World Martial Arts, the maker of most of my top tape picks, has just released Mario Sperry's Vale Tudo with a tremendous amount of hype. If any of you got WMA's flyer in the mail and read the copy, it is hard to believe that any tape set could live up to the poetic waxwings about how great the tape set is. After watching the tapes, I read the flyer again and actually felt that the flyer did not do the tapes justice. The tapes are much better!!
These tapes should be called the "Sperry System." Sperry shows you how to fight. No, I mean really how to fight. In case you misunderstood me, he shows you how to FIGHT. 100% bullshit free. These tapes are all about systematically dismantling your opponent from beginning to end. I think I finally put my finger on what separates good tape sets from great tape sets like this one. It is when, after watching the tapes, I think to myself "Man, I can't believe he is willing show us this stuff." I firmly believe that Sperry will live to regret making this tape set. Any halfway decent fighter can learn a lot from these tapes and take their game to a much higher level. The tapes have made me rethink and rewatch a lot of NHB fights. I can point out why many fighters have lost their fights by not following the basics of BJJ and I can point to some BJJ practitioners that lost because the strayed from the road map that Sperry presents here (Sperry included, can you say Igor!). It will be interesting to see how many fighters watch these tapes and totally alter their fighting style. I for one will be keeping my eyes open.
You might be saying, "hey, I am just a beginner, are these tapes beyond me." Absolutely not. In fact, they might be a good place to start your training. Sperry cuts through the crap and tells you what he knows works and what moves "his mother would not even use." The moves are all simple and effective. This being said, almost all of the information on these tapes is brand-new.
The two qualities you need to be successful with the information on these tapes are patience and a willingness to mess-up your opponent. I say patience not because it will take you long to learn any of the moves demonstrated, but because one of your strategies in a fight with someone much larger than you is to exhaust them and then move in for the kill. Often this will be your only option (i.e. Smith v Coleman, Royce v. Kimo). Sperry unveils his methods of methodically dismantling an opponent. This systematic and methodical control of an opponent gave Sperry his nickname the "Zen Machine." Watch Mario's fight in Reality Super Fighting and you will see just what I mean.
Obviously, being a Vale Tudo (anything goes) tape set, all the moves are done without a Gi. It took me awhile but I finally figured out what made these tapes different from most of the other no Gi tapes out there (Including tapes 9 and 10 from Pedro 2 which I liked a lot). Most tapes show you moves that use the Gi and then they modify it to be done without a Gi. Sometimes they modify the move successfully sometimes they compromise. In any case you are left painfully aware of the advantages and security that having a Gi to hold onto gives you. In other words, you often feel naked, so to speak, without your Gi. This may sound strange, but, it wasn't until halfway through the tape set that it really hit home that these where all no Gi moves. The way Sperry show the moves and puts them together you don't feel any need for a Gi to make the moves work. This is what makes these tapes a notch above Pedro Carvalho in the rankings.
Yes, it is true that since Pedro's tapes mainly focus on sport BJJ, comparing them to Sperry's is a little like comparing apples and oranges. However, I think it is a much harder task to create a system like Sperry sets up on his tapes without using a Gi than creating a sport BJJ tape set. The bottom line is if you are looking for sport BJJ buy Pedro 1 and 2 (Pedro 3 is good but has too much overlap. Too much coal to dig through to find some diamonds). If you are looking for Vale Tudo/NHB buy Sperry and tapes 9 and 10 from Pedro 2 (they do compliment each other because Pedro show lots of no Gi escapes).
All that being said, let's talk about what is on the tapes. Unlike many tape sets Sperry assumes that your opponent is as skilled as he is. That means he knows a lot of counters and is a smart, strong, and capable fighter. Not some tomato can that you just walk all over. This was very refreshing. I found myself several times sitting back while Sperry showed a move saying "but I would do such and such counter or move," inevitably Sperry would say now let's look at what happens when your opponent does the counter I was thinking of. Another thing that is nice about the moves on this tape set is the fact that they don't rely on your opponent to make dumb mistakes. You can force your opponent into a bad situation.
As a side note, this tape set comes with a free T-shirt (just like Kukuk's tapes did). Often these free T-shirts are like the one Black "Litter Box Liner" Belt Magazine gives you for renewing your subscription. I have several Black Belt Mag shirts that I washed once and now use as a cute hand puppet they are so small. Like I wasn't mad at them enough. I was pleasantly surprised to see that the shirt that came with the Sperry tapes was of high quality and the logo won't disappear when it I get caught in the rain. It is a pretty cool T-shirt. Think of it this way, buy a T-shirt for $250 and get a tape set free.
Bottom Line: These tapes bust the tape market wide open. Sperry's tapes do for Vale Tudo what Pedro did for sport BJJ. Sperry will be the benchmark by which all sets will be measured. The explanation and framework presented on this tape set is one of the most impressive things I have seen in a long time. These tapes kick major ass.
