WHAT IS BJJ?
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu makes a lot more sense once you understand the positions. Here are four of the big ones, what they mean, and what to watch for.
What is Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu?
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) is a grappling martial art built around controlling an opponent, improving your position and creating submission opportunities. Training commonly involves technique instruction, drilling and live grappling against a resisting partner.
The easiest way to start understanding BJJ is to stop thinking of it as a list of moves. Think of it as a fight over position, control, movement and timing.
Guard
Guard is a family of positions where the bottom player uses their legs, hips and grips to control the person on top. Closed guard, open guard and half guard are common examples.
Beginner idea: being underneath does not automatically mean you're losing. The guard can be used to control distance, sweep, recover position or attack.
Closed Guard for Beginners
Will Brooks breaks down the purpose of closed guard and common beginner mistakes.
Side Control
Side control is a top position established after passing the guard. The top player works to pin the torso, control the head and hips, and prevent the bottom player from rebuilding a guard.
Beginner idea: position comes before submission. A stable pin gives you time to work while the bottom player has to solve the escape.
How To Replace Guard From Side Control
A practical example of recovering guard from underneath the pin.
Mount
Mount puts the top player above the opponent's torso with the legs around their body. The position gives the top player strong control and access to attacks while the bottom player works to create space and escape.
Beginner idea: don't rush the finish. Learn to stay balanced when the person underneath bridges, turns or tries to recover guard.
Mount Position Basics
A beginner-focused breakdown of mount control, posture and weight distribution.
Back Control
Back control puts one grappler behind the other, usually with a seatbelt grip and hooks or a body triangle. The person with the back can work toward submissions while the defender fights the hands, protects the neck and tries to turn.
Beginner idea: protect the neck first. Back control is a position where small defensive mistakes can quickly become a submission.
How to Escape the Back
Matt Arroyo covers back-control escapes, seatbelt defense, hooks and body-triangle situations.
Submissions
Submissions include chokes and joint locks. Good training also includes recognizing danger, defending positions and tapping before an injury occurs. Technique should be practiced with a qualified coach and controlled training partner.
Training
A typical BJJ class can include warm-ups, instruction, technique drilling and live grappling. The exact format varies by academy, ruleset and experience level.
BJJ and MMA
BJJ is one part of MMA. Once striking, takedowns, the cage and ground-and-pound are added, the same grappling positions have different tactical demands.
Want to talk BJJ?
Join the Combat MP4 community for BJJ, MMA, fight talk, clips and training discussion.
JOIN BJJ & MMA DISCORDContinue with the Combat MP4 BJJ section or browse more guides.