26/06/2015 - Teaching | Closed Guard | Windscreen Wiper Sweep

Teaching #345
Artemis BJJ (MYGYM Bristol), Can Sönmez, Bristol, UK - 26/06/2015

The windscreen wiper sweep is something I was first shown by Ciaran at the Belfast Throwdown. That's also the terminology he used: as I think it's the most descriptive I've heard, I have continued to follow Ciaran's lead on that ever since. I next saw it demonstrated on Andre Anderson's closed guard DVD, where he called it the 'Rey Diogo sweep', naming it after his instructor. John Will does something similar he dubs the 'bearhug ankle lift', except that his grips are different.

You have various options for grips, but I tend to start by grabbing their same side trouser leg. Grab either the outside of their knee or the lower part of their trousers (keeping in mind you don't want your fingers inside the cuff of their trousers). Be careful, as if your opponent knows this sweep, they may post their other leg out to stop you. You also need to control their other arm, to prevent them posting. Simplest option is to grab their sleeve and bring it across your body, but you could also grab the elbow, or use John Will's method where he grips over the back and traps their arm by pinning his elbow in.

They could still post on their ungrabbed leg at this point. Before they can do that, put your same side foot by that other leg, keeping it tight so there is no room for them to wriggle. Andreh Anderson prefers pressing his foot down into the hip, but personally I find that difficult to pull off: still, be sure to try both versions to see which works best for you. Next, kick your foot on the trouser-grip side up into their armpit, aiming to curve their body away as you do. You're aiming to knock them diagonally forwards, towards your shoulder. Lift their gripped leg and roll through into mount.

If you're having trouble getting the leverage to knock them over, an alternative is to swivel your body perpendicular. You should end up looking into their ear, in a similar motion to Ryan Hall's triangle finish, or the armbar. You can then kick the leg that is in their armpit forwards, fitting with Hall's theory of bringing larger muscle groups to bear rather than small ones. Finish as before, lifting their leg and rolling into mount.

You should end up in a solid low mount. I'd suggest immediately staying low and grabbing their head, focusing on solidifying the mount before you continue. Keep hold of their leg, as well as the sleeve if you gripped it earlier, extending that sleeve forwards. Holding the leg makes it hard for them to bridge, while holding the sleeve and straightening the arm could lead directly into a submission, such as an americana. To further help with that, slide your knee up on the sleeve grip side, so they can't bring their elbow back to their side.

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Teaching Notes: Class went well, as it looked like everybody got the technique down ok. I forgot to mention about keeping hold of the leg and sleeve during your roll through to mount, so will add that next time. It was handy to have Anderson's foot-on-hip variation, given a couple of people struggled putting their foot next to the leg. Some people had trouble with the swing too, which is where the angling off and kicking option comes in. Yay!

In sparring, Ross is definitely wise to what I'm doing now. He's wary of getting his posture broken, so he stiff arms into my sternum. I have been angling around it, trying to knock him off balance and get to the shoulder clamp. I tried to bring my leg up the back, but still not getting the angle I'd like. People are able to posture up too easily and free their arm. Partly that could be because I'm not doing enough to push their head away, so they're able to square up. Have to just keep plugging away at it: on the plus side, like I keep saying, constantly going for the shoulder clamp has made my guard a lot more offensive and further focused my attention on breaking posture then creating an angle.

I downloaded a boxing interval timer for my phone, so I can bring some structure to the open mat, in terms of time rather than telling people what to do. It means I can split the open mat into five minute chunks, with a rest of about 40 seconds in between each round. I can then grab people for the next round, making sure I get in some free sparring. I managed to land the handstand sweep I'm teaching on Monday, but as often with that one I didn't sit up properly so they recovered. Important point to emphasise. ;)