Reverse Side Control

Position
Also known as:
Twister Side Control

Reverse Side Control is a dominant top position where the practitioner faces the opponent's legs instead of their head, with chest pressure across the torso. It is reached from standard side control or twister side control and offers unique attacks to the legs, back, and spine while making it difficult for the bottom player to frame effectively.

Quick Reference

Key principles

  • · Heavy crossbody chest-to-chest pressure angled toward the hips controls the bottom player's ability to create space.
  • · The near arm threads under the opponent's far thigh or hooks the hip to anchor position and set up leg-based entries like the truck.
  • · Keeping your hips low and sprawled prevents the bottom player from executing hip escapes or Granby rolls.
  • · Anticipate the opponent turning into you by maintaining a strong crossface with your hip-side arm against their far hip or thigh.
  • · Head position near the opponent's hip creates a fulcrum that limits their ability to bridge toward you.

Execution

  1. 1 From side control, switch your hips 180 degrees so your head faces the opponent's legs while maintaining chest pressure across their torso.
  2. 2 Secure a near-side underhook on the opponent's far thigh and use your other arm to control their near hip or belt line.
  3. 3 Sprawl your hips low and drive your weight diagonally across their midsection to flatten them.
  4. 4 Adjust your head tight against their hip to block bridging and begin hunting for attacks such as truck entries, twister setups, or darce and anaconda chokes when they turn.

Common mistakes

  • × Sitting too upright instead of driving chest pressure down, which gives the bottom player space to insert frames and recover guard.
  • × Neglecting to control the far hip or thigh, allowing the opponent to easily turn away and turtle or reguard.
  • × Transitioning too quickly without settling weight, causing loss of balance when the bottom player bridges or shrimps.

Attacks & transitions

Offense available from Reverse Side Control.

Side Control To Back transition Side Control To Mount transition
6 less common
Anaconda Choke submission Darce Choke submission Kimura submission Truck Entry transition Turtle Transition transition Twister Finish submission

Escapes & defense

Getting out of Reverse Side Control, or shutting it down.

Frame And Shrimp escape Granby Roll escape Hip Escape escape Rolling To Guard escape Technical Standup escape

Twister Control Family

Twister Control

Truck

Side Control Family

Side Control

Kesa Gatame

100 Kilos

Shoulder Of Justice

Reverse Kesa Gatame