The Underhook Sweep is a butterfly guard reversal where the seated bottom player secures a deep underhook, loads the opponent onto a butterfly hook, and falls to the shoulder to elevate and roll them over, coming up to side control.
Built on the same inside-hook leverage that defines butterfly guard, the underhook sweep weaponizes a single deep underhook to control the opponent’s upper body while a butterfly hook elevates their hip. Rather than relying on raw bilateral elevation like the standard butterfly sweep, this variation isolates and rotates the opponent’s torso through the underhook, making it especially reliable against opponents who post their hands in or drive forward to pass. The deep underhook prevents the crossface, locks their shoulder line to yours, and turns their body into a single unit that topples over your falling shoulder.
The sweep functions as a hub for the entire butterfly bottom game. Loading the opponent’s weight onto the hook and threatening the reversal forces predictable defensive reactions, and each reaction opens a different attack: a wide far-side base feeds an arm drag to the back, a committed whizzer feeds a back take through the dogfight, and a backward retreat opens leg-entanglement entries. When the sweep is stuffed, the position regresses gracefully — a stalled attempt drops you into half guard bottom, while a strong whizzer-and-drive counter can flatten you into half guard, both of which remain re-attack platforms rather than dead ends.
Mastering this single reversal therefore unlocks a chain-reaction system that keeps the top player perpetually reactive. It teaches the core butterfly principles of inside position, weight-loading the hook before lifting, and using an opponent’s defensive commitment against them, all of which transfer across the modern seated-guard system.
From Position: Butterfly Guard (Bottom) Success Rate: 55%
Possible Outcomes
| Result | Position | Probability |
|---|---|---|
| Success | Side Control | 55% |
| Failure | Half Guard | 25% |
| Counter | Flattened Half Guard | 20% |
Attacker vs Defender
| Attacker | Defender | |
|---|---|---|
| Focus | Execute technique | Prevent or counter |
| Key Principles | Secure a deep underhook to the far hip or lat before committ… | Win the underhook battle first - fight for your own underhoo… |
| Options | 6 execution steps | 4 defensive options |
Playing as Attacker
Key Principles
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Secure a deep underhook to the far hip or lat before committing - it controls the upper body so the opponent rotates as a single unit
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Load the opponent’s weight onto your butterfly hook before lifting - you cannot elevate a based, dead-weight opponent
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Elevate with the hook by lifting the knee toward the ceiling, not by kicking the foot laterally
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Sacrifice your own base by falling to the underhook-side shoulder to generate the toppling rotation
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Time the sweep to the opponent’s forward weight commitment - when they post in, drive, or attempt to pass
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Come up on top immediately - the sweep is incomplete until you have technical-stood-up into side control
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Keep your head tight on the underhook side to deny the crossface and to help drive the rotation
Execution Steps
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Establish deep underhook and far-arm control: From seated butterfly guard, drive your inside arm deep under the opponent’s armpit on your chosen s…
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Insert and load the butterfly hook: Confirm your same-side foot is hooked actively inside the opponent’s thigh with your instep, not mer…
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Break their posture and create the angle: Off-balance the opponent toward your underhook side by pulling their shoulder across and down while …
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Fall to your shoulder and elevate: Commit to the sweep by falling toward your underhook-side shoulder and upper back while simultaneous…
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Pull the far side and complete the rotation: As you elevate, pull their far arm or wrist across and drive your underhook through to topple them o…
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Come up on top into side control: Do not stay on your back. As they roll, post with your free hand and technical-standup, chasing the …
Common Mistakes
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Attempting to lift before loading the opponent’s weight onto the hook
- Consequence: You try to elevate dead weight that is based out, the hook stalls, and you expose yourself to the pass
- Correction: Pull with the underhook to shift their weight forward onto the hook first; only elevate once you feel their mass settle on your instep
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Shallow underhook with the hand stopping at the ribs
- Consequence: The opponent’s upper body does not rotate with you, they posture out, and the crossface neutralizes your arm
- Correction: Drive the underhook to the far hip or lat so their torso turns as one unit the instant you elevate
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Kicking the hook laterally instead of lifting the knee upward
- Consequence: You shove the opponent sideways without elevating their hips, so they simply step over or post and stabilize
- Correction: Lift the knee toward the ceiling with your instep, raising their hip off the mat rather than pushing them away from you
Playing as Defender
Key Principles
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Win the underhook battle first - fight for your own underhook or a two-on-one before the opponent reaches depth
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Keep your weight off their butterfly hook by basing wide with your hips back, so there is nothing loaded to elevate
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Whizzer an established underhook to neutralize the lift, but flatten laterally rather than diving forward
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Maintain a crossface to drive their head away, killing the angle their torso rotation requires
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Kill or pin the hook by pinching your knee in or pushing the leg down to remove the elevator
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Never reach your far arm behind you to post - keep your arms in front to deny the kimura and the back
Recognition Cues
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The attacker’s inside arm digs deep under your arm and reaches toward your far hip or lat, not just your ribs
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The attacker comes off their back onto their underhook-side hip, angling their shoulders toward you
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You feel an active butterfly hook lift under your thigh as they pull you forward to load your weight
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The attacker’s far hand grips your wrist or sleeve, or hugs across your back, to remove your far-side post
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Their head drives tight to your chest on the underhook side, blocking your crossface attempts
Defensive Options
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Contest the underhook early - pummel for your own underhook or establish a two-on-one - When: Immediately as the attacker reaches under your arm, before they secure depth to your far hip
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Whizzer the underhook arm and drive a crossface to flatten them, keeping hips back - When: Once the opponent has secured a deep underhook and you can no longer prevent it
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Kill the butterfly hook by pinching your knee in or pushing the leg down, hips back - When: As you feel them trying to load your weight onto the hook before the elevation begins
Position Integration
The underhook sweep sits at the center of the butterfly guard bottom system, complementing the standard butterfly sweep by adding dedicated upper-body control through a single deep underhook. Where the basic sweep relies primarily on bilateral hook elevation, the underhook variation isolates and rotates the opponent’s torso, making it the higher-percentage option against forward-pressuring, hands-in passers. Its real value is connective: the same underhook that powers the sweep also threatens the back, so a wide defensive base feeds an arm drag, a whizzer feeds a dogfight back take, and a retreating opponent opens leg-entanglement entries. When stuffed, the position degrades into half guard or deep half rather than a finished pass, preserving the bottom player’s offense. This makes the technique a foundational teaching tool for inside position, weight-loading the hook, and the principle of using an opponent’s defensive commitment against them - concepts that transfer across the entire modern seated-guard game.