Most of us focus on the sweeps and submissions from the guard position.
But the truth is that the ability to retain the position and recover when our opponent starts to pass is even more important.
If your guard is easily passed the moment that your opponent opens your closed guard, you will have little chance to attack with those sweeps and submissions.
First, let’s start with some drills to build the movements and give us some basic tools to retain the guard.
1) 7 BJJ Guard Retention Drills
* Most important is to move your hips and ALWAYS look to secure a grip or hook to stop the passer’s free movement
2) Guard Replacement Moves by Soca Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Your guard is 90% passed, but you pull off one of these fundamental moves and you are back to a safe defending position and possibly attacking with your own submission or sweep.
3) Kimura from bottom: roll against spinning armbar reversal
Your opponent has difficulty establishing the guard pass if they can’t secure head control.
The Kimura grip to rollover is a GREAT move to reverse the pass.
4) Guard Retention Series : Granby Roll
Watch any top level jiu-jitsu competitor and you will see them go to this move the instant their guard is being passed. It can happen so fast that you need to rewind the video to see what happened.
Read also: Jiu-jitsu Times –
The Hip Bump Sweep – Building Combinations
This was really helpful and just want to thank you for making this page and the videos. You seem like a very kind, funny, good teacher. I’m a purple belt and still continue to struggle with guard, especially general open guard and getting lost in grips and movement when I’m seated vs a standing passer.
Anyway, thanks again.