Advanced Grapplering: Berimbolo's and how I'm $%$%ing them up today

**Kintanon** · Posted On: 10/31/2012 6:52pm

For your viewing enjoyment are the following two videos from my recent US Grappling tournament in Virginia Beach.
If you don't care about watching the videos then skip past them for the Berimbolo discussion.

Jump straight to 1:20 for my first shitty berimbolo attempt.

This one is ALL fucked up. Not only do I reach with the wrong hand to secure the belt grip, but I'm unable to invert to make the sweep work properly and take the back, so I end up just dragging him down and forcing the sweep. Stop watching now so that it looks like I'm winning and skip to the next video.

For this one jump to 2:10 for the berimbolo.

This one is a little better. My hooks are better, my control is better, but I STILL secure the belt with the wrong hand, which means I don't have a hand available to hook the leg and help me invert. I still manage to invert for the sweep and get a much smoother transition to the top this time.

For reference, this is how the berimbolo is SUPPOSED to look:

I've been working on the berimbolo as a functional sweep for about a month and a half now. I've worked on it enough to see the mistakes I'm making and know how much more I need to drill it, so let's talk about berimboloing and how other people are using it, whether you feel like it's a 'fad' sweep or not, how you prefer to set it up, how you prefer to counter it, and all that jazz.

**Kintanon** · Posted On: 11/01/2012 10:28pm

So I've talked to a few people about the way I keep reaching for the berimbolo with the wrong hand and I've been told that if I do go for that grip, I can remove my front hook, place the foot behind my opponents knee, and pop to their back using the exact same setup I keep getting.
Going to try that one this friday.

**The Cap** · Posted On: 11/01/2012 10:46pm

So I spent some time today screwing the berimbolo's pooch without a gi. I've seen competitors hit it enough that I don't think it's a fad, heck I've even managed to hit it myself when rolling in a gi. But without a gi I couldn't find a grip and after I inverted and swept my partner's hips would slip off, he'd turn into me and his back would plant itself firmly on the ground. I ended up rolling over into side control every time. Not that I mind side control, but any thoughts on fixing this?

*Should have refreshed before I posted.

Originally Posted by Kintanon

I've been told that if I do go for that grip, I can remove my front hook, place the foot behind my opponents knee, and pop to their back using the exact same setup I keep getting.

In both of those berimbolos you attempted, would your front hook be your right leg? I.e. the one that ends up on top once you've inverted?

**Kintanon** · Posted On: 11/01/2012 11:16pm

Yes, my right leg would be my front hook.
So instead of inverting, apparently with the grips I had it would have been better for me to place that foot behind the knee, and pop to the back.

AS for no-gi berimbolo...
Umm, without a belt or gi to grab maintaining control over your opponent is a lot harder. I've hit it on white belts in no-gi just because they had no idea WTF was going on so I was able to unbalance them just with the DLR hooks and then invert from there.

If you're getting to side control with it then I would be happy with that result. It's a successful sweep to an advantageous position. Right now I'm super happy with it if I can make them fall down reliably.

**2groggy** · Posted On: 11/02/2012 10:46pm

Have the links gone missing?
Were they ever there?
Am I blind?
Am I stupid?
All of the above?

**Hedgehogey** · Posted On: 11/03/2012 4:18am

I wish I could help you but I train at a Relson school and anything invented in BJJ after Sun Ra died is taboo.

***Plasma*** · Posted On: 11/03/2012 2:34pm

I am far from a berimbolo expert, and honestly I use the berimbolo 95% of the time as a way to enter the 50/50 which is my A game vs the DLR which is a work in progress. The main difference from how I do it and what I saw was control of the trapped ankle/foot. I have seen it two ways, one as just cupping behind the ankle or underhooking the front of the shin. I tend to underhook the shin as it helps me invert. But without controlling the foot there seems to be too much play in the leg.

**Kintanon** · Posted On: 11/05/2012 10:21am

Originally Posted by Plasma

I am far from a berimbolo expert, and honestly I use the berimbolo 95% of the time as a way to enter the 50/50 which is my A game vs the DLR which is a work in progress. The main difference from how I do it and what I saw was control of the trapped ankle/foot. I have seen it two ways, one as just cupping behind the ankle or underhooking the front of the shin. I tend to underhook the shin as it helps me invert. But without controlling the foot there seems to be too much play in the leg.

Yup, that's exactly the bad habit I have. Because I keep attacking the belt grip with the same side hand, I don't have that hand available to control the leg, which makes the sweep 100x harder and sloppier.

I only end up in 50/50 when I'm on top and someone else is DLRing me, how are you transitioning to the 50/50 from there without spinning completely to the opposite leg?

***Plasma*** · Posted On: 11/05/2012 6:31pm

Originally Posted by Kintanon

Yup, that's exactly the bad habit I have. Because I keep attacking the belt grip with the same side hand, I don't have that hand available to control the leg, which makes the sweep 100x harder and sloppier.

I only end up in 50/50 when I'm on top and someone else is DLRing me, how are you transitioning to the 50/50 from there without spinning completely to the opposite leg?

I go for the far leg.

**Kintanon** · Posted On: 11/06/2012 11:15am

Originally Posted by Plasma

I go for the far leg.

Ok, that's how I started using DLR, I've only recently transitioned to the berimbolo because it lands me in a better position. I would rather pull of the sweep or the back take than end up in 50/50 if possible, but when I do get there I bust out a Rigan Machado 50/50 ankle lock counter for the win.