Is closed guard useful for self defence and if so, what's the best way to use it?

During this Lockdown period, I have started a Q&A session with my students, asking me questions on self protection and any problems they are having with their grappling.  This has led to some very interesting questions, one of which I'd like to share here on the Blog with the PSP readers.

This is a topic that gets a lot of discussion on the grappling and BJJ forums, usually under the banner of 'does BJJ work in the street' and sends the forums into meltdown! 

The answer I'm about to give is not about the above mentioned debate, it's based on my experiences working in the security sector for the last twenty two years.

I've been to many seminars and expos and you'll hear guest instructors saying in their system, 'we never go to the ground' or 'don't ever go the floor in a fight'...in truth it's extremely hard NOT to end up on the ground in a live situation, the vast majority of fights I've witnessed both assailants have ended up on the ground and carried on fighting.  Telling students we don't ever go to the floor is a very dangerous statement to make, if these people don't train to get up off the floor as soon as possible they are going to be in a lot of trouble.

I have seen fights ended quickly and decisively with one strike and that's great, train for that for sure, but many fights last longer that a one hit KO, people will throw punches and clinch and then end up on the ground, some will have a head lock on the other and that's when the trouble starts for that person.

If you end up in that kind of scenario above, you need to disengage and get back to your feet as quickly as possible, just in case he has a few mates with him who arrive late to the fight and decide to join in and start kicking and stamping on you. 

You can be rushed rugby style tackle and end up on your back, either in a closed guard position, or with your opponent in between your legs, feet flat on the floor. This has happened to me many times on the doors, it's a very common attack coming head on and if you're unable to thwart the attack you will find yourself on your back.

From this position, you have to get back to your feet as quickly as possible and in my experience, my two main go to moves then and still are the technical get up and scissor sweep, but no hanging about for the four points for mount! 

I covered these two techniques in detail at the PSP seminar in February, explaining that in a live situation, the attacker won't be thinking about his posture, as in a competition setting.  More so, they'll be swinging like crazy to knock you out, leaning in to do so, leaving them off balance, which gives you time to cover the punches and hit the sweep, then you're back on the feet. Don't even think of arm bars, triangles, omoplata's, just hit the sweep and get back to your feet, there are no rules and referee's, you're in a fight for your life.

If you can hit the technical get up, then go for it, the quicker you can get back on your feet the better.

As with the two techniques, both have to be practiced correctly and with the correct form, before moving on to be used under pressure, starting slowly at first, only increasing in intensity when each person is confident to do so.  Practice having your training partner take you down rugby tackle style and work to get up or sweep, then increase the intensity by being taken down and hit.  Again and again. No variations, just the same technique over and over until it becomes second nature.  

Combatives training doesn't need five variations of a technique, because under extreme pressure, you'll be choosing which one to use, by that time you'll have been seriously injured or killed. 

Please let me know if this was of any help to you and if you have any questions of your own, please email me at wimbledonbjj@yahoo.com and I'll do my best to answer them.

Thanks for reading and stay safe!