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Closed GuardBottom
BeginnerKimura from Guard
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Taught by:Adam FarnslerAndre GalvaoBernardo FariaCraig JonesGordon RyanJohn DanaherKeenan CorneliusLachlan GilesMarcelo GarciaMikey MusumeciNathan MerkleRob BiernackiRob ShifflerRoger Gracie
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About This Technique
Kimura from Guard
The Kimura is a powerful shoulder lock submission technique, commonly used in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. When executed from the Closed Guard, it can catch opponents off-guard, leveraging both the lock’s effectiveness and guard control.
Step-by-Step Instructions
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Initial Guard Setup
- Begin with your opponent in your Closed Guard, ensuring you have a tight grip with your legs wrapped around their waist.
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Controlling the Opponent’s Wrist
- Utilize your opposite-side hand to grip your opponent’s wrist – for instance, using your left hand to grab their right wrist, palm facing down.
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Breaking their Posture
- Unlock your guard, open your legs, and use your core to pull your opponent forward slightly, breaking their posture.
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Setting Up the Attack
- Release your grabbing hand, shifting your hips to the side (towards the wrist-grabbed side), creating an angle. Ensure your opposite-side leg remains high across their back.
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Locking the Figure-4 Grip
- Reach over your opponent’s arm with your opposite-side arm, securing their wrist.
- Use the arm that initially held the wrist to snake under their arm, clasping your own wrist to form a figure-4 lock or Kimura grip.
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Final Positioning
- Ensure your hips are pivoted correctly to apply pressure.
- Reinforce your grip and tighten the lock, pull their arm down and across, ensuring your shoulder applies pressure on theirs.
- Engage your core and close your legs around them again if necessary.
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Applying the Submission
- Lean back slightly, controlling their posture with your legs, pulling their elbow down towards their hip, and rotating their arm (wrist moving away from their body) to apply the shoulder lock.
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Finishing Considerations
- Controlled and steady pressure is crucial to avoid unnecessary harm.
- Always be cautious about joint and shoulder hyperextension – apply pressure slowly.
Tips for Success
- Maintain a strong grip throughout.
- Use your body weight and core strength to pivot smoothly during the setup.
- Practice slowly to gain confidence and understanding of the biomechanical leverage.
Remember, safety of you and your training partner is paramount. Tap early and communicate effectively to ensure both you and your partner enjoy a productive training session.
How to Execute
# Kimura from Closed Guard
## Setup
- **Initial Position Details**: Start in the closed guard position. Your opponent is in your guard, kneeling or postured up. Ensure your legs are locked around your opponent’s waist.
- **Grips and Controls Needed**: Focus on controlling one of your opponent's arms. Typically, you will target the arm that is closest to you or the one you can easily isolate.
## Steps
1. **Break Opponent's Posture**
Use your legs to pull your opponent closer, breaking their posture. You can achieve this by pulling with your legs while simultaneously pulling on their collar or head to bring them forward.
2. **Cross-Grip on the Wrist**
Use your same-side hand (e.g., if you are attacking their right arm, use your left hand) to grip your opponent’s wrist. Make sure your thumb is not wrapped around; this should be a thumbless grip for better control.
3. **Sit Up and Reach Over**
Open your guard momentarily to sit up. Reach over their arm with your free hand, wrapping it around the back of their arm to grab your own wrist. This creates a figure-four lock.
4. **Re-close Your Guard**
As you secure the figure-four grip, re-close your guard to maintain control over your opponent.
5. **Angle Out to the Side**
Open your guard again and pivot your body out to the side of the trapped arm. Doing this will increase your leverage when applying the submission.
6. **Apply the Kimura Lock**
With your grips secure, bring your opponent’s arm away from their body and start to lift their elbow while moving their wrist behind their back. Keep their elbow pinned to your chest to maximize control.
7. **Finish the Submission**
Gradually increase the pressure by cranking their arm behind them until they tap out. Ensure that their elbow stays tight to your chest and their hand moves toward the back of their head.
## Key Points
- **Important Details to Remember**:
- Maintain a tight grip on the wrist and your own wrist to prevent your opponent from escaping.
- Keep your opponent’s elbow close to your chest throughout the submission to maintain tight control.
- **Common Mistakes to Avoid**:
- Failing to break your opponent's posture initially can make the move difficult to execute.
- Allowing space between your chest and their elbow reduces control and leverage, making the submission less effective.
- Neglecting to pivot your hips out to the side can limit your ability to apply the necessary pressure to finish the move.
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