Yesterday I competed in the Bend Championship BJJ tournament (Gi) . There were only two people in my weight division 135-155 lbs. Myself and Denny who trains locally. I was really surprised that there were not more competitors in this weight class.
I felt ready to compete. I knew, if anything, it was going to be a learning experience. I have not competed in one-on-one competition since my sophomore year in high school when I wrestled, which was 16 years ago. I walk around 140 lbs, so I did not have to cut any weight for this competition. I would like to have been a little heavier, but I felt I was in good conditioning.
My first and only match went the full six minutes. The way the competition was ran was by a point system not by the IBJJF rules. The points were as follows: 2 pts for submission, 1 pt. each for a tie, 0 pts. if you lost by submission.
Since we went the distance we ended up with one point each. To make a rather long story short, at the end of the competition, Denny and I were called up to go for another six minutes to determine who would get first and second place. I was ready to go a second round, but Denny was exhausted and not able to continue. So, I was given first place.
Denny did really well. After watching the video of our match, he did somethings very good. When he went to stand up he kept me down and kept his head and eyes looking forward, and he kept his back straight. I was having a hard time breaking down his posture. He has long arms and was placing his fist in the right spot.
There were a few chances to go for the hip bump and I did not take it. I was focusing on breaking his posture and looking to go for a chock or arm-bar. He end passing one of my legs and I had him in half-guard. I can tell he was tired, so I stayed calm and waited to see what he was going to do so I could recover to full guard. There was an opportunity to go for an arm-bar, but at this time, I was playing it safe and not taking any chances.
This experience has made me rethink my training. I will take my conditioning more serious and be willing to try new things while sparring with my training partners. I will no longer seek to tap anyone, but to learn more of the art of BJJ. My focus will be more on set ups, using my legs, feet, and going for sweeps.
Upward and onward in this journey in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.
