Competition Success
The Most Common and Useful BJJ Techniques in Competition
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) is a martial art that emphasizes ground fighting and submission holds. In competition, practitioners utilize a variety of techniques to gain advantages, control opponents, and secure victories. Here’s a look at some of the most common and useful BJJ techniques that are often seen in competitive settings.
1. **Guard Passes**
**Guard passing** is essential in BJJ competition. The goal is to transition from inside your opponent’s guard to a more dominant position, typically side control or mount.
- **Toreando Pass**: This pass involves gripping your opponent’s pants or gi and quickly moving around their legs, much like a matador sidestepping a bull. It’s effective due to its speed and ability to catch opponents off guard.
- **Knee Slice Pass**: This pass involves slicing your knee through the opponent’s guard while using grips to control their upper body. It’s powerful and can be used against various guard types.
- **Over-Under Pass**: Here, you control one of your opponent’s legs with your arm under it and the other over their opposite leg, driving forward to pass. It’s a strong pressure pass that can break through tough guards.
2. **Sweeps**
Sweeps allow a competitor to reverse a bad position and gain a dominant one, often transitioning from bottom guard to top position.
- **Scissor Sweep**: This basic sweep involves using one leg to chop at the opponent’s base while pulling their arm and using your other leg to push. It’s effective from closed guard.
- **Flower Sweep**: Also known as the pendulum sweep, this technique uses momentum to off-balance the opponent and involves gripping their arm and using your legs to swing underneath them.
- **X-Guard Sweep**: From the X-guard, you use your legs and hips to lift and off-balance your opponent, creating opportunities to sweep them and come up on top.
3. **Submissions**
Submissions are the ultimate goal in BJJ competitions, ending matches decisively.
- **Armbar**: A classic submission where the opponent’s arm is isolated and hyperextended using your hips and legs. It can be set up from multiple positions, including guard, mount, and side control.
- **Triangle Choke**: This choke involves trapping the opponent’s neck and one arm between your legs, cutting off blood flow to the brain. It’s often executed from guard.
- **Rear Naked Choke (RNC)**: This choke is applied from the back, wrapping your arm around the opponent’s neck and using your other arm to secure the position. It’s one of the most effective and high-percentage submissions in BJJ.
4. **Positional Controls**
Maintaining dominant positions is crucial for controlling the match and setting up submissions.
- **Mount**: In this position, you sit on your opponent’s torso, which gives you control and numerous submission opportunities. The high mount, in particular, is very dominant.
- **Back Control**: Having control of your opponent’s back with hooks (feet) and seatbelt grip allows for both positional dominance and submission opportunities, such as the RNC.
- **Side Control**: This position allows you to control the opponent from the side, applying pressure and setting up submissions like the kimura or the americana.
### 5. **Escapes**
Being able to escape bad positions is just as important as attacking.
- **Bridge and Roll Escape**: From mount, this escape involves bridging to off-balance your opponent and rolling them over, allowing you to gain top position.
- **Shrimp Escape**: This escape is used to create space and regain guard from positions like side control or mount. By pushing off the ground and shifting your hips, you can reposition yourself effectively.
- **Elbow Escape**: Also from mount, this technique involves using your elbows to create space and slide your legs through to recover guard.
Conclusion
Mastering these common and useful BJJ techniques can significantly enhance your performance in competitions. Each technique serves a purpose, whether it’s advancing position, maintaining control, or securing a submission. Regular drilling, sparring, and refining of these techniques will help you become a well-rounded and formidable competitor in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.