Butterfly Pass

Pass

The Butterfly Pass is a guard pass used against an opponent playing butterfly guard or reverse X-guard, where the passer neutralizes the hooks by driving forward, pinning the legs, and sliding the knee through to achieve a dominant position. It emphasizes controlling the opponent's hips and eliminating the power of their butterfly hooks before they can elevate or sweep.

Quick Reference

Key principles

  • · Drive your hips forward and low to flatten the opponent's hooks and remove their lifting power.
  • · Establish a strong underhook or crossface to control the upper body and prevent the opponent from following you as you pass.
  • · Pin one of the opponent's legs to the mat using your shin or knee to split their guard and create a passing lane.
  • · Anticipate the opponent's attempt to re-hook or scoot their hips away by maintaining constant chest-to-chest pressure.
  • · Keep your base wide and head posture low to prevent elevator sweeps during the pass.

Execution

  1. 1 From butterfly guard top or reverse X-guard, secure a strong underhook on one side and a crossface or collar grip on the other to control their upper body.
  2. 2 Drive your weight forward into the opponent while sprawling your hips back slightly to flatten their butterfly hooks against the mat.
  3. 3 Use your knee to slice through the middle, pinning the opponent's bottom leg to the mat while your other leg backsteps or slides free of the remaining hook.
  4. 4 Shift your hips laterally to the passing side, sliding into side control while maintaining heavy shoulder pressure on their face or chest.
  5. 5 Secure side control by establishing a crossface and underhook, blocking their hip with your near knee to prevent guard recovery.

Common mistakes

  • × Staying too upright when initiating the pass, which gives the opponent space to use their hooks for elevation sweeps.
  • × Neglecting the crossface or upper body control, allowing the opponent to turn into you and re-establish guard or take an underhook.
  • × Rushing the knee slice without first neutralizing both hooks, resulting in the opponent catching half guard or re-hooking with the free leg.

Do it from

Positions and situations where the Butterfly Pass shows up.

Butterfly Guard Top
1 less common
Reverse X-Guard

Where it lands

The position you end up in.

Side Control Top

Use it against

The Butterfly Pass is an answer to these.

Butterfly Guard Bottom