This tape will make your rethink BJJ takedowns (Did I write this line or was it in the ad for the tapes?). You know what I am talking about, shoot in and take them down. You would think there would not be much more to learn that we have not seen on another tape set. Wrong. All this is brand new. The Sperry method has you shoot in and drive your opponent to a wall, car, pole, fence, etc. This prevents many of the common counters to taking someone down (i.e. sprawling). Once against the wall you have a virtual mount. That is to say, your opponent can't kick or punch with nearly as much effectiveness. From here you soften them up and them take them down to the ground. (Anyone who wants to see this for themselves without buying the tapes should checkout the January 1998 issue of Black Belt Magazine article on Sperry. The article details some of what is on Tape 1. I can't believe I am actually telling anyone to read Black Belt. Maybe they are having a change of heart on NHB fighting or the ton of NHB related advertisers got pissed at their petty bashing. For my money I would keep reading Vale Tudo News, Full Contact Fighter, and watching HOOKnSHOOT. These publications are great unlike the hamster buttwipe rag called Black Belt. Meaning, it is best used in shreds in your favorite hamster cage).
Sperry does not assume that when you take them down that you will get the mount. Life is not that easy when you fight an experienced fighter. This leads to the next tape Defeating the Guard.
Sperry spends the time on this tape covering passing the open and closed guard and advising you on how not to get your "face smashed." Sperry can be quite funny throughout the tapes. You will learn valuable lessons on how to avoid ending up like Oleg when he rushed in on Renzo's open guard. This is NOT you standard passing the guard tape. This tape is about fighting. Bullshit need not apply. This all new material.
Let me give you an example of the way these tapes reflect real fighting. Stop and think of how many ways you know how to pass the guard. Now think about how to do it without a Gi. Sperry would tell you to forget all this. Here is how he would suggest you pass the guard.
You are in you opponent's guard. Drop your face to your opponent's stomach. Then extend both of your arms flat on you opponent's chest grabbing his throat like an Au Pair Nanny. Keep your arms tight to the sides of your head protecting yourself from strikes. Stop for a moment. This position, which you will maintain for about 1 second protects your face from being hit. Sperry readily admits that they can hit you but not with what he refers to as 100% shots. All your opponent see is the top of your head and since your hands are holding his throat it is hard to really get any clean shots or leverage.
From this position you pop-up with both of your feet at once to a standing position while putting a lot of pressure on his throat to help you up. Now you are going to trade punches with you opponent. In chess this would be trading two of your pawns for your opponent's rook. It's not a fair trade. It is hard to punch effectively from the guard. While you, on the other hand, have your full body weight to come down on their face. The strategy is quite simple, after you tag them several times your opponent will break the guard. You are "punching your way through the guard." Two guard passes are shown. The second of which I can't wait to try on an unsuspecting opponent. Both are simple and effective.
Once you have passed the open guard you then assume the cross body or side control which takes us to my favorite tape of the set Tape 3 -The Cross body and Knee on Stomach.
Note: Tape 2 ends with round 1 of Mario's fight against Vernon "Tiger" White in the Australian UFC. Tape 4 has round 2 and tape 5 has round 3. Tape 6 has Mario's last two fights in the tournament. From what I understand White is the number 3 fighter at the Lion's Den after the two Shamrock brothers.
This is hands down the best tape of the set. The cross body portion of the tape centers on the standard Judo scarf hold position (kesa-gatame or kuzure-kesa-gateame). Mario totally rewrites the book on this position for me. Sperry has it all planned out for you and hands you the keys. This whole tape breaks new ground.
For example, let's say you have the side control on your opponent's right side. You roll him up a little and start kneeing him the ribs (similar to what Pedro shows on one of his tapes). While this can be great fun in and of itself, the real fun is about to begin. To block your knee strikes your opponent may place his right hand against your striking knee (or at least get in the way of your knee strikes). Once you feel the hand blocking your knee you sit off into base towards your opponent's head into modified scarf hold position. This leaves your opponent with his right arm trapped between you and your own body!!
Now you could be nice and just punch or elbow with your free left hand (your right hand is maintaining control of your opponent's left arm). If your opponent is successful in getting his left hand to a position of blocking some of your strikes you could be nice and transition into an Americana armlock. Or, to not be so nice, you could take your left hand and grab the left side of your opponent's face and turn his head to face you. Now you bring Mr. Right Knee to meet Mr. Face. Maybe they can be friends. Then again maybe not.
In other variations on the same position you end up with your opponent's arm wrapped around his head and then you transition into the mount and proceed to beat him like a drum.
The second half of the tape covers the knee on stomach position. Mario shows you how to get the knee on stomach from the mount and the side control. How to switch the knee on stomach from one side to the other. It was very educational to listen to Mario's discussion of which is a better position the mount or the knee on stomach. To complete this phenomenal portion of tape there is discussion of counters to knee on stomach counters. Run don't walk to buy this tape.
