Breaking The Guard Podcast

We are still in a drought for MMA events, but we did have a real professional wrestling event with some interesting match ups and MMA crossovers. I then talk about the importance of having the warrior mindset when competing - even if you are an amateur. Visit our sponsors: DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new website, where he is posting new articles daily, new courses being posted frequently, cover...

With little news in combat sports, I take a look back over the past year and reflect upon things I have done and learned. I then look forward to what I wish to do next. Visit our sponsors: DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new website, where he is posting new articles daily, new courses being posted frequently, covering techniques, news, fitness, breakdowns, and much more. You can join as a guest for...

There has been more headlines this year about either unethical or immoral actions from athletes versus achievements or wins. I think that should say a lot about what we should be valuing in an athlete as a coach, but just in case, I will layout my case in detail. Visit our sponsors: DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new website, where he is posting new articles daily, new courses being posted frequen...

We had a strange mix of crossover fight sport events, from MMA to boxing and BJJ to wrestling, with a crossover of ages of 20-30 year old competing with 40+ athletes. Oddly enough, the older athletes were winning, which leads one to ask when is the right time to stop? Visit our sponsors: DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new website, where he is posting new articles daily, new courses being posted fr...

There comes a time where even you favorite moves get put on the shelf to sit and collect dust. Today's podcast discusses when and why that should happen, talking about shifts in both the mental and physical landscape. Visit our sponsors: DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new website, where he is posting new articles daily, new courses being posted frequently, covering techniques, news, fitness, break...

We had several notable rematches in combat sports this weekend, one in WNO between Felipe Pena vs Luke Griffith, the other in UFC 322 with Merab Dvalishvili vs Petr Yan. I talk about the challenge of overcoming a previous defeat, the rest of the fights in UFC 322 main card, and recap my holiday travels with a note about yielding. Visit our sponsors: DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new website, wher...

If there is one aspect that is neglected in training, it's what I'm going to be talking about on this episode. Whether you are a hobbyist, a competitor, or a professional athlete, most ignore this key aspect that defines all champions.  Visit our sponsors: DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new website, where he is posting new articles daily, new courses being posted frequently, covering techniques, n...

UFC Fight Night Qatar's main card was filled with great action - lots of KOs and a submission. But now that the dust has settled, the lightweight and welterweight divisions are looking far more promising compared to the dismal state of the heavyweight division. Visit our sponsors: DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new website, where he is posting new articles daily, new courses being posted frequentl...

UFC 322 was a great night at fights, but the ending left a bad aftertaste in my mouth. There were plenty of hard fought matches, KOs, and submissions, but the co-main and main events where shows of complete dominance without finishing pressure. Visit our sponsors: DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new website, where he is posting new articles daily, new courses being posted frequently, covering techn...

Can you learn martial arts purely from private lessons? Yes, but highly unlikely and not a desirable way of doing so in my opinion. I give my reasons and what I believe is the best approach to using private lessons and instructional courses. Visit our sponsors: DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new website, where he is posting new articles daily, new courses being posted frequently, covering techniqu...

UFC Fight Night 263 had a bunch of finishes in the forms of KOs and submissions, but the things people are talking about are more eye gouges and a potential fixed fight. I'll give my take on that and discuss Polaris 34 and the continued leg lock revolution. Visit our sponsors: DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new website, where he is posting new articles daily, new courses being posted frequently, c...

UFC 321's Heavyweight Championship main event, Tom Aspinall vs Ciryl Gane, was supposed to be an exciting match. Instead, we got the most anti-climatic finish I can recall in UFC heavyweight history. Besides being the champion, Tom doesn't seem to be having any luck with making a legacy. Worse yet, some people are blaming him for what happened. I also briefly recap the recent WNO absolute tourname...

The top three fights of UFC Fight Night 262 had a lot to comment about, with one of the fighters quitting on the stool and unable to continue fighting. I give my take on that and how fouls should be scored. Visit our sponsors: DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new website, where he is posting new articles daily, new courses being posted frequently, covering techniques, news, fitness, breakdowns, and...

