​Intensity, desire and heart. Undersized, underrated and overlooked by many speculators, Curran Jacobs figuratively slew giants and a few demons on his way to the 2018 Catch Wrestling World Championship title.
 
Facing him was a pleasure and a great time to demonstrate the old adage, “Steel Sharpens Steel”. For 30 minutes we battled giving our all in the ring. No dirty tricks. No fouls. Just hard nosed battling for 30 minutes.
 
It was thrilling to face down a competitor with that level of intensity and determination. To me our lengthy battle was truly living. A chance to slough off the day-to-day of career, church and family and simply battle. Battle with no other intent than to subdue the other man into submission.
 
For 6 rounds (I swear it was 8) Jacobs hurled himself at me. I tried to be the bully as much as I could but he wouldn’t allow it even though I outweighed him by at least 50 pounds.
 
I made pre-match calculations, strategies and plans. Even during the match I made adjustments as I realized trying to take him down was both futile and pointless as it merely sapped me of my waning old-man strength. Instead I attempted submissions from underneath, at one point extending his arm to the point of popping yet he didn’t tap.
 
On another series I had him pinned but no one but myself and a few corner side spectators could see.
 
On yet another I had a choke locked on as tight as I possibly could given my failing grip. One trapped leg would’ve sealed the deal. Yet somehow, some way Jacobs found a way out, a point of day light and he ran for it.
 
An outsized underdog in every match Curran Jacobs willed his way through each competitor overcoming them with his heart and tenacity.
 
I watched his quarter and semi final match ups that went into multiple over times only to end in rear naked strangle submissions for him. Not one but two capable and expert grapplers went down to what seemed like an easy thing to avoid. But it wasn’t. It was going to happen whether you knew it was or not.
 
To quote the great short story ‘A Piece of Steak’ by Jack London, “youth will be served”. Curran’s youth and vigor pulled him through many a potentially match ending situation in all three of his matches.
 
I couldn’t help but feel just like Tom King in the story. Old. Tired. Up for one more battle. Yet despite all of his dominance couldn’t stay the tide of youth.
 
After the match as I reflected on “how else could I have beaten him?” I could come up with few answers. I gave him my best, or at least the best that my battle worn 41-year-old self could give. I made so many mid game adjustments it gave me no less than 3 finishing opportunities that for whatever reason didn’t happen.
 
I analyzed the various scenarios and factors then finally I came to one plausible conclusion. I dislike crediting successes or failures to things like this, to me “Cause-and-Effect” means your training and skill execution, but sometimes explanations like this are very real in sport.
 
I think I can boil it down to this: One man’s personal quest and one man’s destiny.
 
The more I thought about it and the more I learned about Curran’s history the more sense it made.
 
A man who has suffered personal loss and tragedy like Curran often finds a special place inside his soul that drives him on to do great things. There are few things in life that evoke one’s soul to grow the way personal loss does.
 
During the match I thought at some point he would have slowed down yet those memories must have driven him on. I can explain it in no other way. Every match he was outgunned yet he still found a way to win.
 
I’m a big believer in Champions finding a way to win.
 
On a personal level I hate losing. It irks me forever. Losing to me is like having a piece of my soul removed. There are few losses that I forget. I use them for motivation. But in the end, they are merely sporting losses.
 
True losses, like the loss of loved ones, takes a different piece of your soul and provides a much more powerful motivation. Love. Remembrance. Connection to the other side and a will to shine for them while still here on earth.
 
Losing to Jacobs was the most unique loss I’ve ever experienced. I’ve never lost to someone who then promoted me on social media. I’ve never lost to someone and somehow made an instant friend and kindred spirit. It is bizarre.
 
For that I can only credit Curran’s warrior spirit and his desire to fulfill a personal quest. He found a way to achieve his destiny as the first modern era Catch Wrestling World Champion becoming one of the new young torch bearers for this great sport. Not just by eking out wins but by submitting all three of his opponents.
 
There are a number of torch bearers in MMA but Curran’s place in the Catch Wrestling cosmos is special. Special because of the adversity he constantly faced each match out and special because of his personal reasons for fighting, for excelling for others beyond just himself.
 
I can’t help but like the guy. He is a great competitor. He is very in tune with his family and they give him power. He is a great and gracious champion.
 
