Craig Jones Shares Heel Hook Breaking Mechanics at 10th Planet Oakland

Long before leg locks became a central part of modern no-gi Jiu Jitsu, they were often misunderstood, underdeveloped and even frowned upon throughout much of the grappling world.

Craig Jones and 10th Planet Oakland founder and head coach Michael Hillebrand were among the grapplers who embraced leg locks during that earlier era, studying positions, systems and finishing mechanics at a time when many Jiu Jitsu practitioners largely avoided them.

That pursuit of knowledge created an environment where specialists from different teams and different parts of the world could exchange discoveries, test ideas against one another and continue refining their understanding of the leg-lock game.

Jones would go on to become one of the premier leg-lock specialists in modern submission grappling, competing at the highest levels of no-gi Jiu Jitsu and helping push the technical development of leg entanglements and finishing mechanics forward.

During his time at 10th Planet Oakland, Craig shared some of that knowledge with the Oakland team, focusing specifically on the details behind heel hook breaking mechanics.

The session went beyond simply learning another submission. Craig broke down the control, positioning and mechanics required to create an effective finish against knowledgeable resistance, giving Oakland students and coaches an opportunity to study the details behind one of the most important submission systems in modern no-gi grappling.

For Hillebrand, sessions like this continue a philosophy that has shaped his approach to Jiu Jitsu for years: seek out people with specialized knowledge, exchange information, test what works and continue evolving.

That philosophy remains an important part of the coaching culture at 10th Planet Oakland.

The goal has never been to protect one particular style or assume that every answer has to come from inside a single system. Instead, the academy has continually sought knowledge from accomplished competitors, coaches and specialists, studying different approaches and bringing useful ideas back into the room for coaches and students to test for themselves.

Leg locks have changed dramatically since the days when they occupied the fringes of mainstream Jiu Jitsu. What was once dismissed by many practitioners has become one of the most technically developed areas of modern no-gi grappling.

Having Craig on the mats at 10th Planet Oakland was another opportunity to continue the same process that helped drive that evolution in the first place:

share knowledge, test ideas and keep searching for better Jiu Jitsu.