Body Lock Pass
Guard pass · Closed Guard
The body lock pass takes you from inside an opened closed guard to side control by taking away his hip movement. The moment is when his hips stay on the mat and his legs are open around you. Lock your hands low around his hips, elbows tight, and drive your shoulder into his jaw or upper chest; pull his hips into yours like a vice, so he cannot turn to his side or shrimp. Walk his legs to one side with your knees in short steps, free your legs from between his and switch your hips. Lock at the hips, not the ribs: locked high, his hips stay free. Open the grip only when your chest is on his, then take the crossface and underhook. If he turns to turtle, take Back Control.
How to do it
- Lock your hands low around their hips, elbows tight, and drive your shoulder into their jaw or upper chest.
- Pull their hips into yours with the lock and keep them flat on the mat, so they cannot turn to their side or shrimp.
- Walk their legs to one side with your knees, using short steps, while the grip stays closed.
- Free your legs from between theirs as soon as their legs move, switching your hips.
- Switch to side control: release the lock only when your chest is on theirs, then take the crossface and underhook.
Key details
- The lock takes away their hip movement: without moving the hips there is no guard.
- Lock at the hips, low, where their movement starts; locked at the ribs their hips stay free.
- Walk their legs to one side with your knees while your arms keep the hips flat.
- The lock pulls their hips into yours: it is a vice, not a hug.
- Walk around with short steps and never open the grip until your chest is on them.
- Lock off-centre, one long arm and one short arm: a lock in the middle narrows your base, and the elbow of the short arm pinches their knee so it cannot come back to their chest.
- Work in stages: get their back off the mat to connect the hands, drive their shoulders down with your head, clear their knee line with your knee, then free your knee and foot.
Common mistakes
- Locking too high, around the ribs. — Locked around the ribs, their hips stay free and they shrimp out. — Lock low around the hips, where the movement starts.
- Hands unlocked or holding loosely. — Unlocked hands let their hips turn out of your arms. — Lock the hands tight and keep the elbows close to their hips.
- Too slow to free your legs. — While your legs stay in, they lock the guard around you again. — Switch hips as soon as their legs move.
- Staying upright while they lift you with a butterfly hook. — The hook elevates you and they sit you down or roll you over. — Sprawl that hip back and down to kill the hook, head driving their shoulders to the mat.
If they defend
- They push your head. → Keep the lock and stay heavy; the push wears them out.
How to drill it
Body lock pass from the opened closed guard, 8 reps; then with the partner framing.
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