Single Leg Finish
Takedown
The single leg finish is a takedown completion where the attacker already controls one of the opponent's legs and drives them to the mat. It is used after securing a single leg entry or transitioning from a high crotch, and can be finished in both gi and no-gi settings using various methods such as running the pipe, tripping, or lifting.
Quick Reference
Key principles
- · Keep your head tight to the opponent's chest on the inside to prevent guillotine attempts and maintain control.
- · Pinch your knees together around their captured leg to eliminate space and prevent them from pulling free.
- · Drive your shoulder pressure forward and into the opponent's hips to break their balance over their posted leg.
- · Anticipate the common whizzer (overhook) defense by circling toward the trapped leg side and elevating the leg higher.
- · Stay low with bent knees throughout the finish to maintain a strong base and prevent sprawl counters.
Execution
- 1 From the single leg grip, clasp hands tightly around the opponent's leg with your head on the inside, ear pressed to their ribcage.
- 2 Step your outside foot between their legs and pinch your knees to trap their leg while keeping your posture low.
- 3 Drive forward with chest pressure while lifting their leg to their hip level, forcing their weight onto their far leg.
- 4 Run the pipe by turning the corner toward their trapped leg side, sweeping their foot laterally across your body to collapse their base.
- 5 Follow them to the mat immediately, landing in side control or a knee-on-belly position to establish top control.
Common mistakes
- × Standing upright while holding the leg exposes you to sprawls, crossfaces, and guillotines because you lose forward pressure and leverage.
- × Keeping your head on the outside of the opponent's hip rather than the inside gives them easy access to a guillotine choke.
- × Trying to finish by pulling the leg backward instead of turning the corner allows the opponent to hop and maintain balance indefinitely.
Do it from
Positions and situations where the Single Leg Finish shows up.
Where it lands
The position you end up in.
Side Control Top
