Road To Worlds: Gracie Barra Northridge Training Report & HL

Romulo Barral has made a name for himself not only as one of the most dominant athletes of his generation but one of the best coaches on the planet today, making a stop at Gracie Barra Northridge a must-do on our 2019 Road To worlds tour. 

Warmup 

Grip fighting was the warm-up of the day at Gracie Barra Northridge. Romulo encouraged his competitors to not only break grips but enter a takedown sequence as well.  The warmups lasted for a total of 8 minutes.

Drilling: Guard Pull vs Counter Attack

The next segment of the warmup consisted of a drill where both partners attempted to work their game – the guard puller would seek to enter a strong guard position and attack with subs and sweeps, the opponent would attempt to counter the guard pull and enter passing sequences.  

Athletes drilled for 10 minutes

Positional Sparring – King of the Mats: First Point Scored Wins

Romulo separated the room in half by weight; the game was simply - the first person to score in any way or submit stayed on the mat, the loser goes to the back of the line and waited to rotate in again. This type of wall work is particularly grueling as the successful athelte will be forced to spar with opponents who have had a chance to catch their breathes.  

Sparring 

There were seven, 6-minute rounds of sparring.  The pace was fierce, and Romulo demanded a fast pace from all present on the mats.