Demian Maia: Smashing the Guard - An analysis of pathways to the mount and back (gif heavy study)

Wow, very cool. Wish I was more awake to be able to get more out of it.
 
That looks like a really good read. Thanks TS, bookmarked for later because the man's got to work.
 
Cool gif and explaination of Maia chaining together the wrestling trifecta:
High crotch, double, and single leg takedowns.

I don't know much about his BJJ game in BJJ, but I watched one match recently against Jacare, where Maia was pulling Jacare into his guard a lot.

So was Maia's BJJ game usually guard heavy? If so, i guess he did have to modify his game for MMA quite a bit, which is impressive.
 
https://docs.google.com/document/d/19slUdRluinXLuibxVwetvee3bg0Lvm8BhhVENyra9V0/edit?usp=sharing

I usually do BJJ focused studies but I thought some of you might enjoy this!

Make sure to check out the fight by fight breakdown at the end, I look at all the relevant sequences from Maia's MMA fights and add in some additional details in the comments.

Its been quite a long time since i cared enough to log into the Sherdog forums but your post definitely piqued my interest. You are seriously INTPing it up in this place with such a thorough and excellent analysis of Maia's game. Really excellent work bruh.
 
Cool gif and explaination of Maia chaining together the wrestling trifecta:
High crotch, double, and single leg takedowns.

I don't know much about his BJJ game in BJJ, but I watched one match recently against Jacare, where Maia was pulling Jacare into his guard a lot.

So was Maia's BJJ game usually guard heavy? If so, i guess he did have to modify his game for MMA quite a bit, which is impressive.

Maia was just denying Jacare the 2 points. BJJ dudes usually do this against people with better wrestling or judo like Jacare.
 
You're too good for the heavies. Send this to f12.

You want to let those cultists hoard everything? Porra, when one of the normal ones reaches out to the Heavies we have to make sure to welcome them, and to not look a Gambledub in teh caralho.
 
Maia was just denying Jacare the 2 points. BJJ dudes usually do this against people with better wrestling or judo like Jacare.

CULTIST!!!!!

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You're too good for the heavies. Send this to f12.

One step ahead of you!

Cool gif and explaination of Maia chaining together the wrestling trifecta:
High crotch, double, and single leg takedowns.

I don't know much about his BJJ game in BJJ, but I watched one match recently against Jacare, where Maia was pulling Jacare into his guard a lot.

So was Maia's BJJ game usually guard heavy? If so, i guess he did have to modify his game for MMA quite a bit, which is impressive.

@loyalyolayal pretty much nailed it with this...
Maia was just denying Jacare the 2 points. BJJ dudes usually do this against people with better wrestling or judo like Jacare.

However to be at the elite level of BJJ you need to have a good guard and top game regardless.

Its been quite a long time since i cared enough to log into the Sherdog forums but your post definitely piqued my interest. You are seriously INTPing it up in this place with such a thorough and excellent analysis of Maia's game. Really excellent work bruh.

That's awesome, i'm not too sure what INTPing is but i'll take it as a compliment!
 
One step ahead of you!



@loyalyolayal pretty much nailed it with this...






That's awesome, i'm not too sure what INTPing is but i'll take it as a compliment!

I just saw that comment. it is definitely INTPing! I am INTP myself and certified MBTI practitionner. send me a message if you want information about this or even a free testing ( a real one, not the free online ones, to thank you for the quality post) now I'm off seing who mentionned this ! :)
 
Nice stuff. Glad you mentioned Lavato's pressure passing game, as Maia's guard passing is very similar. One thing I think you missed is Maia's mastery of the single leg takedown, particular as a pathway to the back against the cage. I would go to say its the best ever in MMA, and every MMA grappler should study it. Against the cage, he's immediately taking your back as you defend the single leg, if in open space he runs the pipe as good as any, but the transitions between running the pipe and setting up the back take against the cage, there is nobody better. His work recently against Matt Brown was nothing short of phenomenal.

/edit reading some more, you have touched on it when describing the 'leg mount'

I never heard the term Dope Mount, but it is a common pass in my own game, basically a smash pass to step over the hooks directly to mount. One of my favourite passes.

Great read
 
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Nice stuff. Glad you mentioned Lavato's pressure passing game, as Maia's guard passing is very similar. One thing I think you missed is Maia's mastery of the single leg takedown, particular as a pathway to the back against the cage. I would go to say its the best ever in MMA, and every MMA grappler should study it. Against the cage, he's immediately taking your back as you defend the single leg, if in open space he runs the pipe as good as any, but the transitions between running the pipe and setting up the back take against the cage, there is nobody better. His work recently against Matt Brown was nothing short of phenomenal.

I never heard the term Dope Mount, but it is a common pass in my own game, basically a smash pass to step over the hooks directly to mount. One of my favourite passes.

Great read

Good point! Unfortunately there was a ton of stuff I didn't get time to mention (I could write that length just on his dope mount lol) but that is a very good point! I love how his entire game works as a funnel to the back or mount.

Yeah the dope mount has as many names as it has variations, it's one of my favorites too! I think BJ Penn might have called it the dope mount, and that was the first time I really saw it used so often so I kept calling it that haha!
 
Got to the end, bookmarked and now I'm going through your other studies. Top stuff, a great lot of work and an excellent read for the BJJ/grappling afficianado. I'm assuming you have trained and are a student of the game yourself?
 
Reading now. Great work, TS.

Maia is one of my favs
 
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