Defending the Rolling Kimura means stopping a bottom player who has already secured a figure-four on your arm from converting it into a sweep or back take. You face the same dilemma you are trying to impose on others: protect the trapped shoulder from the kimura while refusing to be rolled over the top. The decisive truth is that prevention beats cure, because once the bottom player has a deep elbow grip and your weight commits forward, the roll becomes very hard to stop. Your highest-percentage defense is winning the grip fight before the figure-four locks and keeping the trapped elbow tight to your own body. If the grip is already set, your job shifts to denying the roll: keep a wide, heavy base, avoid driving your weight blindly forward into the rotation, and be ready to ride or counter-roll so that if you are taken over, you land on top with the attacker dumped onto the bottom rather than surrendering your back.
Opponent’s Starting Position: Kimura Trap (Bottom)
How to Recognize This Attack
How do you know when someone is attempting Rolling Kimura?
- The bottom player threads one arm under yours and clamps a figure-four on your wrist, sliding the grip up toward your elbow
- Your trapped wrist is dragged toward your own back, loading the shoulder and pre-setting the rotation
- The bottom player turns onto the shoulder of your trapped-arm side and compacts their knees toward their chest
- You feel rotational pressure building on your shoulder the instant you post or drive your weight forward
- Their hips dig under yours and their chest wraps tight to you, the signature connection that precedes the roll
Key Defensive Principles
What are the key principles for defending Rolling Kimura?
- Win the grip fight early and strip the figure-four before it locks deep at your elbow, because a wrist-level grip is far easier to clear
- Keep the threatened elbow pinned tight to your own ribs so the arm cannot be isolated or loaded
- Maintain a wide, heavy base and avoid committing your weight blindly forward, since your forward drive is the fuel the roll needs
- If the grip is locked, post the far hand and far leg to wall off the rotation before it starts
- Protect the shoulder first and the position second; tap to genuine joint pressure rather than risking the arm to save the back
- If you are being rolled, ride it and counter-roll to land on top rather than fighting to stay put and feeding the back take
- Stay aware of the secondary branches, because basing wide invites the Old School sweep and turning in invites the back take
Defensive Options
What can you do to defend against Rolling Kimura?
1. Strip the figure-four with your free hand and retract the trapped elbow tight to your ribs
- When to use: The instant you feel the grip being threaded under your arm or clamped on your wrist, before it locks deep at the elbow
- Targets: Back Control
- If successful: The grip dies, the back take is off the table, and you keep top control to continue passing
- Risk: Diving both hands to the grip can lighten your base and open a sweep or a different attack if you are slow
2. Widen your base and post your far hand and far leg to wall off the rotation
- When to use: When the figure-four is already locked but the roll has not started; keep your weight off the trapped side
- Targets: Kimura Trap
- If successful: Without an axis to roll across, the attacker cannot sweep you up to the top kimura and the attack stalls
- Risk: A wide base exposes the far ankle to an Old School sweep, so be ready to defend that branch
3. Ride the roll and counter-roll, driving your weight through their rotation to land on top
- When to use: When the roll is already underway and you cannot stop it; commit to coming out on top rather than resisting in place
- Targets: Turtle
- If successful: You surface on top with the attacker dumped onto the bottom in turtle, and the kimura grip is weakened by the angle change
- Risk: Mistimed, the counter-roll accelerates their sweep and feeds you straight to back control
4. Pin the shoulder safe and straighten the trapped arm to clear it as the roll loads
- When to use: When the grip is set but shallow toward your wrist, giving you room to extend and slip the arm free
- Targets: Turtle
- If successful: The arm slips the figure-four, the rotational threat dissolves, and the exchange resets to a neutral scramble
- Risk: Straightening into a deep elbow grip can hand the attacker an even tighter kimura or an armbar
Best-Case Outcomes for Defender
What is the best outcome when defending Rolling Kimura?
→ Turtle
When you cannot prevent the roll, ride it instead of fighting it in place: post your free hand, follow the attacker’s rotation, and drive your weight through so that as the roll completes you surface on top and the attacker lands on the bottom in turtle. Time the counter-roll to the peak of their momentum, keep the shoulder safe, and immediately pressure them down before they re-establish the grip.