Guard (grappling)
Encyclopedia
The guard is a ground grappling position where one combatant has their back to the ground, while attempting to control the other combatant using the legs. In pure grappling
combat sport
s, the guard is considered an advantageous position
, since the bottom combatant can attack with various joint lock
s and chokeholds, while the top combatant's priority is to transition
into a more dominant position, a process known as passing the guard. In mixed martial arts
competition or hand-to-hand combat in general, it is possible to effectively strike
from the top in the guard, even though the bottom combatant exerts some control. There are various types of guard, with their own advantages and disadvantages.
The guard is a key part of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
where it is used as an offensive position. It is also used, but not formally named, in judo
though it is sometimes referred to as "dō-osae" in Japanese
, meaning "trunk hold". It is called the "front body scissor" in catch wrestling
.
. The bottom combatant might transition
between the open and closed guard, as the open guard allows for better movement, but also increased risk in the opponent passing the guard.
s and chokeholds. The legs can be used to move the opponent, and to create leverage. The legs open allows the opponent to stand up or try to pass the guard, so this position is often used temporarily to set up sweeps or other techniques. Open guard is also a general term that encompasses a large number of guard positions where the legs are used to push, wrap or hook the opponent without locking the ankles together around them.
The butterfly guard involves both of the legs being hooked with the ankle
s in between the opponents legs, against the inside of the opponents thigh
s. The opponent is controlled using both legs and arms. The butterfly guard is often short-lived since the opponent might be able to move quite freely. The leverage in the butterfly guard allows for powerful sweeps. The butterfly guard also allows one to elevate or set the opponent off balance, because of this it is particularly useful in avoiding damage from ground and pound and for many transitions
.
The x-guard is an open guard where one of the combatants is standing up and the other is on their back. The bottom combatant uses the legs to entangle one of the opponent's legs, which creates opportunities for powerful sweeps. The x-guard is often used in combination with butterfly and half guard
. In a grappling
match, this is an advantageous position for the bottom combatant, but in general hand-to-hand combat, the top combatant can attack with stomps
or soccer kick
s. This having been said, skilled use of the X guard can prevent the opponent from attempting a kick, or throw them off balance should they raise a leg. The X-guard was popularised by Marcelo Garcia.
The spider guard comprises a number of positions all of which involve controlling the opponents arms while using the soles of the feet to control the opponent at the biceps, hips, thighs or a combination of them. It is most effective when the sleeves of the opponent can be grabbed, for instance if the opponent is wearing a gi
. The spider guard can be used for sweeps and to set up joint lock
s or chokehold
s.
The De la Riva guard (also called the De la Riva hook and jello guard) is an open guard that was popularized in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
by black belt Ricardo de la Riva Goded, who was successful with it in competition. In it, one of the legs is wrapped behind the opponent's leg from the outside, the ankle held with one hand, and the other hand grips one of their sleeves. The De la Riva guard offers many sweeps, transitions and submissions, and is often used in combination with spider guard.
but popularized and made a system by Eddie Bravo
, many techniques have been developed from this position including sweeps, submissions, and striking defense. By being flexible and using a leg to hold the opponent down, one arm is free to work on submissions, sweeps or to strike the opponent's trapped head.
and Russian Sambo, it is a form of the "outside leg triangle" type of leg control. In this position, the fighter on the bottom crosses a triangle on the opponent's leg, which allows for the leg to be dominated while leaving the arms free to work on sweeps and submissions. This position has been heavily criticized for use in competitions with restricted use of leglocks due to the potential of stalling a match when the fighter on top cannot pass the guard and the fighter on the bottom cannot successfully perform a sweep.
whereby the practitioner persuades the opponent to release his guard through an abrasive action. Examples of this type of action would be digging the practitioner's forearm
s into the inner thigh
of the opponent, standing and attempting a can opener neck crank, or in the case of a mixed martial arts setting, to simply strike
the opponent until the guard is released. Passing the guard however has perils of its own, as it has a tendency to leave the practitioner particularly vulnerable to counter attack in the form of sweep
s and submission
s.
