Go Into The Weekend A Winner | AM Briefing #799
AM BRIEFING
ES CHART | KEY LEVELS | SETUPS
ES Technical Analysis — AM Briefing 799 Timeline
Friday June 26, 2026
| TIME | CHAPTER |
|---|---|
| 0:00 | Welcome ES MES Futures Traders |
| 7:45 | AM Briefing #799 & The Week Ahead Welcome to briefing 799, almost 800. Sentiment data 30 minutes after the open, Friday rules in effect, and a heads-up on next week's JOLTS, NFP and another holiday. |
| 9:11 | Friday Rules: Go Into The Weekend A Winner Friday rules return. Up small green? Consider one-and-done or no trade. The week ran one loser, two no-trade days, then a 30-pointer. Never give your week back on Friday. |
| 10:09 | Adjust Your Friday Risk Settings Dial down the daily stop, set a broker lock-out, and pick a points or percentage cap. Light week means ultra-selective with a super small stop. Protect yourself from yourself. |
| 11:35 | Mental Preservation & Tip Of The Day The goal is mental and capital preservation. Tip of the day stays the same: if you don't like where price is, wait until it gets into a new trade location. |
| 12:04 | Trade Review: Wait For The Second Ladder Walkthrough of yesterday's down move. No knife catching — waiting for a second ladder kept accounts at zero risk the whole way down. |
| 12:31 | First Ladders Require Perfection If a first ladder doesn't give monster follow-through, take the gift to break even. The damage comes from adding to losers, moving stops, and needing to be right. |
| 13:54 | Battle Plan 2 Longs: The Right Location Price arrived at Battle Plan 2, bulls defended, and the second ladder ran 70 points to a 30-point exit. The right trade in the right trade location. |
| 15:20 | Weekly Scorecard: Battle Plan & Zoom A banner week for the Battle Plan and a killer week on Zoom. Core Strategy stayed light with multiple no-trade days from large 15-point candles. |
| 16:17 | Overnight: Strong Range At Battle Plan 3 Price fell to Battle Plan 3, the Sunday-mapped strong range. Clean bounces off the top and bottom showed beautiful price action around a mapped level. |
| 18:44 | The 7520 Bull Bear Line 7520 is the most important level of the week — the Bull Bear Line. Price is below it and hasn't retested all week, a caution sign for the bulls. |
| 19:55 | Below The Line: Mapping Lower Below the Bull Bear Line, eyes shift to Battle Plan 4 and 5. Shorts aren't mapped in the hole, but journal any you take under the line. |
| 20:29 | Index Check: Lower Distributions & VWAP Russell, Dow, NQ and ES all in lower distributions with downward VWAP. Battle Plan 3 is confirmed as the overnight low — new information. |
| 21:04 | Seasonality & Holding A Lotto Runner Entering a summer season where the right long could pay handsomely. Holding a lotto runner across closures for 200 to 500 points is not outrageous. |
| 22:32 | Pre-Flight Check: Am I Ready To Trade? Run the readiness checklist. Friday fatigue is real, so factor it into a smaller risk setting. Trade your system, not your opinion. Cleared for takeoff. |
MES MICROS TRADE PLAN
Go Into The Weekend A Winner: Friday Rules & Protecting Your Green
Posted: Friday June 26, 2026
It's Friday… and Friday rules are in effect. This ES futures morning briefing isn't about chasing one more trade. It's about protecting what you built. The entries were difficult all week, yet the Battle Plan delivered when traders waited for the right setup in the right trade location. Today the focus narrows to one thing: mental and capital preservation. Go into the weekend a winner. If you're up small green, be extra cautious… and never give your week back on Friday.
FRIDAY RULES: GO INTO THE WEEKEND A WINNER
It is not OPEX. It is not NFP. It is not a Friday before a Monday holiday. So today the goal is simple… preserve your green and preserve your mind. If you're only up a small number of points on the week, the smartest trade may be no trade at all.
- Up small? Consider one-and-done. Or don't trade at all. If you're only up five points, just go into the weekend a winner.
- Paper trade. Even if that means literally writing "long" on a piece of paper. Stay sharp without putting green at risk.
- Be protective. A smaller daily stop limit. Today is a good day to dial it down.
