What a couple of weeks it has been for the avid Jiu Jitsu fanatic. Diego Brandao scored a brilliant last second submission over Dennis Bermudez to walk away with a UFC contract and a down payment on his momma’s new house, Frank Mir added the most prized arm of all to his collection (a feeling that Mir would later refuse to go into detail about, but we imagine felt something like this), and Jon Jones used his Stretch Armstrong genetics to choke out a Jiu Jitsu black belt in Lyoto Machida with relative ease. And with each beautiful, gruesome, or eye opening technique that graces the octagon, Ryron and Rener are here to make sense of it all.

Today, the Gracie brothers touch on Tony Ferguson’s slick omaplata attempt from his unanimous decision victory over Yves Edwards at the TUF 14 Finale as well as Brandao’s glass plaque-earning effort before breaking down possibly the most shocking submission finish in MMA history, Frank Mir’s come from behind kimura over Antonio Rodrigo Nogueria that absolutely destroyed the Brazilian’s arm, a picture of which can be seen after the jump:

I awoke this morning to find a lone, blinking message on my answering machine. The messenger, whom shall be referred to as Minowaman for the time being, informed me of a video that would not only change the MMA and combat sports world’s forever, but possibly reignite the long, bitter tensions between the United States and Russia. And now, I will pass it on to you, Potato Nation, as I can only assume that shit in my town is about to go Red Dawn within the hour.

Amidst a deadly crew of English-speaking, Russian sleeper cells, a lone FBI agent, code name Gull of the Sea (at his request), was able to infiltrate a remote, Russian facility, like so, and record the following video of the illegal toe hold technology that the Russians have been building up for years.

UFC 137 goes down tomorrow night at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada, and one fight that we feel is being criminally overlooked (televised on Spike or not) is the lightweight match-up between Dennis Siver and Donald Cerrone. Now, where both men are known for their elite striking game, its is Siver who has made his name off of the spinning back kick/turning side kick, picking up victories over Nate Mohr and Paul Kelly at UFC 93 and 105, respectively. Cerrone has stated that he feels the spinning back kick is Siver’s only weapon, and whether or not you agree with him (I don’t), you have to admit that it is one awesome weapon.

(Props to our buddies over at IronForgesIron. Skip to 4:00 for the beginning of the fight.) 

If Scott Jorgensen hadn’t convinced you back at WEC 47 that the guillotine choke could get much, much worse, then Morgan Bracken sure will. The 4-3 lightweight fighter managed to pull off this beaut of a throw/submission last weekend at an unknown event in Topeka, Kansas. We literally know nothing else about the fight, and frankly we don’t care to find out. Because a move like this is kind of like trolls in Norway, legend has it that they exist but you until you actually see one, you never believe. In fact, one of the only other people to see both a guillotine suplex and a troll is Bas Rutten. Go figure.

Check out a few of our favorite attempts after the jump.

It’s been a while since we’ve seen Ryron and Rener Gracie break down the action from a UFC card, so we decided to give you guys a double dose of knowledge to kick-start your weekend. Above, we have their take on Chael Sonnen’s ever improving Jiu-Jitsu game, which capped off with a second round arm triangle submission of Brian Stann at UFC 136.

Now, moving past how “gentle” Chael was in his victory, the Gracie’s demonstrate and analyze the transitions, guard passes, and remount techniques Sonnen used to defeat Stann with their usual competency, breaking down both the first and second rounds of their middleweight fight. Being a guy trained primarily in the ground game, I can’t say enough how valuable these break downs are.

Check out the Gracie’s breakdown of Jon Jones’ 4th round rear-naked choke over Quinton “Rampage” Jackson at UFC 135 after the jump.

-Danga 

You know, if everyone stopped hating on Eddie Bravo and Joe Hogan for their personal beliefs related to “the heefer,” they might be able to learn a thing or two when it comes to Jiu-Jistu. But here at Cagepotato, we are all about putting judgments aside for the sake of the sport. In the above video, Bravo demonstrates a beautiful bait-and-switch submission on Joanne of MMAGirls.net, and though he may not be up to par on his English (it’s sunk, Eddie) there is no denying the man’s abilities to pull off some brilliant transitions on the ground.

As I watched Pat Barry fall victim to yet another submission at the spider legs of Stefan Struve during UFC Live: Cruz vs. Johnson this past Saturday, my stomach began to take on the feeling that I hadn’t known since I watched A Serbian Film for the second time. I knew what was going to happen, but deep in my atheist soul I hoped…no, prayed, that things would somehow change. And like a 7-Eleven cashier in Compton, I found myself on the wrong end of the barrel yet again.

Thankfully, the powers at be have likely given Barry another chance. And since we all know “HD” is an avid Cagepotato Fan, I figured I’d let the master of all things MMA/street fighting, Bas Rutten, give us a little tutorial on how to escape a triangle choke. It may not be as flashy as power-bombing your way out, but it’s a hell of a lot more effective.

Being the Renaissance man that “El Guapo” is, he manages to make a complex maneuver seem as simple as four steps:

UFC Live: Cruz vs. Johnson goes down this Saturday, featuring the Cody McKenzie of triangles, Paul “Sassangle” Sass. Only time will tell if the “Sassangle” proves more successful than the “Mckenzietine,” but just in case Paul is one of our many devoted readers out there, we figured we’d let 2009 ADCC double gold medalist,  2011 Superfight Champion, and human Jiu-Jitsu highlight reel Braulio Estima demonstrate one of the many inversions of the triangle.

(Video courtesy of YouTube/OfficialGSP)

A technique that isn’t used as much in mixed martial arts as it is in collegiate wrestling is the low single leg takedown. The reason why we don’t see it very often is the move is risky as there are punches allowed in MMA and with your hands clasped behind your opponent’s heel, there’s a pretty good chance you’re going to take a few shots before you get the takedown.

If you aren’t Brock Lesnar and eating a few punches isn’t a concern, read on.

Ultimate Fight Night 25 provided us with a good deal of highlights this past weekend, but while you were watching Jake Shields trying to single leg Kevin Mulhall or Alan Belcher beat the tar out of Jason Macdonald, you may have overlooked the textbook kimura sweep that Lance Benoist pulled on Matt Riddle in the first round of their Fight of the Night earning scrap. Personally, it was my favorite highlight of the fight, and I loves me some broken noses.

(Video courtesy of YouTube/ScottEpstein)

Back by popular demand…

It’s Monday and most of our brains haven’t kicked into third gear yet, so we’ll make today’s technique a simple, yet effective one.

If you ever find yourself in side control during a roll, match or fight and are looking for a finishing move that doesn’t require a ton of energy or strenght to pull off, give this nifty little move demonstrated by 10th Planet black belt instructor Scott “Einstein” Epstein a try.