Grappling
Grappling refers to techniques, maneuvers, and counters applied to an opponent in order to gain a physical advantage, such as improving relative position, escaping, submitting, or injury to the opponent. Grappling is a general term that covers techniques used in many disciplines, styles and martial...
combat sport
Combat sport
A Combat sport, also known as a Fighting sport, is a competitive contact sport where two combatants fight against each other using certain rules of engagement , typically with the aim of simulating parts of real hand to hand combat...
s, the guard is considered an advantageous position
Grappling position
A grappling position refers to the positioning and holds of combatants engaged in grappling. Combatants are said to be in a neutral position if neither is in a more favourable position. If one party has a clear advantage such as in the mount they are said to be in a "dominant position"...
, since the bottom combatant can attack with various joint lock
Joint lock
A Joint lock is a grappling technique involving manipulation of an opponent's joints in such a way that the joints reach their maximal degree of motion....
s and chokeholds, while the top combatant's priority is to transition
Transition (grappling)
A transition in grappling is a move from one grappling hold or grappling position to another. The process is called transitioning and is one of the most important aspects of ground grappling, as it allows the combatant performing the transition to advance in positioning, for instance by using a...
into a more dominant position, a process known as passing the guard. In mixed martial arts
Mixed martial arts
Mixed Martial Arts is a full contact combat sport that allows the use of both striking and grappling techniques, both standing and on the ground, including boxing, wrestling, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, muay Thai, kickboxing, karate, judo and other styles. The roots of modern mixed martial arts can be...
competition or hand-to-hand combat in general, it is possible to effectively strike
Strike (attack)
A strike is an attack with an inanimate object, such as a weapon, or with a part of the human body intended to cause an effect upon an opponent or to simply cause harm to an opponent. There are many different varieties of strikes...
from the top in the guard, even though the bottom combatant exerts some control. There are various types of guard, with their own advantages and disadvantages.
The guard is a key part of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is a martial art, combat sport, and a self defense system that focuses on grappling and especially ground fighting...
where it is used as an offensive position. It is also used, but not formally named, in judo
Judo
is a modern martial art and combat sport created in Japan in 1882 by Jigoro Kano. Its most prominent feature is its competitive element, where the object is to either throw or takedown one's opponent to the ground, immobilize or otherwise subdue one's opponent with a grappling maneuver, or force an...
though it is sometimes referred to as "dō-osae" in Japanese
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
, meaning "trunk hold". It is called the "front body scissor" in catch wrestling
Catch wrestling
Catch wrestling is a style of folk wrestling that was developed and popularised in the late 19th century by the wrestlers of traveling carnivals who incorporated submission holds, or "hooks", into their wrestling to increase their effectiveness against their opponents...
.
Pulling Guard
Transitioning directly from standing to the guard position is known as pulling guard. Tsunetane Oda, a judo groundwork specialist who died in 1955, demonstrated the technique on video.Closed Guard
Sometimes referred to as full guard. The closed guard is the typical guard position. The legs are hooked behind the back of the opponent, preventing them from standing up or moving away. The opponent needs to open the legs up to be able to improve positioningGrappling position
A grappling position refers to the positioning and holds of combatants engaged in grappling. Combatants are said to be in a neutral position if neither is in a more favourable position. If one party has a clear advantage such as in the mount they are said to be in a "dominant position"...
. The bottom combatant might transition
Transition (grappling)
A transition in grappling is a move from one grappling hold or grappling position to another. The process is called transitioning and is one of the most important aspects of ground grappling, as it allows the combatant performing the transition to advance in positioning, for instance by using a...
between the open and closed guard, as the open guard allows for better movement, but also increased risk in the opponent passing the guard.
Open Guard
The open guard is typically used to perform various joint lockJoint lock
A Joint lock is a grappling technique involving manipulation of an opponent's joints in such a way that the joints reach their maximal degree of motion....
s and chokeholds. The legs can be used to move the opponent, and to create leverage. The legs open allows the opponent to stand up or try to pass the guard, so this position is often used temporarily to set up sweeps or other techniques. Open guard is also a general term that encompasses a large number of guard positions where the legs are used to push, wrap or hook the opponent without locking the ankles together around them.
