this short and showing everyone that you understand what “Passing
the Guard” is all about!
This
t-shirt is custom printed by FightStylez on a 100% cotton shirt, custom printed
in the U.S.A., and multi-colored printed.
Order yours today!
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