Esdras is a BJJ black-belt
According to Esdras Junior, the back-take is what sets a fighter apart. In a recent interview, Esdras, who represents Ares BJJ, decided to reveal the concepts he relies on to have a good back-take, and which will work for you whether or not you are into competing. The position is simple, but it requires maximum attention when you’re positioning your body and when you transition to control your opponent.
“Keeping calm is essential in situations where you’re close to taking your opponent’s back, whether in a competition or even a training session,” he said. “You can observe that the beginner, or even a more advanced athlete, gets the transition to the back wrong due to the simple fact of not making the right grips on the collar or keeping a good positioning with the hip and knee, where you can avoid your opponent defending the position, as I show in the video.”
He added: “So, to you watching, keep calm and make firm grips before making the jump to the back. Additionally, don’t forget to ‘stretch’ your opponent to make the leg movement easier as you place the hooks.”
Esdras has been practicing BJJ for 13 years and competing at a high level for several years, with a number of gold medals from the IBJJF’s competition circuit to show for it.