I loved this tape and have already put the moves to work. Christmas came early this year for me. All of a sudden everyone I workout with is having trouble escaping my mount. The combination of mount escape counters presented on this tape will make your opponent's life hell when mount.
This has to be my second favorite tape of this tape set (after tape 3). Actually, I found myself saying that each time I popped one of the tapes in for the first time. This is a great tape that focuses on the mount and the side mount (where you sit off to the side while still having a leg across your opponent). The tape starts with how to hold someone in the mount properly and then moves into how to effectively counter escapes from the mount. Sperry, again, evaluates a variety of mount escape counters and simplifies the moves to the ones he thinks are most effective. Mario also touches on how to get to the knee on chest position from the mount.
The tape then moves into redefining of the side mount. The side mount is where you have your opponent's right arm, for example, wrapped around their head and you slide off to your opponent's right side leaving your right leg draped over your opponent. This is a common variation on the mount. Sperry shows why this position can be unstable and can cause you some problems if your opponent knows a couple of counters. Sperry modifies the position so that you sit more on you opponent's chest and bring your right foot under your opponent's left shoulder until it is near his head. This position which, I have never seen on a tape set before, counters many of the best counters to the side mount. It is also extremely uncomfortable for your opponent even if you are not striking the snot out of them
The tape ends with 10 minutes of fight footage of Round 2 from the Australian UFC where Sperry fights Vernon White. Watch Sperry use just about everything that he shows on the tape set. It is nice to see that Sperry practices what he preaches.
This tape was a breath of fresh air. How many tapes tell you when you have the back mount to just put Hadaka-jime on and the fight will be over? Unless you fight stiffs from the morgue (not a bad way to improve my fight record), your opponents will almost always anticipate this choke and thwart it. This tape explores alternatives to choking that will allow you to tie-up your opponent and choke if that is what makes you happy. This tape is jammed with cool moves and all work. All new and great stuff.
Four positions are covered in this tape (1) The Back Mount (with your opponent under you), (2) The Back Mount (with your opponent on top of you), (3) The turtle, and (4) When you opponent shoots and you sprawl back. Mario starts with the assumption that your opponent would not be stupid enough to give you his back. If it happens so much the better. Mario shows how to force the back mount on your opponent. Once there, Mario assumes your opponent knows that you are going to go for Hadaka-jime. He then walks you through a series of armlocks and strikes that will allow you to choke if you want.
If your opponent rolls, you roll with him, and he is now on top of you. From here Mario shows how to get the armbar. Much more entertaining is the discussion of kicking your opponent in the nuts. When you opponent goes to block your peanut butter making activities you trap his arm with you legs. Now you can go for the Hadaka-jime and there is not much he can do about it.
The instruction on the tape ends with a great discussion of countering an opponent who is trying to stand from the turtle position. There is also a series of moves that are demonstrated to counter someone who has shot in on you and you have sprawled back to counter the takedown.
This tape has the third round of the Vernon "Tiger" White fight with Mario ending up with the victory over White. After this tough fight, Mario goes on to crush two more people to win the Australian UFC. These last two fights are on the end of tape 6.
This tape really makes you rethink the guard. You have seen it time and again in NHB fights where someone will have the closed guard on their standing opponent and they are just eating punches. Mario makes things clear on how to use the guard and more importantly how not to use the guard.
There is an excellent explanation of realistic submissions that the guard position opens for you. The armbar, triangle etc will be familiar to you however, Mario's setup for the moves and his understanding of their use in reality fighting make this new material.
Just as important is Mario's discussion of takedowns and sweeps used against an opponent standing in your open guard. Like everything else on this tape set Mario provides a framework and logical move/counter/move/counter/move. Hopefully this will keep you a move ahead of your opponent.
The tape ends with escapes from common positions like the mount, knee on chest, and the back mount. I am not sure why this material is here as opposed to on the other tapes. Some of this might be familiar from the sport BJJ world. Mario put a whole new spin on things and shows how to minimize your damage while escaping. Sperry lets his partner in the tape set start with his knee on Sperry's chest and then told him to hit with palm heal strikes as he tried to escape. Sperry did this twice because he wanted his partner to really hit him and he did the second time (you could hear it). The point is, if the moves are done properly you will not get hurt. He might hit you, but you will be able to protect yourself from any hits that can do any real damage. This was a lot of fun to watch.
It was interesting to hear Mario say, realistically, the only way you will get his back or mount him is (1) if he is tired and/or (2) if you are better than him. I think many fighters get so wrapped up in how great they are and forget that they are human, can get tired, and can do dumb things (can you say Igor again). Throughout the tapes you are reminded that you will be getting hit. Your goal is to make the exchange and unfair one. It is always better to give than to receive, I always say.
At the end of the tape are Sperry's final two fights in the Australian UFC. Once again you get to see the moves you just learned on the tape set put to use in a quick and decisive manner.
Bill Lewis BJJ33@aol.com