As one warrior to another I would like to congratulate Curran on a job well done. I hope that he is able to carry the sport of Catch Wrestling as well as he does himself. The sport of Catch Wrestling has a great new champion and his name is Curran Jacobs. 

Jake Shannon. Is a man that doesn’t get nearly enough credit for the revival Catch Wrestling is currently experiencing.
 
20 years ago whisperings in the grappling universe called to Jake Shannon from beyond the grave. 100 years of glory had been forgotten by rule changes, money grabbing and gimmicky promotions which bastardized and eventually extinguished the fire of Catch-As-Catch-Can that once swept the land.
 
A sport that was appreciated by the hard-nosed working class, Catch Wrestling attracted thousands at live events and created myths and legends of the famous champions of yesteryear. Gotch, Nelson, Burns, Lewis, Robinson, Cardinal, Gama. These names were all but forgotten. Golden champions of their age. Stranglers, Hookers, Pinners and warriors whose deeds were immortalized in the minds of their rabid fans. Yet those days of blood, guts and glory were left in the past covered in the dust. The days and memories of raw primal power rarely seen in the ring had been buried and lost.
 
That whisper from the Universe spoke to Shannon, “Remember us” it beckoned. “Remember who we were and what we did. Resurrect us and breathe new life into us. Restore us to our former glory and place in the grappling cosmos.”
 
Whatever the actual events that lead Shannon to dive head first into the wild and sometimes whacky world of Catch Wrestling may ultimately be only known to him and the whispering spirits of wrestlers past.
 
Sometime in the early 2000’s I stumbled across the www.ScientificWrestling.com website. It told the stories of many of the great Catch wrestlers of the late 19th and early 20th century. As an aspiring Olympic wrestler these were names I had never heard of. Champions of a sport that had somehow died out decades before I ever even knew what US folkstyle wrestling was. Without Jake’s efforts to revive the lost legends of CACC I for one would have never known that they or the sport of Catch Wrestling even existed. The website eventually went from text to videos to live seminars with former champions, namely Billy Robinson, who became the point of the spear for Shannon’s revival efforts.
 
Slowly but surely champions trained personally by Billy Robinson in Japan became big stars on the stage of MMA in Pancrase, Pride and UFC. Kazushi Sakuraba, “The Gracie Hunter”, defeated Renzo, Royler and Ryan Gracie and multiple BJJ opponents in the ring and cage.
 
Josh Barnett, “The Warmaster”, won the UFC as one of the youngest ever champions as well as won the IBJJF No Gi worlds.
 
Erik Paulson, Neil Melanson, Randy Couture, all high profile examples showcasing the value of CACC in the ring and cage who catapulted CACC into the consciousness of anyone serious about grappling or MMA.
 
While Shannon’s efforts have by no means been so all influencing to have caused all this they have been the spark that has helped bring notice to the general public. When the CACC athletes won events Scientific Wrestling gave you information on the how’s and why’s, the back stories and the origins of the techniques and tactics being used.
 
Soon more people learned about CACC and Jake’s influence through Scientific Wrestling grew. More seminars with more participants wanting to learn CACC and how they could get an edge over their competition. More videos and more content than ever before became available.
 
Reporters rarely if ever get credit for the events they cover. But without them much of the world’s events go on unknown and unsung to the rest of the world. Pioneers are often overlooked and taken for granted. The mountains they had to climb for life and death eventually becoming ‘recreation’ for their modern-day counterparts.
 
Jake Shannon is both reporter and pioneer. Without Jake Shannon many, and I would dare say almost all, of us would have never heard of Billy Robinson or Catch-As-Catch-Can. We wouldn’t have seen the recent CACC tournaments abounding. Jake’s “King of CACC” series of tournament sparked others to follow. We would not have seen the rise of the Snake Pit or the 2018 World CACC Championships.
 
Again while no man is an island or can truly do any great work alone he can create a spark which eventually builds to a roaring fire.
 
We are witnessing firsthand how the influence of one man’s vision leads to the influence of another, then another and on and on until that vision is fulfilled. The revival of Catch Wrestling is like a mighty eagle just hatched from its shell as it stretches its wings to take new flight into the heavens.
 
So many of us hope that Catch Wrestling will soar to new heights as it continues to grow and restore its once glorious form.
 
Thank you Jake Shannon for all of your efforts for not only the sport of Catch Wrestling but for your tireless contributions to all of the grappling arts.
 
