Lasso Sweep
Sweep · Open Guard
From lasso guard you tip the opponent onto his side and come up on top. The moment is when he leans back to pull his arm out of the lasso. Your leg wraps his arm from the outside, knee over his elbow, foot on his hip or chest, and your hand holds that sleeve; the other hand holds the far sleeve or collar so he cannot circle around the lasso. Push your free foot on his hip and move your hips out to the side, then pull the lasso arm down and tip him toward it: the trapped arm cannot post, so nothing stops the fall. In the classic version you drop the free leg to the mat and extend the lasso leg up. A shallow lasso controls only the wrist. If he drops a knee to pass, answer with the Lasso Omoplata.
How to do it
- Grip the sleeve and wrap your leg around the arm from the outside, deep enough that your knee is over their elbow, foot on their hip or chest.
- Grip the other sleeve or collar with your other hand, so they cannot circle around the lasso to the other side.
- Push with the other foot on their hip and move your hips out to the side, taking an angle.
- Pull the lasso arm down and tip them to that side: the trapped arm cannot post, so nothing stops the fall. In the classic version, hold the far sleeve, drop the free leg to the mat and extend the lasso leg up to tip them sideways.
- Follow them over with the grips still on and come up on top.
Key details
- The lasso slows the game; use it to tire their arm, because they must fight the whole weight of your leg with one arm.
- Wrap deep, the knee over their elbow: from there the leg controls the whole arm, not just the wrist.
- Keep the free foot on their hip: it holds the distance and stops their knee from cutting through.
- Their trapped arm cannot post: that is why the sweep works.
- When he stands up and backs away from the lasso, grab his ankle like in a tripod sweep and push with the lasso leg: the held foot cannot step back, and he falls (lasso tripod).
- Keep the knuckles of the lasso-sleeve hand pinned against your thigh: it makes it much harder for him to loop the arm out.
- For the hook version, square your hips first, slide the free foot between his legs to hook behind his buttock with the knee pointing up, then bring the knee to your chest and extend diagonally over your shoulder.
Common mistakes
- A shallow lasso. — A shallow lasso does not wrap the arm, so they pull it straight out. — Wrap until your knee is over their elbow.
- No second grip. — With only the lasso they circle around it to the other side. — Grip the other sleeve or collar too.
- A passive free leg. — A passive free leg leaves a gap for their knee to cut through. — Keep that foot on their hip, pushing.
If they defend
- They lean back to free the arm. → Their weight goes back: this is the moment for the sweep.
How to drill it
Lasso retention against a passing partner, 1-minute rounds; then add the sweep.
What comes next
Where it comes from