According to BJJ Heroes they've had over 150 matches between them and only lost by submission twice (both of those were Cobrinha being tapped, Mendes hasn't lose by sub at blackbelt yet), so that means you are playing for points - unless you want to play the 2% odds you can pull out a submission.
You let Rafa pull you into guard and he is plotting the backtake before he hits the floor. You let him get on top and he is giving you 10 minutes of directional changes that a single slip up will see you lose the match (coming back from behind on Rafa is going to be super tough).
If Cobrinha gets underneath you he is a master at sweeping - I imagine Rafa knew that his only real shot at losing was if he got swept (he has had his guard passed before - possibly even by Cobrinha, if I remember rightly - but it's a rarity).
The result is that you get a match where both are trying to win by a narrow margin: a sweep or a takedown. The other knows this and therefore doesn't want to risk being put in a position where they will be swept or takedown. As such they were keeping themselves safe whilst waiting for the other person to make a mistake. Can't remember who said it (possibly Ryan Hall), but good fighters hardly make any mistakes, the best make none. If you are waiting for a mistake and none comes... nothing happens.
That said, I am with you in some ways. I wish we didn't have to have matches like this - but I don't fault the competitors. They ARE doing everything they can to win. You can bet in Rafa's head he is screaming at himself to take this guy down or to pull him into guard, but the part of us - the master fighter part of his brain that so few of us have or listen to - is telling him he shouldn't and that is why he is where he is: he didn't feel it so he didn't do it. He didn't make the mistake we'd have made. Cobrinha I am sure was thinking the exact same thing.
Anyone who saw the match know it was a draw. None of them lost. None of them won either, but then perhaps that was because on that day no one could have done anything to win, just done something to make themselves lose.
*shrugs*
You let Rafa pull you into guard and he is plotting the backtake before he hits the floor. You let him get on top and he is giving you 10 minutes of directional changes that a single slip up will see you lose the match (coming back from behind on Rafa is going to be super tough).
If Cobrinha gets underneath you he is a master at sweeping - I imagine Rafa knew that his only real shot at losing was if he got swept (he has had his guard passed before - possibly even by Cobrinha, if I remember rightly - but it's a rarity).
The result is that you get a match where both are trying to win by a narrow margin: a sweep or a takedown. The other knows this and therefore doesn't want to risk being put in a position where they will be swept or takedown. As such they were keeping themselves safe whilst waiting for the other person to make a mistake. Can't remember who said it (possibly Ryan Hall), but good fighters hardly make any mistakes, the best make none. If you are waiting for a mistake and none comes... nothing happens.
That said, I am with you in some ways. I wish we didn't have to have matches like this - but I don't fault the competitors. They ARE doing everything they can to win. You can bet in Rafa's head he is screaming at himself to take this guy down or to pull him into guard, but the part of us - the master fighter part of his brain that so few of us have or listen to - is telling him he shouldn't and that is why he is where he is: he didn't feel it so he didn't do it. He didn't make the mistake we'd have made. Cobrinha I am sure was thinking the exact same thing.
Anyone who saw the match know it was a draw. None of them lost. None of them won either, but then perhaps that was because on that day no one could have done anything to win, just done something to make themselves lose.
*shrugs*
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