Butterfly Guard
Ankle
The ankle joint is formed where the foot and the leg meet. The ankle, or talocrural joint, is a synovial hinge joint that connects the distal ends of the tibia and fibula in the lower limb with the proximal end of the talus bone in the foot...
s in between the opponents legs, against the inside of the opponents thigh
Thigh
In humans the thigh is the area between the pelvis and the knee. Anatomically, it is part of the lower limb.The single bone in the thigh is called the femur...
s. The opponent is controlled using both legs and arms. The butterfly guard is often short-lived since the opponent might be able to move quite freely. The leverage in the butterfly guard allows for powerful sweeps. The butterfly guard also allows one to elevate or set the opponent off balance, because of this it is particularly useful in avoiding damage from ground and pound and for many transitions
Transition (grappling)
A transition in grappling is a move from one grappling hold or grappling position to another. The process is called transitioning and is one of the most important aspects of ground grappling, as it allows the combatant performing the transition to advance in positioning, for instance by using a...
.
X-Guard
Half guard
Half guard, or alternatively half mount, is a ground grappling position where one combatant is lying on the other, with the bottom combatant having one leg entangled. Sometimes the bottom combatant is said to be in half guard, while the top combatant is in a half mount respectively. The half guard...
. In a grappling
Grappling
Grappling refers to techniques, maneuvers, and counters applied to an opponent in order to gain a physical advantage, such as improving relative position, escaping, submitting, or injury to the opponent. Grappling is a general term that covers techniques used in many disciplines, styles and martial...
match, this is an advantageous position for the bottom combatant, but in general hand-to-hand combat, the top combatant can attack with stomps
Stomp (strike)
A stomp is a downwards strike with the heel of the foot from the stand-up position, and is usually directed at the head or body of a downed opponent...
or soccer kick
Soccer kick
A soccer kick is a reference to a kick that is similar to kicks used in association football. For short distanced passes, the instep or the outside of the foot can be used...
s. This having been said, skilled use of the X guard can prevent the opponent from attempting a kick, or throw them off balance should they raise a leg. The X-guard was popularised by Marcelo Garcia.
Spider Guard
Keikogi
or dōgi is a uniform for training, used in martial arts derived from Japan, or budō. . The prototype for the modern keikogi emerged in the late 19th century. The keikogi was developed by judo founder Kano Jigoro...
. The spider guard can be used for sweeps and to set up joint lock
Joint lock
A Joint lock is a grappling technique involving manipulation of an opponent's joints in such a way that the joints reach their maximal degree of motion....
s or chokehold
Chokehold
A chokehold or choke is a general term for grappling hold that critically reduces or prevents either air or blood from passing through the neck of an opponent. The restriction may be of one or both and depends on the hold used and the reaction of the victim...
s.
De la Riva Guard
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is a martial art, combat sport, and a self defense system that focuses on grappling and especially ground fighting...
by black belt Ricardo de la Riva Goded, who was successful with it in competition. In it, one of the legs is wrapped behind the opponent's leg from the outside, the ankle held with one hand, and the other hand grips one of their sleeves. The De la Riva guard offers many sweeps, transitions and submissions, and is often used in combination with spider guard.
Rubber Guard
This is a position that keeps the opponent down in your guard. First used by Nino SchembriNino Schembri
Antonio "Nino" Schembri is a Brazilian mixed martial artist. He is a former member of the Chute Boxe Academy and currently trains with the Black House Team. He is called "Elvis" because of his long, chop-like sideburns. The highlight of his career came with his upset victory over Kazushi Sakuraba...
but popularized and made a system by Eddie Bravo
Eddie Bravo
Eddie Bravo is a Mexican-American practitioner of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu who holds a second degree black belt under Jean-Jacques Machado...
, many techniques have been developed from this position including sweeps, submissions, and striking defense. By being flexible and using a leg to hold the opponent down, one arm is free to work on submissions, sweeps or to strike the opponent's trapped head.
