Top BJJ competitor Craig Jones recently took some time out of his training regime to take part in a friendly Sumo match, where he surprised his experienced opponent with a leglock. There’s no leg entanglements of any kind used in Sumo wrestling of course, and anything other than the soles of the feet touching the ground is an instant loss in the sport. That means that Jones performing an Imanari roll and locking up a kneebar undoubtedly came as a bit of a surprise to the veteran competitor opposite him.
Although cross-training in different grappling styles is pretty common in the BJJ world, training alongside Sumo wrestlers is definitely one of the most unusual crossovers. Jones wasn’t actually alone in visiting the stable of Sumo wrestlers either, as he was also joined by his teammates Nicky Rodriguez and Haisam Rida. All three men dove into it headfirst, completely dressing the part. Both Rodriguez and Rida also got involved in the training too, with Rodriguez taking on one of the Sumo wrestlers in what looked like an incredibly tough challenge.
The only reason that Jones and his training partners at B-Team Jiu-Jitsu found themselves in a Sumo stable in the first place was because they were celebrating after a successful visit to Japan. The team took part in Quintet 4 and Jones acted as both the captain and the key player behind their success on the mats. He submitted two opponents during the tournament and helped drive B-Team to victory at Quintet 4, where they left with the title. The group stayed in Japan for a while after the event and it seems like they were definitely enjoying themselves, at least judging by their trip to the Sumo stable.
Craig Jones recently shared the footage of him surprising a Sumo wrestler with a leglock in a recent post to his official Instagram account: