Body Lock Pass

What it is

The body lock pass is a pressure pass where you lock your hands around your opponent's waist, put your chest on them and trap one leg between your knees before you walk your leg free to side control or mount. It is built for butterfly, half butterfly and seated guards. With your hips low and their hips held, their hooks have nothing to lift.

When to use it

• They play butterfly or seated guard and their legs are close to you.
• They sit up into you and you can reach around their back.
• You want a pass that needs no gi grips, especially in no-gi.

How to do it

1. Close the distance and lock your hands around their lower back, elbows tight and head tight to their chest.
2. Drop your hips low and drive your chest into them, so they fall back onto the mat.
3. Step a leg over one of their legs and clamp that leg between your knees, pinning it to the mat.
4. Keep the lock and move your hips to the side of the trapped leg, flattening them with your chest.
5. Free your leg by sliding your knee across their thigh to the mat.
6. Release the lock, take a crossface or underhook and settle into side control or mount.

Key details

• Lock low, around the lower back or hips. A high lock on the shoulders lets their hips move.
• Head tight to their chest, so they cannot frame on your neck or wrap a guillotine.
• Hips low the whole time. High hips give the butterfly hooks something to lift.
• Trap one leg completely before you try to step past. One leg pinned is the pass.

Common mistakes

• Mistake: locking hands with your head outside or high. They catch a guillotine or frame you away.
• Mistake: kneeling upright in the lock. Their hooks lift you and you get swept.
• Mistake: letting go of the lock to free your leg. Their hips escape and the guard comes back.

What they will try

• They frame on your neck and shoulder, shrimp away and reinsert a hook.
• They wrap the guillotine if your head drifts outside.
• They underhook an arm and come up to their knees as you step past.

Gi and no-gi

This pass needs no gi grips, so it works the same way in no-gi and is common there. In the gi they can grip your collar and sleeves to block it, so strip or control those first.