Mount Transition
Position · Side Control
His knees have turned away from you, so the path over his hips is open. Keep the crossface and your chest heavy on his, block his near hip with your hand or elbow so the knees cannot come back, and slide your near knee across his belly to the far side, low and tight against his body rather than lifting it high over his legs. Settle the knee on the mat by his far hip, then bring your feet under his thighs and sit into mount, keeping chest pressure through the whole transition. His answer is to turn back in and catch your sliding leg in half guard or put a knee in front of you; the detail that stops it is the hand on his hip and the knee travelling along his belly, not over his knees.
How to do it
- Keep chest pressure on them and control their near arm, for example by trapping it with your head or pinning it to the mat. That near arm is what they would use to block your knee.
- Wait until their legs are flat and the near knee is down; pin it first if it is up. If the legs are not yet clear, go through knee on belly first.
- Slide your knee low across their belly, keeping your chest heavy so they cannot bridge into the gap.
- Step the leg over to the far side and put the foot or knee down on the mat beside their hip.
- Settle with your knees high by their armpits, chest low, so their elbows cannot get back inside your knees to frame.
Key details
- Keep your weight on their chest during the step. The moment your chest lifts, they have the space to bridge and put a knee in.
- Slide the knee low across the belly. A low knee stays on their body and gives their knee no room to come up between you.
- Control the near arm so they cannot block your knee. A free near arm pushes your knee back before it crosses.
- Going through knee on belly first is a safe route when their legs are not yet clear. From there you step to mount over their hips without fighting their knee.
Common mistakes
- Lifting your chest to step over. — The space under your chest lets them bridge and put a knee in. — Slide the knee low across the belly with the chest still heavy.
- Stepping over too early. — Their knee is still up and blocks your leg halfway. — Wait until the knee is flat, or pin it down first.
- Leaving the near arm free. — A free near arm pushes your knee back before it crosses. — Control the near arm before you step so it cannot block.
If they defend
- They block with the knee. → Go to knee-on-belly first, then into mount.
- They turn away. → The back is open: take it.
How to drill it
Side control to mount and back, 10 reps; then the partner blocks with the knee.
Where it comes from