MMATraining.com » Brendhan Conlan

Dana White Labels Heel Hooks as “1998 Sh*t”

Brendhan Conlan — Wed, 20 Feb 2013 19:00:59 +0000

UFC President Dana White had a lot to say after the conclusion of last weekend’s lineup in London for UFC on Fuel 7. Addressing a group of media members after the press conference had wrapped up, White spoke in particular about a technique considered to be one of the most dangerous in MMA and, in his opinion, one of the least effective.

White’s comments came in relation to an undercard bout between Paul Sass-Danny Castillo where the latter was given a round despite Sass attempting a number of Heel Hooks. The submission specialist never pulled one off and ultimately ended up losing a decision.

“You’ve gotta go for damage,” replied White when asked for his thoughts on the scoring. “F*cking heel hook? I haven’t seen somebody pull a heel hook off in a long time. It’s 1998 sh*t. You ain’t pulling off heel hooks like you used to.”

“Probably the last one was that f*cking tank from Brazil, Rousimar Palhares. And still, when you go for that sh*t you get your head smashed in,” he concluded.

Interestingly enough, Sass actually beat Michael Johnson with the feared finisher in October 2011 and has two other wins on his record resulting from heel hooks. While the technique is certainly difficult to pull off, there aren’t many holds more effective at eliciting a tap.

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MMATraining Take: Though heel hooks are fairly rare in high-level MMA, as are other submissions like Omoplatas, doesn’t mean fighters shouldn’t go for them. If an opening is there, take it, especially when it showcases BJJ as being more than simply Triangles, Guillotines, and Armbars. A heel hook can be as deadly as a perfectly placed overhand right, even more so because of the damage it can dish out. And really, why discourage guys going for Submission of the Nights anyways?

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Spinning Backfist Combo with Chael Sonnen

Brendhan Conlan — Tue, 18 Sep 2012 14:45:22 +0000

UFC middleweight Chael Sonnen is far from a striker and typically prefers to grind his opponents out but if there’s one stand-up technique he’s known for it’s the spinning backfist. Granted, Sonnen’s association with the move is not necessarily a positive one, as an errant spinning backfist led to his doom the last time he duked it out with Anderson Silva.

Regardless, Sonnen still has insight on how to throw the strike as he shows below…

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

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Strength Training with Rousimar Palhares

Brendhan Conlan — Mon, 17 Sep 2012 23:15:08 +0000

UFC middleweight Rousimar Palhares might be one of the division’s shortest fighters but he’s also one of the most physically intimidating. Palhares has muscles on top of muscles, often drawing comparisons to a “tree trunk” or “fire hydrant” given his stocky yet strong make-up.

Palhares provides some insight into just how he gets so ripped in this video, documenting one of his workout circuits:

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

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The Twister with Eddie Bravo

Brendhan Conlan — Mon, 17 Sep 2012 18:15:12 +0000

Twister is a fun, family-oriented game where players flick a spinner and have to position their hands/feet on different colored dots as dictated by the result. THE Twister, however, is a far different situation where body parts may become tangled but in a way creating joy for one party and agony for the other.

Eddie Bravo is a renowned BJJ practitioner with a tremendous amount of influence on the art’s evolution and, as expected, has a few thoughts on how to best procure/finish a Twister.

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Basic Striking with Duane Ludwig

Brendhan Conlan — Mon, 17 Sep 2012 14:45:29 +0000

Age may have caught up with UFC welterweight Duane Ludwig but the accomplished kickboxer-turned-Mixed Martial Artist’s mind is still sharp and full of knowledge when it comes to stand-up.

Here are some pointers from “Bang” when it comes to basic striking…

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

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Explosive Punching Power with Ross Pearson

Brendhan Conlan — Sun, 16 Sep 2012 22:30:34 +0000

Ultimate Fighter 9 winner Ross Pearson has a pretty polished skill-set but is a kickboxer by trade. As such, the 27-year old Brit has some good insight on striking.

In this video Pearson provides pointers on improving an individual’s punching power with a handful of easy-to-do exercises…

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

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Escaping an Armbar with Demian Maia

Brendhan Conlan — Sun, 16 Sep 2012 20:00:21 +0000

There aren’t many Mixed Martial Artists better than UFC welterweight Demian Maia when it comes to the mastery of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Maia’s talents have been on display a number of times in the Octagon including wins over Dong Hyun Kim, Jorge Santiago, Dan Miller, Ed Herman, and Chael Sonnen.

Maia is also an excellent teacher, as seen in this instructional video on how to escape from an Armbar attempt and put the attacker in the same position of either doing so or tapping out.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

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Blocking Punches with Bas Rutten

Brendhan Conlan — Sun, 16 Sep 2012 16:00:53 +0000

It’s fine and dandy to have knockout power or a slick stand-up attack but being able to defend against an opponent’s strikes is as important as being able to leave an adversary reeling with a well-timed punch or kick. One man who knows about dishing out damage while avoiding any himself is Bas Rutten, a legitimate legend of the sport.

Rutten’s approach to blocking punches can be found below…

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Metabolic Conditioning with Gray Maynard

Brendhan Conlan — Sat, 15 Sep 2012 23:15:25 +0000

Training at the same level as a UFC fighter might seem like an unattainable goal but it’s not as hard as one might think, at least if said individual is dedicated to working out.

UFC lightweight Gray Maynard is a perfect example of hard work paying off as this easy-to-emulate training circuit shows:

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

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Triangle Choke with Fabricio Werdum

Brendhan Conlan — Sat, 15 Sep 2012 20:00:28 +0000

UFC heavyweight Fabricio Werdum may train with Chute Boxe, a gym renowned for their collective stand-up prowess, but there’s little doubt Werdum’s bread is buttered on the ground. The accomplished BJJ blackbelt has finished a number of his past opponents by way of submission including Alistair Overeem and Fedor Emelianenko.

One of Werdum’s favorite submissions is definitely the Triangle Choke, a technique he provides pointers on in this video…

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

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