What pulling guard is and why grapplers do it
Pulling guard means taking grips while standing and then sitting down or jumping into a guard, rather than trying a takedown. It is how you reach the positions in our guide to BJJ guards when a roll or a match starts on the feet.
Grapplers pull guard when their guard is stronger than their takedowns, when their partner is the better wrestler, or to choose which guard the exchange starts in. Under IBJJF rules a takedown scores two points, while a guard pull with a grip scores nothing for either athlete, so pulling avoids conceding those points. The cost is that you forgo the chance to score a takedown yourself and start the exchange on the bottom.
How to pull guard without getting passed
Take your grips first. A firm grip controls your partner’s posture or one of their arms as you go down. Then sit straight down where you stand instead of falling back. If you land a long way from your partner with your legs not yet between you, they can step around your feet before your guard is set.
Instructors differ on the feet. Many teach placing one foot on the hip as you sit, which holds the distance and starts the guard. Others teach landing first and bringing the feet in afterward. Either way, land on one hip, posted on your free hand, with a knee or a foot between you and your partner, rather than flat on your back.
A sitting pull lands you in an open guard first, which is why the sheet marks that distance. From there you build the guard you planned, using the grips you took before you sat.
Grips
- Collar and sleeveOne hand on the collar controls their posture and the other on a sleeve controls an arm.
- Both sleevesKeeps their hands off your legs and sets up spider guard.
- Double lapelBoth hands on the lapels control their posture as you sit.
Where you land
- Closed guardClose your legs once they come forward over you.
- Spider guardA foot on a biceps while you keep the sleeve grips.
- De La Riva guardYour outside leg hooks their lead leg as you sit.
- Tripod sweepGrip one ankle, push their hip with one foot and hook their other ankle with the other.
Grips
- Wrist controlHolding one or both wrists keeps their hands from gripping your legs as you land.
- UnderhookKeeps your chest close to theirs as you sit.
Where you land
- Butterfly guardYour insteps hook inside their thighs as you land seated.
- Closed guard
- Single leg XA pull straight into a leg entanglement. Leg lock rules decide what follows.
Distance
Open with grips
Rules
IBJJF and AJP penalize pulling guard without first taking a grip. ADCC gives a negative point for pulling guard.
How partners stop a guard pull
A partner who sees the pull coming can step back or strip your grips before you sit. If a grip is stripped, stay standing and take it again rather than sitting with nothing to hold. Another counter is to catch your foot as it comes up toward their hip and push the leg aside to pass as you land. Leaning in to reach for a grip also brings your lead leg within reach of a single leg takedown.
Time the pull for when your grips are set and your partner’s are not. Pulling while they hold the stronger grips lets them follow you down in control of the grips. If they back away once you are seated, you can come back to your feet with a technical stand-up and start the exchange again.
Jumping guard and how to keep it safe
Jumping guard means leaping from your feet and wrapping your legs around a standing partner, usually straight into closed guard. Flying triangles and flying armbars start the same way. The main danger is to your partner. If they stand with one leg forward and extended, your weight can come down on that leg and hyperextend the knee.
IBJJF lists jumping to closed guard on a standing opponent as a serious foul for white belts of any age and for every belt in its under-15 divisions, and the rule covers attacks started by a jump. The referee stands both athletes up again. Other organizations set their own limits, so read your event’s rules before you compete. In training, jump only on a partner who expects it, and never while they are stepping in or shooting for a takedown. A sitting pull with a grip is legal at every belt under IBJJF rules, so it is the one to learn first.
What a reviewer looks for in guard pull footage
A pull is over quickly, so it is easy to miss when you watch your own match at full speed. A reviewer slows it down and checks which grips you held before you sat, how far from your partner you landed, and how long it took to get a knee or a foot between you. They also note whether your grips survived the landing and what your partner did as soon as you were down. Upload a match or a round that starts standing, and a verified black belt marks each pull in a roll review.