Breaking The Guard Podcast

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Episodes

A Mixed Martial Arts talk show featuring Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Black Belts David Avellan (creator of the Kimura Trap System and ADCC 2009 Bronze Medalist) and Robert Drysdale (2005 IBJJF World Champion, ADCC 2007 Absolute Champion, co-founder of Zenith BJJ). Both of them have extensive backgrounds in MMA and BJJ as students, competitors, coaches, and school owners - pulling on their combined experiences to discuss the mental aspect of training, proper preparation, championship mindset, and more.

Episodes

Monday Nov 17, 2025

BTG 165 - Dominance can be boring

Monday Nov 17, 2025

UFC 322 was a great night at fights, but the ending left a bad aftertaste in my mouth. There were plenty of hard fought matches, KOs, and submissions, but the co-main and main events where shows of complete dominance without finishing pressure.

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DavidMMA.com - David Avellan's new website, where he is posting new articles daily, new courses being posted frequently, covering techniques, news, fitness, breakdowns, and much more. You can join as a guest for free to see what the site has to offer.

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Monday Nov 10, 2025

BTG 164 - Private Lesson Mastery

Monday Nov 10, 2025

Can you learn martial arts purely from private lessons?

Yes, but highly unlikely and not a desirable way of doing so in my opinion. I give my reasons and what I believe is the best approach to using private lessons and instructional courses.

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Monday Nov 03, 2025

BTG 163 - Rigged Fights

Monday Nov 03, 2025

UFC Fight Night 263 had a bunch of finishes in the forms of KOs and submissions, but the things people are talking about are more eye gouges and a potential fixed fight. I'll give my take on that and discuss Polaris 34 and the continued leg lock revolution.

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Monday Oct 27, 2025

BTG 162 - Is Tom Aspinall Cursed?

Monday Oct 27, 2025

UFC 321's Heavyweight Championship main event, Tom Aspinall vs Ciryl Gane, was supposed to be an exciting match. Instead, we got the most anti-climatic finish I can recall in UFC heavyweight history. Besides being the champion, Tom doesn't seem to be having any luck with making a legacy. Worse yet, some people are blaming him for what happened.

I also briefly recap the recent WNO absolute tournament, and then talk about Renato Canuto's second pro MMA fight and how I would structure his career.

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Monday Oct 20, 2025

BTG 161 - Quitting on the Stool

Monday Oct 20, 2025

The top three fights of UFC Fight Night 262 had a lot to comment about, with one of the fighters quitting on the stool and unable to continue fighting. I give my take on that and how fouls should be scored.

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Monday Oct 13, 2025

BTG 160 - Doing the Mental Legwork

Monday Oct 13, 2025

It's pretty common to see fighters get broken, or get mentally beat. I discuss this phenomenon, how to avoid it and employ it yourself, giving some personal anecdotes of my competition history in the process. Whether you train for fun or compete, this is an important lesson to learn that most people skip out on.

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Monday Oct 06, 2025

BTG 159: UFC 320 was a great showcase for MMA

Monday Oct 06, 2025

UFC 320 was a great card, and one of the best PPVs this year in my opinion. The final 7 fights had 6 finishes, with lots of action, submissions, and knock outs. Even the one fight that went to decision was entertaining with twists and turns throughout. I give my review and breakdown of the fights, and potential match making for the champions.

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Monday Sep 29, 2025

BTG 158 - Where do you go from here?

Monday Sep 29, 2025

Following the UFC Fight Night in Perth, I discuss the devastating aftermath of Carlos Ulberg versus Dominic Reyes, and the controversy between Jake Matthews and Neil Magny. I then revisit Derek Moneyberg, who apparently is going to be sueing Sean Strickland, who also poked at Jake Shields that poked back at him.

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Monday Sep 22, 2025

BTG 157 - Dusting Off Old Moves

Monday Sep 22, 2025

When everyone is focusing on the latest techniques, sometimes it pays off to go back to the classics and reintroduce them. I explore one particular technique I'm bringing back and how you can to.

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Monday Sep 15, 2025

BTG 156 - Fighting Nerds suffer another loss

Monday Sep 15, 2025

The Fighting Nerds had boasted a long undefeated streak, with there core team all being undefeated in the UFC. Unfortunately for them, that streak has been snapped this year, and Saturday put the final nail in the coffin for the team's momentum. Where does that put them now?

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