20th January 2001

Ian "THE MACHINE" Freeman

Dublin Seminar No: 2

Hosted By The Full Circle Martial Arts Academy

Written by Paul@Choke

Ian Freeman stepped back onto the Dublin mats with a real vengeance this time around.  His initial game plan was to cover a host of new techniques, since his last visit to the Irish shores back in October of 2000, but due to so many new faces present, he had to reshuffle his overall seminar format.  Whilst needing to go back to basics for the raw beginners in attendance, Ian also managed to cater nicely for the people who wanted to take it on to the next stage.  To begin with, basic ground & pound moves were demonstrated in great detail.  Even a virgin to Vale Tudo training would have coped ok.  Every angle was covered, and nobody was left scratching their heads at anything shown.  Even the more experienced guys present, semmed to really enjoy going back to basics.  This was no nonsense Vale Tudo in it's purest form.

After getting everyone revved up and into a nice rhythm, Ian rapidly picked up the pace to cover a wider scope of moves.  All the while, it was clear to see that he was making sure nobody fell behind while he carried on with his demonstration.  In fact, he spent a great amount of time helping individuals who didn't quite have the full picture at first.  In no time at all, even the raw beginners were pulling off moves that would normally be left for an intermediate class.

Working from the guard

Here's a breakdown of techniques covered:  Pummel and Underhook (Warmup), Basic ground and pound techniques, single leg and double leg takedowns, sprawl (turning opponents over and tying up), defense against guillotine, rear mount choke, tying up strikes, heel hooks, passing the guard and guard reversals, knee bars and the wrap.  All done with a touch of UFC style flavouring. 

Although a lot of moves were covered, the mechanics behind each technique were explained in great detail, so nobody walked away confused in any way at all.  

From a personal point of view, I always look for something other than the plain straight forward seminars, that a lot of people teach.  I don't mean in content, but in that little thing that adds a touch of class.  I was rewarded aplenty in the form of Ians colourful language and humour used to explain why these moves had been such a success to him.  Everybody present was falling about in stitches, which in turn made for a  relaxing and really enjoyable day.

Whereas at the end of the last seminar a question and answer session took place, this time around it was decided to do away with that, and to have an open mat session where everybody could practice amongst themselves, or roll with Ian if desired.

Open Mat session.  Rob Byrne (Le Wasp) rolls with Ian

Before wrapping up the seminar, Ian made a point of explaining that all the moves shown, were things that he had tailored to suit his particular fighting style.  He went on to say that everybody present was unique, and that they would need to play around with the moves to find what works best for them.  In his own words: "I'm simply giving you a toolbox and filling it with tools.  Whichever ones you choose to use and how you go about using them, is totally down to you".

John Kavanagh going for the armbar

In closing, Ian can rest assured that when his fighting days are over, he stands to be a great success on the seminar circuit.  Congratulations go out to Rob Byrne and John Kavanagh from Full Circle for pulling it off again.  With 2 'Machine' seminars and a Roger Gracie one under their belts, they are living up to their tag of Irelands Finest.

To Contact Rob or John for more info: fullcirclemaa@hotmail.com