19/08/2015 - Teaching | Half Guard | Hip Switch Pass

Teaching #375
Artemis BJJ (MYGYM Bristol), Can Sönmez, Bristol, UK - 19/08/2015


Start by flattening out your opponent, driving your free knee into their hip, then walking your trapped leg across. Apply a heavy cross-face: this is absolutely central to the technique. Without a solid cross face, they will be able to turn towards you, perhaps even getting a reversal.

Once you've got that cross-face firmly locked in, raise your hips slightly. This is in order to switch your hips, bringing your free knee up by their hip (sliding underneath your trapped leg). Using either the knee or your shin, wedge that against their lower leg leg. With your free arm, grasp their trouser leg and yank it towards you, in order to open up enough space to free your leg. Ideally you also want to keep your head low and turned towards their legs, to make it harder for them to push into your throat.
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Teaching & Sparring Notes: This is something I first saw in Jiu Jitsu University years ago, but I hadn't considered it until I watched Xande's video of the same technique on BJJ Library. It's a simple technique that doesn't need much beyond a cross face. It's probably easier than the opposite side pass I teach (and use) more often, especially judging by how students did with it tonight. I think I'll be teaching this more frequently from now on, fitting well with the basic pressure pass.

In sparring I got in more specifics with Kirsty, both on top and on bottom, as well as a few others. This time when I went for that rolling back take I got stuck by her leg, lacking momentum and leverage. I could perhaps have switched to the banana split or calf slicer, but that would be somewhat unfair on a white belt (though I think the split is technically legal for white belts at most competitions? I should check that, particularly given one of the white belts at Artemis BJJ is quite fond of it).

I managed to get the lapel trap in place this time, first putting it over the arm. I didn't have that locked in as tightly as I wanted, so waited for her to slip her arm free, then switched to the cross choke option instead. Seemed to work well: I think I'll teach those two next week, to finish off half guard month.

I'm also continuing to play with deep half guard underneath, but it's still rather sloppy at this point. Immediately doing Braulio's 'facepalm' defence to the cross-face works pretty well: I must remember to include that when I show the basic half guard posture.