Wrestling Technique

We’ve all heard the expression “chain wrestling,” and there is a good reason for this. The key to defense in wrestling is position, the key to offense is chaining moves together. This video focuses on a drill for chaining series moves together in the top position. Knowing how to chain moves together within a series (such as a half nelson, crossface, arm bar etc.) is the key to pinning, but knowing how to choose which series to pursue is equally important. Don’t ignore the advantages your opponent’s reactions give you! One move can be stopped by anyone, but this drill … Read More

The core of a wrestler’s strength is their stance and positioning. Once a wrestler understands these tools, they can put themselves in position to attack without risk. The pressure drill is a crucial element of the neutral position that must be implemented more or less constantly in neutral drilling. It is a drill within the drill that has the power to turn the neutral position into a no-win scenario for your opponent. Keys to this drill include understanding “spiral pressure,” establishing head position, and making a connection between head position and hustling with your feet. Once these elements come into … Read More

In bottom wrestling, “head up” is a core concept, unless your opponent can throw a crossface. The crossface series is a crucial element to any wrestler’s top work. If not because it is a very reliable source of back points and pins, then because the combination of a crossface butcher and a crossface cradle is one of the best ways to break a wrestler determined to establish position and escape. Master the Technique of the Crossface Series Step 1: Know how to throw the crossface Perform an ankle down breakdown from the same side as you’re throwing the crossface. Objective … Read More

What is “feel”? Everyone knows this word separates the sheep from the goats of the wrestling world. It speaks to skill, experience and timing, and a host of other characteristics under the umbrella of “intangibles”. But as abstract as “intangibles” sound, they can be developed if you understand proper sparring. Sparring is an unstructured drill where athletes have the opportunity to execute technique against an opponent who is “passive tough.” Under these conditions athletes learn technique, but more importantly, they develop the feel and timing that leads to quick, clean takedowns and dominating performances. In addition to growing the so-called … Read More

Intensity is essential for strong conditioning, winning tough matches and it supplies the “X” factor needed to find your way through the tough situations in our sport. But intensity by itself is not enough. The athletes who reach the highest level also know how to execute nuanced techniques while the adrenaline is pumping, and that is where the Fury Drill comes into play. The Fury Drill combines a series of techniques, all of which are essential to winning tough matches, into one crucial situation. This creates athletes who execute technique when their conditioning has been pushed to the max, the … Read More

Getting the most out of every practice requires moment by moment effort and the formation of dozens of habits. But once these habits are in place, wrestlers are in prime position to reach new levels of conditioning and technique. There are many aspects to proper drilling. Diligence, maintaining proper position, and striking a balance of intensity are just some of them. This holds for both the wrestler who is attacking and his partner. If the formula is correct both men will develop feel, and improve with every repetition. Take advantage of every moment with my insights into proper drilling, and … Read More

An important part of wrestling training that is often overlooked is the bringing together of skill, technique, conditioning, and intensity into a single scenario. Where the rubber meets the road, you could say. The bad drill is a an ultra high intensity scenario where wrestlers learn to execute at a high level while putting their conditioning to the test. This sounds simple, but getting athletes to bring every facets of it together is surprisingly tricky. Key elements to this drill are understanding power shots, knowing how to lay hands, finding angles, and never breaking contact. Once all these aspects come … Read More

Strong position isn’t just the core of good wrestling defense, it is a suffocating force which leads to snap downs, reshots, and quick scores. The quick score drill is a great tool to ensure wrestlers are always on the attack. By using opponent’s poor shots as a source of go-behinds, and other wrestling counter offense, wrestlers learn to attack from all positions, and avoid falling into a defensive mindset. Keys to this technique include proper head position, hand position, and movement. Once these things are in place, any attempt to attack the properly positioned wrestler results in quick takedowns. Learn … Read More

It is one thing to teach wrestling technique, but it is quite another to place that technique in an effective system that wrestlers can understand and take advantage of. The Demon Drill is a competitive scenario (or wrestling game) with clearly defined rules designed to bring a wrestler’s offensive tools together. There are a lot of wrestling drills that develop skills, the Demon drill is different because it teaches wrestlers to chain moves together while developing their overall positioning. Instead of developing one skill at a time, the Demon drill brings together a lot fundamental skills, and cannot be executed … Read More

Though it is not technically essential for success, more wrestlers will point out the front headlock position as the one that changed their careers than any other offensive technique. There are a variety of front headlock series, but once you have the technique to master one of them, you have the keys to a tougher attitude and a punishing style of wrestling that is very difficult to defend. Once the defending wrestler has been pulled down to the mat, the offensive wrestler focuses on the elbow, prying it backwards in a way that is not a problem for referees, but … Read More