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BJJ Fundamentals

Lesson 17 – Half Guard – Dog Fight

Warm Up (5min)

Partner Drill

  • Getting to Underhooks

Lesson (25min)

Components of the Dogfight Position

  1. Start in half guard bottom with an underhook
  2. Switch your legs from an “inside hook” to an “outside hook”
    • Ensure your knee points down to the mat, giving you the ability to pull uke’s leg into an awkward position
  3. Shoot your underhook all the way to uke’s far side, establishing a tight-waist grip
  4. Prop your body up on your elbow, and then your hand (building height)
  5. Come up to two knees, still holding your tight-waist grip against uke’s overhook (dogfight position)
    • Block uke’s near side knee from sliding forward; this is necessary to stop them from making transitions (e.g. to a front headlock)

Double-Leg Takedown

  1. Continue from dogfight position
  2. Use your tight waist arm to grip uke’s toes and push their weight forwards (making them ‘sit’)
  3. Use your other arm to grip uke’s knee and pull their legs together, dropping them fully to their hips
    • Ensure you cover uke’s hips with your forearms to that they cannot recover
  4. If uke is still on their elbow, pass it to your hand behind their back, and continue breaking them down to the mat
  5. As uke’s shoulders come down to the mat, walk your own body forwards into a pin (side / mount / back)

Roll-Through Sweep

  1. Continue from dogfight position
  2. Uke takes their knee off the ground, preventing the double-leg takedown
    • Note that uke should be applying a strong overhook at this point, pressuring downwards and preventing backtakes
  3. Grip uke’s gi pants at the knee and roll onto your back, punching the grip upwards
    • It’s important that you keep uke’s knee off the ground, so that they cannot recover
  4. Hip out so that you are facing the direction of your sweep and continue to roll uke through
  5. Come up to top position into a pin

Duck-Under Back Take

  1. Continue from roll-through sweep
  2. Uke removes their overhook to base out on the mat, preventing the sweep
  3. Use your legs as a pendulum to swing your body around uke
  4. Duck your head under uke’s arm, coming out behind them
    • Keep your head far away from uke and pull them down to an elbow so that they cannot re-establish their overhook
  5. Secure back control with a seatbelt grip and hooks