To hear more of Jake’s story you can take a listen here:
Grapping Central Podcast – Jake Shannon Interview
Episode 295: Jake Shannon
http://grapplingcentral.com/episode-295-jake-shannon/
​

​“You must not fight too often with one enemy, or you will teach him all your art of war.” – Napoleon Bonaparte

Today I came across this video of Josh Barnett extolling the benefits of using pressure over flow in grappling/BJJ situations. 

Here is my best effort at transcribing this amazing bit of knowledge.

Student: (Describing his experience) Energy sucking. You know when Eric rolls with you and he starts pushing on you? I feel like Eric steals energy every time he submits.

Josh: That’s the way it should be though. If I’m not debilitating my opponent in my positioning my pinning, riding any of that as well as the locks and holds I’m trying to apply then I’m not doing everything I can I’m not being as efficient with my offense as I can be. I’m not being as superior a wrestler as I can be.

Student: No flow?

Josh: Flow is cool too. But why flow when I can pressure? Flow is when you need to. Flow is part of riding but when I find the opportunity or the advantage where I can apply pressure I apply pressure. All that flowing is great until someone shuts your shit down. Then all of a sudden you have no game. You have to be able to it all. You have to be able to flow. You have to be able to pressure. You have to be able to crush and smash, cut through people and then; avoid, distribute, redistribute, throw by pressure, pass it by you let it come to you and use it. All of the above.
If you just do one thing, if all you can do is try to pin everybody you’re probably too stiff and you’ll get reversed a lot. If all you do is flow someone will lock your shit down and then you’re done. You have to know when to use what and how to use it. I’m telling you pressure, pressure, pressure. Flow doesn’t make people tired, pressure does.

Student: So true.

Josh: Every big time Jiu Jitsu guy I don’t give a shit what they say, what their mantra is, they are all crazy strong, they are all crazy fast, and they all use crazy muscle strength and pressure, with good technique too. They all use strength. They don’t wrestle easy. They don’t win titles s by flowing and blah blah blah it’s a bullshit lie. They get pressured, someone puts some muscle on them, they put more muscle back and then they beat them. Period. I never rolled with a high level black belt that wasn’t’ strong as shit, didn’t use his strength a ton and didn’t try to use that technique within his strength, every time. No bones about it they don’t exist they’re always using strength in some way.

Watch the original video here

For years I’ve found Catch as Catch Can Wrestling techniques to be extremely versatile and devastating against BJJ fighters. As Josh Barnett continues to prove CACC’s effectiveness not only in MMA but in standalone Grappling events how can anyone not see the value in studying CACC techniques?

Everything Josh shows on his DVD is like pure gold and as cheesy as it sounds if you follow the techniques he shares in his DVD’s you’ll be winning gold at tournaments. I should know, I’ve used CACC specific techniques the past few years on my way to winning the 2014 FILA Grappling/Pankration Submission World Team Trials and also the SJJIF No-Gi Jiu Jitsu World Championships.

It’s not just wrestling. It’s not just BJJ. It is simply Catch as Catch Can. If you’re not learning this stuff those who do will leave you behind.

Josh Barnett DVD’s found here!

http://www.scientificwrestling.com/products/item48.cfm

http://www.scientificwrestling.com/products/item42.cfm

Here is a link to Josh’s Metamoris 6 victory against Ryron Gracie. Watch it while its still up. I’m sure it won’t be up long. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrUG4Xd40u4

"Your goal can be a driving force to keep you going regardless of your self-doubt and weaknesses. Choose goals that excite and challenge you, that are truly worth achieving, and worthy of your time and best efforts.

Believing in your goals becomes more believable when you can look to the examples of others who have gone before. Study those who have achieved what you hope to achieve." (from Champions Find a Way: How to Become a Champion in Sport and in Life pg. 23)

I'm a big believer in goals and their power to move us forward. Every few months I evaluate and adjust my goals and when things are going well I get to record them as having been accomplished. That is always a great feeling! 

As a coach one of my greatest rewards is when the athletes I coach achieve their goals. One of the great athletes that I have the privilege of training is MMA fighter Koffi Adzitso. A few years back Koffi and I were driving home from a grappling tournament we had just competed at in Las Vegas. We had plenty of time to talk so we got around to the topic of what his goals were. 

