Bruno Ramos demonstrates a sweep with the help of the lapel. (Photo by Junior Samurai/GRACIEMAG)

Middleweight black belt Bruno Ramos is training balls to the wall to put on a show in the land ruled by Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. To be sure he shines in Abu Dhabi this April, the Gracie Barra black belt is picking up steam, and to do so he took to the mats at last weekend’s Open Ceará tournament, where he one two gold medals–one at adult, the other at master.

Bruno made the most of the trip to Fortaleza to teach one of the sweeps he uses most. Check it out!

When the opponent tries passing guard, the GB Pernambuco representative sets a trap.

First he pushes one of his opponent’s legs and sits, grabbing the other leg and securing the opposite lapel, as you can see at the 1:05 mark of the video.

The opponent tries to advance, but Bruno sinks a hook and wraps the lapel around the opponent’s waist (1:20).

There the opponent starts to feel the treat and tries to grab his head. That’s when Bruno sinks an underhook to impede him (1:32).

To complete the movement he turns his hip and makes a swaying motion with his leg to achieve the sweep (1:44). From there the lapel comes in handy to help him move to mount.

What do you say? How did that work for you?

William Martins, on bottom playing half-guard, tries to sweep Nivaldo Oliveira at the Brazilian Nationals 2012. (Photo by Gustavo Aragão/GRACIEMAG)

When you’re a white belt, there’s nothing worse than having an opponent in your half-guard, bearing his weight down on you and not giving you room to breathe.

That’s why today GRACIEMAG.com is showcasing a basic sweep that comes in handy in precisely such situations: to open up room and relieve the pressure.

In the following video, Professor Adino Souza teaches that the first trick to pulling it off is the underhook.

Note how at 23 seconds in the video he sticks his hand under his student’s armpit, sinking an underhook, and consequently opens up space to work with.

So he locks up his sparring partner’s arm, grabs his shoulder and loops his other arm around the outside of the leg.

Then he opens his half-guard and does a seesaw to invert the position, using minimum effort and maximum efficiency.

Did you like that? Comment to let us know if the position worked for your game.

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