What I've learned watching Copa Podio

1. Keenan is a beast, but needs to grow more as a complete grappler.

2. Rodolfo is the best gi fighter on the planet (I believe the Buchecha match was a fluke).

3. Top game at the highest level (particularly at the higher weight classes) wins championships.

4. Rodolfo is the best passer in the game.

5. Is it just me or is there a lack of common sense pulling guard on RODOLFO VIERA (I know his stand up is some of the best bjj has to offer but I know Xande and Leo train their stand up rigorously, have some faith in your game)?

6. Leandro Lo will reign terror for years to come.

What about you guys?

 

1. Yes, good assessment
2. I agree Rodolfo is the best, but saying the Buchecha match was a fluke is not giving Buchecha the credit he deserves. He fought a great match, and I think every match between them will be close.
3. At HW, good TDs and passing game wins titles. It's just so hard to play guard against a huge strong guy with good base, and if you get passed you're not getting your guard back.
4. Yes, though the Mendes bros are close
5. I have no idea why anyone would pull guard against Rodolfo. You have to fight him standing, which is possible as Buchecha showed.
6. Oh hell yes. LW is such a fun division to watch, but he does a few things so well that he's always going to be a contender in any tournament he enters.

 

agree with 1,3,4 and 5

disagree with the rest

 

Not a big Lo fan? I think him and Lepri will have a great rivalry. Has he fought Langhi or Celsinho? Those would both be awesome matches.

 

Besides not being a big fan, I believe (and hope) LW will have some good newcomers.

I do like Lepri though

 

Yea, he beat langhi.

Agree with 6. I'd like to see Lo go for the finish more though.

 

I learned that I prefer a 20 min, submission only match, to a 6 minute match that is won by an advantage.

I would love to see these guys go further and find out what would happen at the 12, 15 or the 20 minute mark.

 

Leandro Lo plans to make the move to middle weight, which i feel has less overall competition. Marcelo and Claudio are the only guys i see him losing to...and maybe DJ Jackson.

 

buchecha pulled guard and swept rodolfo in their match, xande tried to stand with him at worlds and got thrown

 

Buchecha won that match with a double leg, and he hit wrestling style sweeps at least once. I think Rodolfo's Judo is great, but his wrestling is a little lacking (one reason I think he's so much better in gi). I think it's something Buchecha and others could continue to exploit.

 

This.

Though I did appreciate the tournament format, as a spectator the 20 minute sub only format is far superior.

And I also realized that Keenan has some holes in his game that he's got to shore up before any talk of black belt. Even though he just got promoted people are talking like he should've just skipped brown completely.

 

I completely agree with that. Buchecha was able to put Rodolfo on his back to neutralize his greatest strengths which are his passing and his top game. However, most guys are usually aren't confident enough to stand with him and just pull guard which plays into his strengths.

 

Lo is going to be a force for years to come. Once Rodofo leaves to make some $$$ in MMA Lo may be the one to fill the void. Buchesha excepted, of course.

 

i think rodolfo's guard is equally as impressive, we just don't see it as much

 

There is still gi MMA? :wink:

 

I think that was a funny moment however; IIRC, Rodolfo has a lapse in concentration (he looks to the clock?) and gets dumped on his back.

Buchecha's hyper-aggressive game was key to beating Rodolfo - he has mean leglocks and as such attacks from so many angles. He's very dynamic and that's hard to stifle, even for Rodolfo.

 

Maybe his guard didn't look overly impressive because he was up against a super aggressive Buchecha. But I have read and seen videos of people saying his guard is comparable to his top game. If that's true, that's real scary.

 

his guard was awesome in that match!

hit a beautiful omoplata sweep straight into leg drag & right at the end went butterfly sweep into armbar... was super impressive!

 

yeah i thought he displayed a very sharp bottom game in that match, too.

can't wait to see them roll again.

 

Agree with most of those except that I think the top game thing is more of a HW thing. Lighter weights it's often a battle of who can pull guard first so as to sweep, and that's often a winning strategy. And I wouldn't necessarily call the Buchecha match a fluke. It's not like Rodolfo was winning and got caught in a quick sub. That was a back and forth match with both guys leaving it all on the map. Rodolfo might end up winning a rematch, but that doesn't mean it was a fluke the first time.