The week itself proved the point: one six-point loser Monday, no trade Tuesday, no trade Wednesday, then a 30-pointer Thursday. Up small… so today demands extra caution.
Trader Lesson 1
Never give your week back on Friday. If you're up small green, go into the weekend a winner… one-and-done, or no trade at all.
ADJUST YOUR FRIDAY RISK SETTINGS
Protect yourself from yourself. If your broker allows it, go in and physically change your risk settings before the bell. Strict adherence to your leverage metrics today is of the utmost importance.
- Lock-out setting: Tell the platform to lock you out if you lose X dollars today. Adjust the weekly setting too if you can.
- Pick a number: A percentage of weekly profits or a fixed number of points. Up 120 points on the week? Risk 20 points… period. Nothing else.
- Ultra-selective: Without those banner points this week, the play is a super small stop. Only take a trade that offers a super small stop.
Trader Lesson 2
Adjust your Friday risk settings before the open. Dial down the daily stop, set the lock-out, and only take a trade that offers a super small stop.
TIP OF THE DAY: WAIT FOR A NEW TRADE LOCATION
Same tip that carried the entire week. If you don't like where price is… just wait until price gets into a new trade location. This was the key to trading yesterday. No knife-catching on the way down. Wait for a second ladder.
On yesterday's down move, traders looking for a second ladder long had their account at zero risk the whole way down… just watching. When price finally arrived at Battle Plan 2, the bulls defended and price ran 70 points. The second ladder paid. The 30-pointer came out of it.
Trader Lesson 3
Don't like where price is? Wait until price gets into a new trade location. Looking for the right trade in the right place keeps your account safe while you wait.
FIRST LADDERS REQUIRE PERFECTION
Here's where traders hurt themselves. A first ladder is the riskiest entry there is. If you take one and don't get monster follow-through — a 30, 40, 50-pointer — and price comes right back against you, the move is simple: take the gift to break even and step aside.
The damage isn't the first ladder itself. The damage is what comes after the first ladder fails:
- Did you add to a losing trade?
- Did you move your stop loss?
- Did you get stupid because you just HAD to be right?
That's how a small entry becomes a deep wound. First ladders require perfection… everything else is a second ladder you wait for.
Trader Lesson 4
First ladders require perfection. No monster follow-through? Take the gift to break even. Never add to a loser, never move your stop to be right.
THE LEVELS: STRONG RANGE, BATTLE PLAN 3 & THE 7520 BULL BEAR LINE
Overnight, price worked all the way down to Battle Plan 3 — the strong range mapped out on Sunday. Strong Levels and strong ranges are the most important levels for the week, drawn fresh every Sunday and used to craft the Battle Plan entries. Watch how the strong range performed: bounce off the bottom, reclaim the top, bounce off the top, bounce off the bottom again… beautiful price action around a mapped level.
The 7520 level was called the most important level of the week — it's the Bull Bear Line on the strong indicators. Here's the read going into RTH:
- Below the Bull Bear Line: Price is under 7520 and has not retested it all week. Not a great sign for the bulls.
- Overnight low confirmed: Battle Plan 3 is now the overnight low. New information.
- Eyes lower: Battle Plan 3 is not the preferred initial long again. The interest is in Battle Plan 4 and 5 below… better long locations.
Index check across the board: Russell in a lower distribution with a downward VWAP, Dow below the previous day low, NQ and ES both at the lower distribution with downward-sloping VWAP. Without a strong defense here, the map points lower.
SEASONALITY: WHY HOLD A LOTTO RUNNER NOW?
We're entering a season. If you can get the right entry for a long, you could be paid handsomely for holding the runner if summer seasonality continues the way it has year after year after year. Why hold the runner? Because 200, 400, even 500 points on a long would not be outrageous for those who can hold across market closures.
There's a reason prop firms don't let you hold positions across closures for any length you want… it's because it's so profitable. The plan stays the same: trade the levels as they develop, trade the Battle Plans as they become obvious, and try to hold a lotto runner — a speculative, low-probability extended runner — into the seasonal tailwind.
Trader Lesson 5
Get the right long entry and try to hold a lotto runner into the season. 200–500 points isn't outrageous for those who can hold across closures.
THE PRE-FLIGHT CHECK: AM I READY TO TRADE?
