Tips/questions (first tourney)

bumma

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I have about 5 years wrestling experience and go to my school's jiu jitsu club fairly regularly. This weekend I'll be going to a Dragon's Lair tournament (my first). For a while I thought my experience on the mat and take down ability would give me a nice edge over the competition since I'll be competiting in the beginner bracket (6 months to a year experience in jiu jitsu). But now I realize that I can't be the only wrestler that has turned to jiu jitsu. So just out of curiousity, how many of you are or know wrestlers that have turned to jiu jitsu? Also, any advice would be great. Thanks.
 
Don't sandbag! 5 years wrestling is insane, you will destroy anyone 6 months to a year. I think you should step up a few division to challege yourself, don't be an asshole and win without trying.
 
Well I know one former wrestler that comes currently to my school and thats about it I think. I'm sure you'll do great at the tournament, not many beginner BJJers will probably have as much wrestling experience as you.
 
I dont think your sandbagging it. I think it depends on your knowledge of submission. I am a fornmer wrestler who trains in JJ now. I was always getting tapped and always giving up my back. So wheh I get wrestlers that come in our school, i really tell them it is a different game. You may be able to take them down. But what is your passing the guard like? What is your submission defense and offense look like? This all has to be taken into consideration. Start off at the bottom and then work your way up the ltter to the higher divisions.
 
Weonlywonsixtwo said:
Don't sandbag! 5 years wrestling is insane, you will destroy anyone 6 months to a year. I think you should step up a few division to challege yourself, don't be an asshole and win without trying.

Oh. I had no idea going beginner would be copping out. This is my first tournament and I was advised to go beginner. If it won't be a challenge then I'll definately go up a level or two. My submissions aren't very good. Usually my game plan is to hit a duck under right off the bat and take their back and try to sink a rear naked choke. Even when I mount someone I usually have a hard time doing anything with it. I'm not that good at sinking armbars or triangles from there yet. My guard game is pretty shitty...I've noticed good jiu jitsu guys can break it pretty easily...on the other hand I'm good at passing guard and have a pretty good defense even though I usually work with instincts rather than techniques.
 
I know a couple of wrestlers turned BJJ guys who train or used to train at our gym.
What you need to consider is the fact that standup wrestling is a lot different with the Gi. Shoots can be stuffed much more easily and if you're unacquainted with the constant pulling of the Gi you can seriously hurt your lower arms or be unbalanced by someone with more experience. I know 'cause I was subjected to this treatment myself.
A lot of Judo guys ( at least here in Scandinavia ) fight as BJJ white belts and might give you a nasty surprise.
Still wrestling is a great background to hail from and you should have little problem trouncing beginners.
The wrestling guys I have encountered at my club are usually at the top of the foodchain in their respective belt levels. If you feel you win too easily fight at a higher level later.
 
Wrestling gives you a great advantage. Work your take downs and guard passes and you should win via points every time in the beginer division. Be wary of submissions and you'll do great. However, by the sound of it you may get tapped in a more advanced division. Good luck.
 
right here,, wrestled and turned jiu jitsu.. i wrestled for 2 years,, long enough to have decent takedowns and defense,, but not long enough to develope bad technique
 
I'm in the same boat, but I wrestled for 10 years. And I'm still training wrestling 5 days a week, and bjj one. I'm going in intermediate no-gi for my first tourney, see how that goes.
 
Wrestling for 10 years and joining intermediate? LMAO. Just join advanced bro, nogi goes by experience you've had grappling. Wrestling = Grappling. At intermediate youll be rolling with people who havent grappled as long. In Gi, go at your belt division.

Men
 
hmmmm, lol, well I never thought about it like that. Meh, I'm going to challenge myself, I'll go advanced and see what happens.
 
rory_44 said:
hmmmm, lol, well I never thought about it like that. Meh, I'm going to challenge myself, I'll go advanced and see what happens.
Plus the belts look fancy as hell.
 
CalfCruncher said:
I dont think your sandbagging it. I think it depends on your knowledge of submission. I am a fornmer wrestler who trains in JJ now. I was always getting tapped and always giving up my back. So wheh I get wrestlers that come in our school, i really tell them it is a different game. You may be able to take them down. But what is your passing the guard like? What is your submission defense and offense look like? This all has to be taken into consideration. Start off at the bottom and then work your way up the ltter to the higher divisions.

Agreed. If you whoop everybodies ass then move up the next tournament. If you have some problems then stay "novice" until you do well. It's simple. But start beginner, for sure.
 
well most people at my bjj school have a wrestling background i would say more then 2/3 have wrestled for over 2 years

as far as your tournament goes 5 years wrestling competing at beginners is nuts you will run over everyone in a sec which is sandbagging and wasting money on your part as you're not challenging yourself at all you should go up 1 division i guess thats 1-2 or 1-3 years and you should still place top 3 i would think ... just work on some tournament specific stuff like holding position, etc and you'll do good wrestling goes a long way in grappling tourneys ... good luck!
 
Go beginner. It's your first tournament for christ's sake.


If you run through the competition easily then you know it's time to move up, but give yourself a chance to get used to the rules.
 
I'm not sure where I'd put you. In my first tournement a guy that wrestled D1 for Ohio entered the beginners bracket and won. At the tourney you were allowed to move up a skill level if you wanted so he did the intermediate division also. He won that too. I call sandbagging.

If you're even with the blue belts in class then go to intermiediate. If you mostly lose to the blues then go beginner.
 
good luck, bring food for the long wait, dont take it too seriously but be focused your first time
 
I would go beginner man. Yeah you've wrestled for 5 years... but thats just one aspect of the game. Subs < points. You may get points for takedowns but if you get subbed then you lose. And besides it's your first tourney, go beginner and get some competitive bjj exp. If you plow through them, advance next time.
 
A wrestler joned my academy 7 months ago and got his blue belt last month. He used to be crazy in training, but now he has the best open guard game in the academy. Hes not agressive anymore, and *SIGH* he doesn't get the take downs anymore. But he wins a shitload now. And one day for whatever reason if he decides to bring his wrestling abilities back to his game, he would be a unstoppable monster and purple in no time... not that he isnt unstoppable now...
 
Just wanted to say thanks for the support and tell you guys I took 3rd in the beginner bracket. If I had kept my head together I think I could've won it but during a scramble I ended up bellying down, which opened me up for a rear naked choke...oh well. The kid I lost to was pretty tough. I'm not sure why he was in my bracket. His first match he tapped the kid in 3 seconds with a flying armbar. Cool...but not something you generally pick up as a beginner.
 
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