About the Drysdale Cradle Series
The Drysdale Cradle Series teaches the old-school wrestling cradle as a way to pass the half guard — the Z-Guard, China Wall, and shin shield — and finish with chokes. It’s a system ADCC Absolute World Champion Robert Drysdale turned to when, working without the gi, his opponents kept blocking his head control and fighting for under-hooks. Instead of going under the head, he went over it; instead of removing the shin shield, he used it against them. The result is a master class of cradles and chokes you won’t find anywhere else.
The series is presented by David Avellan of DavidMMA.com, who teamed up with Robert to bring it online — and has battle-tested and added his own cradle techniques as free bonus videos on the portal.
Who is Robert Drysdale?
Robert Drysdale was born in Provo, Utah, USA in 1981. He moved with his family to Brazil when he was just 6 years old, and began training Jiu-Jitsu in his teens at the “Quatro Tempos” academy in the city of Itú, São Paulo. He was still a white belt when he had to move back to the US for his university studies in Las Vegas — but, having fallen in love with BJJ, he sought out a school and trained with instructor Steve da Silva, the first teacher to really believe in his potential.
With his instructor’s encouragement, Robert moved back to Brazil in 2000, where the sport was more professionalized. He dedicated himself fully to BJJ and competition at the “Maromba” academy under Professor Paulo Streckert, earning a World Title in the purple belt division and his brown belt. He then joined the mighty Brasa team led by the former Alliance stars, after a memorable training “beating” from Leonardo Vieira convinced him it was the place to be.
Possibly the most accomplished American grappler of his generation, Robert Drysdale is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt — a rank he earned training with the legendary coach Leonardo Vieira. He is the 2nd American to win an IBJJF World Championship (2005), later going on to win the ADCC (2007) in the open weight category. He also competed in mixed martial arts, reaching the pinnacle of the sport in the UFC, and famously submitted one of BJJ’s greatest of all time, Marcelo Garcia, with a Brabo choke. By the end of 2013, Drysdale joined forces with Rodrigo Cavaca to form a new grappling team — Zenith BJJ.