It's pretty common to see fighters get broken, or get mentally beat. I discuss this phenomenon, how to avoid it and employ it yourself, giving some personal anecdotes of my competition history in the process. Whether you train for fun or compete, this is an important lesson to learn that most people skip out on. Visit our sponsors: DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new website, where he is posting ne...

UFC 320 was a great card, and one of the best PPVs this year in my opinion. The final 7 fights had 6 finishes, with lots of action, submissions, and knock outs. Even the one fight that went to decision was entertaining with twists and turns throughout. I give my review and breakdown of the fights, and potential match making for the champions. Visit our sponsors: DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new...

Following the UFC Fight Night in Perth, I discuss the devastating aftermath of Carlos Ulberg versus Dominic Reyes, and the controversy between Jake Matthews and Neil Magny. I then revisit Derek Moneyberg, who apparently is going to be sueing Sean Strickland, who also poked at Jake Shields that poked back at him. Visit our sponsors: DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new website, where he is posting ne...

When everyone is focusing on the latest techniques, sometimes it pays off to go back to the classics and reintroduce them. I explore one particular technique I'm bringing back and how you can to. Visit our sponsors: DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new website, where he is posting new articles daily, new courses being posted frequently, covering techniques, news, fitness, breakdowns, and much more....

The Fighting Nerds had boasted a long undefeated streak, with there core team all being undefeated in the UFC. Unfortunately for them, that streak has been snapped this year, and Saturday put the final nail in the coffin for the team's momentum. Where does that put them now? Visit our sponsors: DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new website, where he is posting new articles daily, new courses being po...

This episode is different than any episode I have ever done, as I filmed it while lifting. I wanted to talk about fitness and not being lazy, so I figured what better way to do than while simultaneously doing a lift. Besides seeing how I'm lifting and being able to copy my routine, I talk about the bigger challenge for most people - the mental hurdles. I crush excuses, go over reasons people are s...

I'll cut to the chase - CJI 2 was not good in my opinion. Instead of building on the success of the first event and tweaking things, the redesign of the event created all sorts of new problems. I talk about all my gripes with the ruleset, pacing, promotional material and then of course the matches and results. Visit our sponsors: DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new website, where he is posting new...

I have been sent a bunch of videos last week of random street fights, and we had one notable MMA fighter's son, Rampage Jackson, really hurt someone badly in what was supposed to be a worked event. This once again urges me to get everyone into training, and at the very least, understand what a fight is and isn't. Visit our sponsors: DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new website, where he is posting n...

Is it possible to be too cool under pressure? I argue yes, and I use this UFC as evidence of it. I also go over the main card fights and my takes. Visit our sponsors: DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new website, where he is posting new articles daily, new courses being posted frequently, covering techniques, news, fitness, breakdowns, and much more. You can join as a guest for free to see what the...

Last week I was singing the praises of leg locks. This week, I have to remind you that was specific to grappling, as we just saw how a leg lock heavy game plan was heavily punished in MMA, and in general, bottom grappling. Visit our sponsors: DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new website, where he is posting new articles daily, new courses being posted frequently, covering techniques, news, fitness,...

These past couple of weeks of professional have made an impression on me, in that Aoki locks are very dangerous leg locks that are not to be played around with. Does that mean we should ban them from the sport? Visit our sponsors: DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new website, where he is posting new articles daily, new courses being posted frequently, covering techniques, news, fitness, breakdowns,...

I start off talking about my new love/hate affair with the assault bike, and what I hope to gain from it. There were a lot of events this past week, from PGF, UFC, PFL, BJJ Stars, WNO, CFC, and EBI. I go over some of the results of these events, and what I think grappling can learn from the PGF and CJI/UFC BJJ. Visit our sponsors: DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new website, where he is posting new...