50-50 Guard
The 50-50 (Fifty-fifty) guard is a position popularized by Roberto “Gordo” Correa and extensively used by the Mendes Brothers, Rafael and Guilherme Mendes, Bruno Frazzato, and Ramon Lemos from the Atos Jiu Jitsu Team. In other grappling systems such as catch wrestlingCatch wrestling
Catch wrestling is a style of folk wrestling that was developed and popularised in the late 19th century by the wrestlers of traveling carnivals who incorporated submission holds, or "hooks", into their wrestling to increase their effectiveness against their opponents...
and Russian Sambo, it is a form of the "outside leg triangle" type of leg control. In this position, the fighter on the bottom crosses a triangle on the opponent's leg, which allows for the leg to be dominated while leaving the arms free to work on sweeps and submissions. This position has been heavily criticized for use in competitions with restricted use of leglocks due to the potential of stalling a match when the fighter on top cannot pass the guard and the fighter on the bottom cannot successfully perform a sweep.
Passing the Guard
In order to overcome the primary defense of his opponent, his guard, and attain a more dominant position, such as side mount, full mount, or knee on stomach a practitioner must pass the guard. There are several ways of doing so; many involve pain compliancePain compliance
Pain compliance is the use of painful stimulus to control or direct a person or animal. The stimulus can be manual , use tools such as a whip or electroshock weapon, or use of chemical such as tear gas or pepper spray.The purpose of pain compliance is to direct the actions of...
whereby the practitioner persuades the opponent to release his guard through an abrasive action. Examples of this type of action would be digging the practitioner's forearm
Forearm
-See also:*Forearm flexors*Forearm muscles...
s into the inner thigh
Thigh
In humans the thigh is the area between the pelvis and the knee. Anatomically, it is part of the lower limb.The single bone in the thigh is called the femur...
of the opponent, standing and attempting a can opener neck crank, or in the case of a mixed martial arts setting, to simply strike
Strike (attack)
A strike is an attack with an inanimate object, such as a weapon, or with a part of the human body intended to cause an effect upon an opponent or to simply cause harm to an opponent. There are many different varieties of strikes...
the opponent until the guard is released. Passing the guard however has perils of its own, as it has a tendency to leave the practitioner particularly vulnerable to counter attack in the form of sweep
Sweep (martial arts)
A sweep is the name used for two categories of martial arts techniques. From standing, sweeps are throws or takedowns that primarily use the legs to attack an opponent's legs...
s and submission
Submission
Submission is the acknowledgement of the legitimacy of the power of one's superior or superiors.Submission may also refer to:* Submission/Submitter , an Islamic organisation...
s.
See also
- Half guardHalf guardHalf guard, or alternatively half mount, is a ground grappling position where one combatant is lying on the other, with the bottom combatant having one leg entangled. Sometimes the bottom combatant is said to be in half guard, while the top combatant is in a half mount respectively. The half guard...
- GrapplingGrapplingGrappling refers to techniques, maneuvers, and counters applied to an opponent in order to gain a physical advantage, such as improving relative position, escaping, submitting, or injury to the opponent. Grappling is a general term that covers techniques used in many disciplines, styles and martial...
- Grappling holdGrappling holdA grappling hold is a grappling, wrestling, judo or other martial arts term for a specific grip that is applied to an opponent. Holds are principally used to control the opponent, and to advance in points or positioning...
- Brazilian Jiu-jitsuBrazilian Jiu-JitsuBrazilian Jiu-Jitsu is a martial art, combat sport, and a self defense system that focuses on grappling and especially ground fighting...
- JudoJudois a modern martial art and combat sport created in Japan in 1882 by Jigoro Kano. Its most prominent feature is its competitive element, where the object is to either throw or takedown one's opponent to the ground, immobilize or otherwise subdue one's opponent with a grappling maneuver, or force an...
Footnotes
Further reading
- Løvstad, Jakob. The Mixed Martial Arts Primer. www.idi.ntnu.no. URL last accessed March 6, 2006. (DOC format)
- Page, Nicky. Groundfighting 101. homepage.ntlworld.com. URL last accessed March 4, 2006.
- Kesting, Stephan. The X guard position. www.grapplearts.com. URL last accessed March 7, 2006.
- Bravo, Eddie (2006) Mastering The Rubber Guard. ISBN 0-9777-3159-6