Before takeoff, run the checklist honestly. Am I emotionally ready? Am I physically ready? It's Friday… tired, thinking slower, creativity dropping. That gets factored into the risk for the day, not ignored.
- Right location, right equipment, enough time to trade?
- Reviewed the Battle Plan and done a thorough pre-flight check?
- Checked the economic calendar — including next week's?
- Do I have a written plan?
- Am I prepared for a max loss day — and is it greatly adjusted down today?
- Will I trade my system and not my opinion?
Next week the calendar tightens: JOLTS, non-farm payroll pushed to Thursday by another Friday holiday, the new Fed chair speaking Wednesday, and the Monday after a long holiday. Lessons about trading the Thursday before a holiday and the Monday after one matter now. A good time to tighten things up.
"The goal here is the mental and capital preservation. I want you to preserve your green and I want you to preserve your mind and your heart and your soul as a trader."
COMMON QUESTIONS FOR ES FUTURES TRADERS
What are Friday rules in futures trading?
A: Friday rules are a set of protective guidelines for the last session of the trading week. The core idea is to go into the weekend a winner — preserve your weekly green. If you're only up a small number of points, consider one-and-done or no trade at all, dial down your daily stop, and be ultra-selective. The aim is mental and capital preservation, not chasing one more trade.
Why should I adjust my risk settings on Friday?
A: Adjusting your risk settings protects you from yourself. If your broker supports it, set a lock-out so the platform stops you after a defined dollar loss, and lower your daily stop limit. A common method is to risk only a fixed percentage of the week's profits or a set number of points — for example, risking 20 points after being up 120 on the week. On a light week, that means only taking trades that offer a super small stop.
What does "wait for a new trade location" mean?
A: It means if you don't like where price currently is, you are not obligated to trade it — wait until price moves into a fresh, mapped level where a setup makes sense. This avoids knife-catching into a falling market. Traders waiting for price to reach a key level keep their account at zero risk while they watch, then act only when price comes to them.
What is a first ladder and why is it risky?
A: A ladder is a sequential re-entry or scaling technique. A first ladder is the very first attempt to catch a turn, and it's the riskiest because the move hasn't proven itself yet. First ladders require perfection — if you don't get monster follow-through and price comes back against you, take the gift to break even and step aside. The real danger is adding to the loser or moving your stop just to be right.
What is a second ladder long?
A: A second ladder long is a higher-probability entry taken after price has already shown it will hold or react at a level, rather than guessing the first turn. Waiting for the second ladder lets you keep your account safe during the entire down move and enter only once the level confirms. In the prior session, the second ladder off Battle Plan 2 produced a 70-point run.
What is the Bull Bear Line on the ES chart?
A: The Bull Bear Line is the key level dividing bullish bias from bearish bias. This week it sits at 7520 and was flagged as the most important level. When price is below the Bull Bear Line and hasn't retested it, that's a caution sign for the bulls and supports mapping trades lower rather than chasing longs into the hole.
What is a Strong Range?
A: A Strong Range is one of the most important weekly zones, mapped out every Sunday alongside the Strong Levels. These ranges are used to craft Battle Plan trade locations, with laddering typically happening around them. A clean Strong Range produces repeatable bounces off its top and bottom — exactly the price action seen overnight at Battle Plan 3.
What is a lotto runner and why hold one in summer?
A: A lotto runner is a speculative, low-probability extended runner trade held well beyond a normal scalp. In a seasonal summer tailwind, holding a runner from the right long entry can pay handsomely — 200 to 500 points is not outrageous for those who can hold across market closures. The strategy is to trade the Battle Plan levels and let one runner ride the seasonality.
How do I know if I'm ready to trade today?
A: Run a pre-flight check before the open. Ask if you're emotionally and physically ready, in the right location with the right equipment, have enough time, reviewed the Battle Plan, checked the economic calendar, written a plan, prepared for a max loss day, and committed to trading your system and not your opinion. On a tired Friday, factor that fatigue into a smaller risk setting rather than ignoring it.
Helping Futures Traders Via Our Core Strategy Academy Training Program and Futures Trading Group – The Best Emini Group IMHO.
📍 Originally published on MicrosTrader.com
Comments
Post a Comment