I told him about the power of goals and how written goals had even more power. I'm not 100% sure why but written goals have a power even beyond spoken goals. 

We talked about his fighting career and some of the bigger shows that he would like to fight in. He had already fought for all of the best local shows and had even fought for a King of the Cage world title at one point. We were trying to decide what would be the next thing to pursue. We mulled over a few fights and organizations that sounded good and he wrote it down. 

For whatever reason I ended up with his goal list in my notebook and for whatever reason we thought that it had been lost. For a period of about two years we didn't see that list again. We talked about those written goals when we trained together and kept them on our minds. But I'm not sure if he ever wrote them down other than just the one time.

Over the course of the next couple of years he fought in various shows against tougher and tougher competition, even to the level of knocking out two consecutive UFC veterans and fighting a third UFC vet within that time frame. Eventually he got a shot at Bellator and lost a decision in a fight against a beast of an opponent who had destroyed everyone else he'd fought. 

Eventually I found Koffi's goal list in my records and when I showed it to him again we were both amazed at how much he had accomplished and how closely it aligned with that written list even though we had not seen that exact list in about two years. 

This reaffirmed the power of written goals and their ability to guide us both consciously and subconsciously. If you are still trying to figure out what you want to do in life or whether you already have some solid ideas I encourage  you to write down your goals, give them a date for their accomplishment and then take action!

Goals + Deadline + Action = Achievement. 

 

Attacking the Guard
I watched about 5 minutes of this video and thought to myself, “Do people understand what this guy is showing? Because if they did EVERYONE that participates in today’s MMA, Grappling and BJJ competitions would own this DVD!”

That is how good I thought the concepts and techniques coming out of this DVD were, and that was just the first 5 minutes! 

Josh delves into concepts of posture and breaking grips in addition to punishing and breaking guard players wide open. He isn’t nice about it either. Josh shows you techniques and approaches that are generally frowned upon in most BJJ dojos because of their meanness, aggression and effectiveness against even the most dominant guard players. 

If that wasn’t enough I got just as much if not more out of the Catch Wrestling Vol. I Punishing Rides DVD also starring Josh Barnett. 

Punishing Rides DVD
Barnett shares great rides for Wrestling, Grappling and MMA. These are not just your typical Folkstyle wrestling rides either. These rides have teeth big enough to sink into any grappling situation. These are offensive rides and hold down positions not just lay-and-wait positions. 

One of the most poignant speeches is about BJJ and the lack of rides and pressures. His words seem almost prophetic looking back on it now. He talked quite emphatically about the usefulness and possibilities of a certain Head and Arm ride. It is this same ride that he defeated Dean Lister with during their Metamoris 4 bout. Their match was the first time Lister has been submitted in 16 years.

On top of showing some great technique and insights Josh gets more loose and entertaining as the DVD progresses. He is very funny. Just about everything in this DVD is unconventional from a BJJ standpoint and that is what is so great about it. This tuff works!

As a competitor Josh Barnett has done and won everything there is to be won in the sport; UFC champion, Pancrase Champion, IBJJF No Gi World Champion and Metamoris Super Heavyweight World Champion. 

You would think at some point the BJJ and Grappling community in general would begin to take notice and listen to what this guy has to say. However I am willing to bet that they won’t to their own detriment. Too often Brazilian Jiu Jitsu’s downfall is its own popularity and perceived value. 

BJJ for whatever reason both proclaims to be “the new revelation” yet at the same time holds to “tradition” and shuns anything that is not BJJ. I can’t tell you how many times BJJ guys will sit and tell me how BJJ guys can beat wrestlers and go on and on. I think to myself that they must be complete BJJ tools if they still believe that BJJ is invincible. In grappling situations they certainly thrive but let’s be honest, it has been a long time since a BJJ purist has held any of the major MMA titles.

If there is any one thing that real practitioners of the grappling arts should come to accept is that no one single art has the lock on effectiveness. Both of the Josh Barnett DVD’s show exactly why Catch-as-Catch-Can Wrestling is one of the best sources for powerful grappling techniques. I was extremely happy when Barnett submitted Lister using tried and true CACC techniques because it once again proved the effectiveness of one of the oldest and best forms of grappling around. I found so many gems in this DVD that it is currently at the top of my “must watch” list for grappling.