Closed Guard Top Position represents one of the most challenging defensive scenarios in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, where you find yourself trapped inside your opponent’s closed guard with their legs wrapped around your waist and ankles locked behind your back. Despite being the top player, this position places you at a significant strategic disadvantage, as your opponent possesses numerous sweep and submission options while your primary objective must be maintaining defensive posture, avoiding attacks, and working systematically toward guard opening and passing.
Success in closed guard top requires understanding that this is fundamentally a defensive position that must be escaped through systematic progression rather than a passing position offering immediate offensive opportunity. Your ability to maintain proper posture prevents your opponent from breaking you down for attacks, while strategic grip fighting denies them the control necessary to execute sweeps and submissions. The position tests your patience, technical precision, and defensive awareness as you navigate constant threats while working toward the guard opening that enables actual passing attempts.
The closed guard top position exemplifies the strategic complexity of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, where being on top does not automatically confer advantage. Understanding the systematic approach to guard opening - establishing posture, controlling grips, creating space, and opening the guard before attempting passes - separates effective guard passers from those who become trapped in defensive cycles or caught in submissions. Your success depends on balancing defensive awareness with offensive progression, creating a complex positional dynamic that requires both technical skill and strategic understanding to navigate effectively toward dominant position.
Position Definition
- Opponent’s legs wrapped completely around your waist or hips with ankles locked behind your back, creating closed circuit of control that restricts your mobility and creates constant pressure on your torso, compressing your breathing and limiting lateral movement options while threatening to break your posture.
- You are positioned between opponent’s guard with your torso trapped inside their leg control, typically on your knees or in low squat with your hips positioned between their thighs, with your weight distributed through your knees to the mat while maintaining enough mobility to defend sweeps and work toward guard opening.
- Your spine position is critical - either maintaining upright posture with head over hips and chest elevated creating structural strength that prevents attacks, or compromised with opponent pulling your head and shoulders down toward their chest, breaking your structural integrity and creating immediate submission opportunities including triangle and armbar threats.
- Hand placement on opponent’s hips, biceps, collar, or lapels to manage distance and prevent them from closing space for attacks, with constant grip fighting occurring as opponent attempts to establish dominant grips on your sleeves, collar, or behind your head while you work to break their grips and establish your own controlling positions.
- Your base consists of both knees on mat with weight distributed to prevent lateral movement from sweeps, while maintaining enough mobility to initiate guard breaking sequences, with knees typically spread wider than shoulder-width for stability against hip bump, scissor, and pendulum sweep attempts.
Prerequisites
- Understanding of posture mechanics and spinal alignment principles with ability to recognize when structural integrity is compromised and how to recover it
- Knowledge of guard passing principles and progression sequences from guard opening through completion of pass
- Defensive awareness for common closed guard attacks including triangles, armbars, omoplatas, and sweeps with understanding of their setup patterns
- Basic grip fighting skills and understanding of dominant versus defensive grips with ability to break strong grips systematically
- Ability to recognize when posture is compromised and how to recover it through proper hip and chest positioning without exposing arms
- Understanding of base and balance fundamentals to defend against sweeps including hip bump, scissor, and pendulum variations
Key Offensive Principles
- Posture Maintenance Priority: Keep spine straight and head over hips to prevent opponent from breaking you down for attacks - this is your primary defensive concern that enables all other technical work
- Distance Management: Control distance with proper hand placement on hips, biceps, or collar to prevent opponent from closing space for submissions while maintaining enough connection to initiate passes
- Base and Balance: Maintain wide base with knees spread to defend against sweeps while staying mobile for passing attempts, distributing weight through lower body rather than hands
- Grip Fighting: Control opponent’s grips to prevent them from establishing dominant control for attacks, breaking strong grips before they develop into attacking positions
- Patient Progression: Work methodically toward guard opening without rushing into vulnerable passing attempts that expose you to counters, following systematic progression from posture to grips to opening to passing
- Defensive Awareness: Constantly monitor threats including triangle, armbar, omoplata, and sweep attempts while working toward pass, recognizing setup patterns before they develop into full attacks
Available Attacks
Guard Opening Sequence → Open Guard
Success Rates:
- Beginner: 40%
- Intermediate: 55%
- Advanced: 70%
Toreando Pass → Side Control
Success Rates:
- Beginner: 30%
- Intermediate: 45%
- Advanced: 60%
Knee Slice Pass → Side Control
Success Rates:
- Beginner: 35%
- Intermediate: 50%
- Advanced: 65%
Stack Pass → Side Control
Success Rates:
- Beginner: 25%
- Intermediate: 40%
- Advanced: 55%
Over-Under Pass → Side Control
Success Rates:
- Beginner: 30%
- Intermediate: 45%
- Advanced: 60%
Long Step Pass → Side Control
Success Rates:
- Beginner: 25%
- Intermediate: 40%
- Advanced: 55%
Pressure Pass → Side Control
Success Rates:
- Beginner: 20%
- Intermediate: 35%
- Advanced: 50%
Double Under Pass → Side Control
Success Rates:
- Beginner: 25%
- Intermediate: 40%
- Advanced: 55%
Standing up in Base → Standing Position
Success Rates:
- Beginner: 50%
- Intermediate: 65%
- Advanced: 80%
Decision Making from This Position
If opponent has broken your posture and is pulling you down toward their chest with collar or head control:
- Execute Posture Recovery → Closed Guard (Probability: 65%)
- Execute Stack Defense → Stack Pass (Probability: 45%)
If opponent maintains closed guard but you have good posture and hand position on hips or biceps:
- Execute Guard Opening Sequence → Open Guard (Probability: 60%)
- Execute Standing up in Base → Standing Position (Probability: 70%)
If opponent opens their guard or you successfully break the guard creating separation:
- Execute Toreando Pass → Side Control (Probability: 55%)
- Execute Knee Slice Pass → Side Control (Probability: 60%)
- Execute Pressure Pass → Side Control (Probability: 45%)
If opponent is attacking with triangle or armbar creating immediate submission threat:
- Execute Posture Recovery → Closed Guard (Probability: 50%)
- Execute Stack Defense → Stack Pass (Probability: 55%)
If opponent establishes strong collar and sleeve grips creating control for attacks:
- Execute Grip Break → Closed Guard (Probability: 60%)
- Execute Standing up in Base → Standing Position (Probability: 65%)
Optimal Submission Paths
High-percentage passing path to submission
Closed Guard Top → Guard Opening Sequence → Open Guard → Toreando Pass → Side Control → Transition to Mount → Mount → Americana from Mount
Pressure-based submission path
Closed Guard Top → Guard Opening Sequence → Knee Slice Pass → Side Control → Transition to North-South → North-South → North-South Choke
Back attack path from guard passing
Closed Guard Top → Guard Opening Sequence → Open Guard → Stack Pass → Side Control → Back Take Generic → Back Control → Rear Naked Choke
Standing pass to dominant control
Closed Guard Top → Standing up in Base → Standing Position → Long Step Pass → Side Control → Transition to Mount → Mount → Armbar from Mount
Knee slice to knee on belly control
Closed Guard Top → Guard Opening Sequence → Knee Slice Pass → Side Control → Transition to Mount → Knee on Belly → Americana
Success Rates and Statistics
| Skill Level | Retention Rate | Advancement Probability | Submission Probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beginner | 30% | 30% | 5% |
| Intermediate | 50% | 50% | 10% |
| Advanced | 70% | 70% | 20% |
Average Time in Position: 1-3 minutes depending on skill level and guard opening strategy
Expert Analysis
John Danaher
The closed guard top position represents a fundamental test of positional understanding in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. The overwhelming majority of practitioners misunderstand their strategic objectives here - they believe they are in a passing position when in reality they are in a defensive position that must be escaped through systematic guard opening before any meaningful passing can occur. Your first priority is always postural integrity - without it, you cannot defend against the myriad submission and sweep threats. The biomechanics are clear: a straight spine with head over hips creates structural strength that is extremely difficult to break, while any deviation from this alignment creates leverage opportunities for the bottom player. I teach my students to think of closed guard top as having three distinct phases: first, establish and maintain posture; second, control opponent’s grips and establish your own dominant grips; third, execute guard opening techniques that lead to passing opportunities. Skipping or rushing any phase dramatically increases your risk of being swept or submitted. The standing guard pass remains the highest percentage option because it removes the majority of the opponent’s attacking options while creating superior angles for passing. When you stand, you force the opponent to either hold closed guard with significantly reduced attacking capability, or open their guard to chase you, at which point you’ve achieved your primary objective of guard opening. This systematic approach transforms closed guard top from a frustrating stalemate into a methodical progression toward dominant position.
Gordon Ryan
In competition, I approach closed guard top with a very specific mentality - I’m not trying to do anything fancy, I’m just trying to not get swept or submitted while working toward standing up. The standing guard break is my highest percentage option because it takes away most of the opponent’s attacks and gives me better angles for passing. When people try to pass from their knees, they give the bottom person too many options - they can attack your posture, grab your sleeves, threaten triangles and armbars, work sweeps. But when you stand up properly with good base and control their legs, you’ve essentially neutralized their entire closed guard game. Also, never underestimate how tiring closed guard can be for the bottom person if you’re heavy and have good pressure - sometimes patience is your best weapon. I see a lot of competitors rush the guard opening because they’re worried about stalling calls or they want to look aggressive, but that’s exactly when you get caught. Take your time, establish your grips, make sure your posture is solid, and then stand up. Once you’re standing, you control the pace and the angles. The bottom person has to react to you instead of you reacting to them. That’s a huge strategic advantage that most people don’t fully appreciate until they compete at high levels where everyone’s guard is dangerous. My passing game is built on making the opponent uncomfortable first, then methodically breaking their structure down, and only then finishing the pass when they’re already defeated positionally.
Eddie Bravo
From inside closed guard, I’m thinking about explosive guard breaks combined with immediate passing attempts. The traditional approach of slowly working for posture and methodically opening the guard can leave you stuck there forever against someone with a good guard. I like to create movement and reactions - if I can get the opponent reacting to one thing, I can often slip past their guard in the chaos. That said, you absolutely have to respect the submission threats, especially triangles and arm locks. The 10th Planet approach is to use strategic movement and misdirection, but never at the cost of basic defensive soundness. One thing I emphasize is that the guard opening and the pass should be one continuous motion - you don’t open the guard and then think about passing, you’re already moving into your passing sequence as the guard opens. This doesn’t give the opponent time to establish a new guard or reset their positioning. But here’s the key: you need to drill this until it’s automatic, because if you’re thinking about it during rolling, you’re already too slow. The other thing people don’t talk about enough is using pressure and weight distribution to make the bottom person uncomfortable - if they’re dealing with heavy pressure on their diaphragm, they’re less likely to be setting up clean attacks and more likely to just want you off them, which creates passing opportunities. I also teach my students to recognize when the opponent is setting up attacks and to use that moment of commitment to explode into their passing sequence, turning the opponent’s offense into your passing opportunity.