The Lasso Guard Pass from the attacker’s perspective is about systematically dismantling one of the most mechanically strong open guard controls in gi BJJ. The passer must understand that the lasso creates a lever system through the trapped arm, and that fighting this lever head-on wastes energy while creating sweep opportunities for the guard player. Instead, the pass follows a precise sequence: control the sleeve to limit the guard player’s offensive options, stand to reduce the lasso’s mechanical advantage, step outside the lasso leg to change the angle of the lever, clear the hook through shoulder rotation, and immediately secure hip control before completing the pass to side control. Each step builds on the previous one, and skipping steps typically results in the guard player recovering or sweeping.
From Position: Lasso Guard (Top)
Key Attacking Principles
- Control the lassoed arm to prevent opponent from maintaining distance and angle
- Maintain strong upright posture to reduce the effectiveness of the lasso hook
- Step outside the lasso leg to change angles and reduce leverage
- Use strategic grips to prevent re-guards and sweep attempts
- Apply consistent pressure to force opponent into defensive reactions
- Clear the lasso hook systematically before attempting to pass
- Secure the pass with proper weight distribution and hip control
Prerequisites
- Opponent has established lasso guard with one arm threaded through their leg
- Strong grip on the opponent’s sleeve or wrist of the lassoed arm
- Upright posture with base established to prevent sweeps
- Awareness of opponent’s free leg position and sweep threats
- Control of distance to prevent additional guard retention options
- Understanding of opponent’s grip configuration and intentions
Execution Steps
- Establish sleeve control: Grip the sleeve of your lassoed arm with your free hand, creating a strong connection. Pull the sleeve across your body while maintaining upright posture. This grip prevents the opponent from extending you and creating distance, which is essential for their lasso control. Keep your elbow tight to your ribs to make the grip difficult to break.
- Establish standing base: Stand up while maintaining the sleeve grip, bringing both feet flat to the mat with a wide stable base. Keep your chest upright and hips back slightly to prevent forward sweeps. The standing position reduces the mechanical advantage of the lasso hook and prepares you for angular passing options. Distribute your weight evenly to maintain balance against sweep attempts.
- Step outside the lasso leg: Take a large step with your outside leg (the leg on the same side as the lasso) around and outside of the opponent’s lasso leg. This foot should land near their hip with your knee pointing outward. This angle change immediately reduces the effectiveness of the lasso hook and begins to unwind their control. Keep your posture tall and maintain the sleeve grip throughout.
- Clear the lasso hook: With your free hand, reach across and grip the opponent’s lasso leg at the shin or ankle. Pull this leg off your arm while simultaneously rotating your shoulder backward and downward. The combination of pulling their leg and rotating your shoulder creates space to extract your arm. Once your arm is free, immediately establish a controlling grip on their pants or belt to prevent re-guard.
- Control the hips: Drive your outside knee forward into the opponent’s hip while maintaining control of their leg and sleeve. Your knee should pin their hip to the mat, preventing them from following you or recovering guard. Drop your weight onto this knee while keeping your other leg posted for base. This hip control is critical for preventing last-second guard retention attempts.
- Secure side control: Slide your knee across the opponent’s stomach as you release the leg grip and establish upper body control. Your chest should drive into their shoulder while your hips drop to the mat. Secure a crossface with your near arm and an underhook or far side control with your other arm. Distribute your weight to prevent bridging escapes and settle into a stable side control position.
Possible Outcomes
| Result | Position | Probability |
|---|---|---|
| Success | Side Control | 65% |
| Failure | Lasso Guard | 25% |
| Counter | Lasso Guard | 10% |
Opponent Counters
- Opponent sits up and attempts to re-establish the lasso while you’re standing (Effectiveness: Medium) - Your Response: Maintain sleeve control and use your free hand to post on their shoulder, preventing them from sitting forward. Circle away from the lasso side while keeping tension on the sleeve. → Leads to Lasso Guard
- Opponent switches to spider guard or collar sleeve configuration (Effectiveness: High) - Your Response: Immediately adjust your grips to address the new guard configuration. If they establish spider, control both sleeves and use a knee cut or stack pass. Anticipate these transitions during your pass. → Leads to Lasso Guard
- Opponent uses their free leg to hook your far leg for a sweep (Effectiveness: High) - Your Response: Keep your far leg posted wide and back, making it difficult to hook. If they begin to hook, hop that leg back or switch to a different passing angle like knee slice to the opposite side. → Leads to Lasso Guard
- Opponent grabs your ankle or pant leg with their free hand (Effectiveness: Medium) - Your Response: Use your superior positioning to break this grip by stepping back and circling. You can also switch to a pressure passing approach by dropping your weight onto their chest. → Leads to Lasso Guard
- Opponent extends the lasso and pushes off your chest with their free foot (Effectiveness: Low) - Your Response: This actually helps your pass by creating space. Maintain sleeve control and use the momentum to circle around the lasso leg more aggressively. Their extension reduces their ability to follow you. → Leads to Lasso Guard
Test Your Knowledge
Q1: Why is sleeve control on the lassoed arm considered the most important grip during this pass? A: Sleeve control on the lassoed arm is critical because it prevents the opponent from creating and maintaining distance, which is the foundation of lasso guard effectiveness. By controlling this sleeve, you neutralize their ability to extend you away, set up sweeps, or transition to other guards. This grip also gives you control over their posture and prevents them from sitting up to reestablish their guard during the pass.
