Lovato Jr. Explains How He Wears Down Younger Grapplers

Older grapplers are told to get faster and stronger, but Rafael Lovato Jr. says that is the wrong goal. In his 40s, he beats opponents in their 20s by making them the ones who run out of energy.

Efficiency instead of explosiveness

Lovato laid out his thinking in a conversation with Bernardo Faria, who asked how veterans should handle rivals half their age. The former BJJ world champion had his answer ready. "Break them physically with technique," he said.

The idea is to take the speed out of the match. Weight distribution, constant pressure and positional control do the work, so the younger athlete never gets to use his explosiveness.

The conclusion of the piece is that older grapplers need to be more efficient, not more athletic. Lovato does not try to out-explode a 20-year-old. He wants the younger man to have to fight on his terms.

Conditioning matters, but style decides

Lovato says he trains regularly and is proud of his shape. Even so, he does not credit fitness alone. He says some rivals in their 20s ended up throwing up after bouts with him, and he was still on his feet.

His explanation is plain. "I'm not exploding, doing anything crazy. I'm just keeping a steady forward pressure." Opponents who work harder than he does tire first.

On top, with the opponent flat

Lovato would rather be on top. In his words, the person there controls pace and speed much more easily. Wrestling became a big part of his game later in his career, and it changed his choices. He no longer has to pull guard against younger rivals. He can wrestle, force them to pull, or take them down.

His passing runs against what many young athletes like. He does not circle the guard or scramble past it. He pins and keeps the other person flat, whether in half guard, side control or mount, so they cannot turn to their side and open space.

A flat opponent has to press upward and carry the weight, which Lovato says tires them over time. Lovato adds that over time the burden wears on the mind too.

Bottom game and wrestling

From underneath, he points to closed guard and butterfly guard. Both keep the opponent close, so he sets the distance and the pace of the exchanges. An open guard, by contrast, asks for constant movement and speed. The omoplata is among his favorite attacks from the bottom.

Wrestling follows the same logic. He skips explosive shots and relies on posture, head position, underhooks and forward pressure, hoping to draw opponents into poor shots he can defend. He says he will never wrestle like Olympic champion Jordan Burroughs. His own style fits his body and experience, and he believes it works in wrestling, gi and no-gi alike.

Source: Bjj Eastern Europe