Solidarity MMA - Jiu-Jitsu & Kickboxing Academy

🥋 3 BEATDOWN POSITIONS FROM CLOSED GUARD

Most people think being inside someone’s closed guard means you’re automatically in a bad position.

Not if you know how to use it.

In this video, we break down 3 beatdown positions we use to turn the closed guard into an offensive position.

1️⃣ BEATDOWN #1
While still inside the closed guard, we posture, throw hammer strikes, and use the hand trap to pin the opponent’s arms across their body. Control their ability to defend and keep working.

2️⃣ COWBOY RIDE 🤠
Once they open their guard, we stand up, drive our hips forward, and start pushing their knees toward their head. Now they’re carrying our weight while we control the position and continue attacking.

3️⃣ DOPE MOUNT
From there, we transition into dope mount, shutting down their hips and establishing another dominant position to continue the beatdown.

This is the difference between looking at Jiu-Jitsu strictly as a sport and understanding how positions change when strikes are involved.

Control. Pressure. Damage. Position.

Which one would you want to see us break down in more detail? 👇

**God doesn’t call the qualified. He qualifies the called. ✝️**

One of the most incredible things about the Bible is seeing **who God chooses to use.**

Paul was once Saul—a man who persecuted Christians and approved of their imprisonment and death. Then God transformed his life and used him to spread the Gospel throughout the world.

Matthew was a tax collector—a member of a profession despised by his own people. Jesus looked at him and said, **“Follow Me.”**

David was a shepherd boy nobody expected to become king.

Peter was an ordinary fisherman who made mistakes, lost his temper, and even denied Jesus three times—yet God still used him to help build the early Church.

That's the pattern.

**God takes ordinary, imperfect, broken people and does extraordinary things through them.**

Maybe you think you've screwed up too much.

Maybe you're ashamed of your past.

Maybe you think you need to clean your life up before you can walk into a church.

**You don't.**

I hear people say, “I don't want to go to church because people are going to judge me.”

Brother, we're ALL sinners.

That's why we're there.

Church isn't a building full of perfect people. It's a place full of imperfect people who desperately need a perfect Savior.

Jesus Christ lived the life we couldn't live. He took our sins upon Himself, went to the cross, died for us, and rose again.

**That's the Gospel.**

God knows everything you've done. He knows every mistake. Every failure. Every moment you're ashamed of.

**And He still loves you.**

Your past doesn't disqualify you from having a relationship with God. Some of the people God used most powerfully in Scripture had pasts that would make most people write them off completely.

So if you've been thinking about going to church, **GO.**

Don't worry about what you're wearing.
Don't worry about whether you know the Bible.
Don't worry about knowing the songs.
Don't worry about what people might think.

Just walk through the doors.

You might be surprised by what God can do with your life when you finally give Him the opportunity.

**God doesn't call the qualified. He qualifies the called. 🙏**

— Solidarity MMA

🥋 **JIU-JITSU FOR THE STREET HITS DIFFERENT.**

Today at **Solidarity MMA**, Coach Justin broke down how to effectively use the **closed guard in a real one-on-one self-defense situation**.

There’s sport jiu-jitsu — and then there’s understanding how to adapt your jiu-jitsu when punches are involved.

The priorities change.

You have to understand **distance, posture, control, and positioning**. You can't just lay in closed guard and play the same game you would in a tournament. The goal is to control your opponent, limit their ability to land heavy shots, improve your position, and create opportunities to escape or apply effective submissions when necessary.

And this is why **pressure testing matters.**

Coach Justin hasn't only practiced jiu-jitsu inside the academy. He's tested his skills under pressure through **MMA and jiu-jitsu competition**. There is a huge difference between knowing techniques in a controlled room and knowing what still works when somebody is actively trying to stop you.

Your jiu-jitsu should work when the pressure is REAL.

**Train it. Pressure test it. Know what actually works.** 👊🥋

A lot of people ask me why I still compete.

The truth is, I don't sign up because I'm chasing a medal. I sign up because I love the fight.

If you're stressing yourself out before every tournament, you're looking at competition the wrong way. Don't show up hoping you win or terrified you'll lose. Show up because you're looking for a scrap. You're looking for a battle. You're testing your skills against someone who's willing to do the exact same thing.

That's where growth happens.

Win some, lose some, fight all of them.

Be the man or woman in the arena. Have the courage to step on the mat when most people never will. Years from now, nobody will remember every medal you won or lost, but you'll remember the battles, the lessons, and the moments that made you tougher.

So quit worrying about the outcome. Embrace the challenge. Shake hands, go to war, and leave knowing you gave everything you had.

That's what competition is really about.

One of the biggest mistakes you can make in a fight is allowing someone to pin you against the wall. That's where combinations get trapped, movement disappears, and things can go downhill fast.

In this drill, **Kiley** works a simple but effective sequence: **jab, cross, slip to get her head off the center line, uppercut, step to her strong side, and finish with a cross.** The objective isn't just to land punches—it's to get your back off the wall, create an angle, and turn your opponent into the wall instead. That's where you want the advantage.

At just 12½ years old, **Kiley** is already learning the details that separate good strikers from great ones: turning her feet, rotating her hips and shoulders, getting her head off the center line, and letting body mechanics—not brute strength—generate power.

Power isn't about being the strongest person in the room. It's about precision, timing, leverage, and technique. When those things come together, every punch lands with purpose.

Proud of the work she's putting in every single day. 👊

Huge shoutout to Coach Justin for an incredible performance yesterday!

At 43 years old, Coach Justin is still stepping onto the competition mats one to three times every month, leading from the front and proving that age is never an excuse.

He earned silver in his weight division and came back even stronger to capture gold in the open class. Competing against bigger opponents, pushing through tough matches, and finishing the day on top of the podium!

A real coach doesn’t just tell his students to challenge themselves—he gets out there and does it right alongside them.

Congratulations, Coach Justin! Silver at weight and open-class champion. What a performance!

Shout out to Kiley for an absolutely incredible performance at the IBJJF Dallas Open!

She stepped onto the mat in the gi and completely took over, putting on a clinic from start to finish and earning a dominant 16–0 victory. Her technique, composure, pressure, and confidence were all on full display.

Watching all of her hard work come together like that was amazing. She stayed focused, trusted her training, and showed exactly what she is capable of.

So proud of you, Kiley. This was a huge performance, and you earned every bit of it. Keep working, keep improving, and keep showing everyone what girls in jiu-jitsu can do!