Q2: What is the mechanical advantage of stepping outside the lasso leg rather than trying to pass on the inside? A: Stepping outside the lasso leg creates an angle that reduces the hook’s leverage and effectiveness. The lasso works by creating a strong connection between the opponent’s leg and your arm in a straight line. When you step outside, you change this angle dramatically, making it much easier to rotate your shoulder and extract your arm. Additionally, this outside position puts you closer to completing the pass and makes it harder for the opponent to follow you with their hips.
Q3: How should you adjust your passing strategy if the opponent transitions from lasso to spider guard during your pass attempt? A: When the opponent transitions to spider guard, immediately adjust your grip strategy to control both sleeves rather than focusing solely on one. Recognize that spider guard requires different passing approaches, typically involving either breaking the grips and using pressure passing, or controlling both sleeves and using a knee cut or stack pass. The key is to not commit to the lasso passing sequence when the guard structure has fundamentally changed. Maintain your upright posture and wide base to prevent sweeps during this transition.
Q4: What are the most dangerous sweep threats when attempting to pass lasso guard, and how do you prevent them? A: The primary sweep threats are the opponent using their free leg to hook your far leg while off-balancing you with the lasso, or sitting up and using the lasso to control your posture while sweeping with their free leg. Prevent these by maintaining a wide base with your far leg posted back and outside, keeping upright posture with your hips back, and controlling the sleeve to limit their ability to extend and create angles. Never allow your weight to shift too far forward or your base to become narrow.
Q5: Why is it crucial to immediately control the hips with your knee after clearing the lasso hook? A: Hip control with the knee is essential because there is a critical moment after clearing the lasso where the opponent can still recover guard through hip movement and following your passing direction. By immediately driving your knee into their hip and pinning it to the mat, you eliminate their mobility and ability to create frames or shrimp away. This control point is what transitions the position from ‘guard being passed’ to ‘pass completed,’ and without it, even perfect technique up to that point can fail in the final moment.
Q6: What role does posture play throughout the entire lasso guard passing sequence? A: Upright posture is fundamental throughout the lasso pass because it reduces the mechanical effectiveness of the lasso hook and prevents forward sweeps. Good posture keeps your center of gravity over your base, making you difficult to off-balance. It also allows you to generate power from your legs and hips rather than relying on upper body strength. When standing, maintaining tall posture creates space to work and forces the opponent to use energy maintaining their guard rather than attacking you.
Q7: Your opponent begins circling their free leg toward your far knee while you are mid-pass with the lasso partially cleared - what do you do? A: This is a sweep setup where the opponent is trying to hook your far leg and combine it with the remaining lasso control to off-balance you. Immediately hop your far leg back and widen your base to make it unreachable. If they have already contacted your leg, drop your weight onto their hip with your near knee to pin them flat, removing the angle they need for the sweep. You can also accelerate your outside step to complete the angle change faster, which removes the lasso leverage they need to complete the sweep even if they hook your leg.
Q8: What is the correct direction of force when rotating your shoulder to clear the lasso hook in step four? A: The shoulder rotation must go backward and downward, not forward or upward. Rotate the trapped shoulder posteriorly while simultaneously dropping it toward the mat. This creates a corkscrew motion that reduces the circumference your arm presents inside the lasso loop, allowing extraction. Rotating forward or upward actually tightens the lasso by pressing your arm harder into their shin. The motion is similar to shrugging your shoulder backward while pulling your elbow toward your own hip, combined with the free hand pulling their shin away from your arm.
Safety Considerations
The lasso guard pass is generally a low-risk technique from a safety perspective, but practitioners should be aware of several considerations. When clearing the lasso hook, avoid jerking or explosive movements that could stress the opponent’s shoulder or elbow joint, as the lasso creates a connected system through their arm. When standing up, ensure your partner’s arm is not trapped in an awkward position that could cause injury if you post weight suddenly. Be cautious of your own balance when standing, as falling onto your partner while they maintain the lasso could cause injury to both participants. During training, communicate with your partner about the intensity level and take care when applying pressure to their legs or hips. For practitioners with knee issues, be mindful when driving your knee across for the final pass, as excessive force on a mat can aggravate existing conditions. Finally, if your partner maintains the lasso and you feel stuck, tap and reset rather than forcing the position, as this prevents both frustration and potential injury from desperate movements.