Guard Passing in MMA v.s. BJJ

• By Owen Reilly

Though similar to pure Jiu-Jitsu, passing guard in MMA differentiates from the original grappling sport because of the inclusion of strikes. The ability of both you and your opponent to throw up-kicks from the bottom position and leg strikes when approaching your opponent's guard often affects how fighters approach passing the guard. Furthermore, the reward for passing guard differs in each respective sport. In pure sport BJJ, passing guard often yields two or three points depending on what organization you are competing in. MMA offers no points and is purely meant to gain a dominant position to hunt for submissions or land strikes. 

Pressure Passing vs. Speed Passing 

In sport BJJ, pressure passing is an often used style that works by slowly breaking your opponent down and grinding through their guard. Speed passing also provides an alternative path to victory using leg drags or knee slides. When we compare this to MMA, we see how pressure passing is a very dangerous passing style to employ. Because of the slow nature of this style, utilizing it in MMA will cause you to absorb numerous strikes from the elbows or fists. Speed style, on the other hand, allows you to stay mobile and minimizes the time spent in areas where you can be hit. 

The Guards

The different types of guards will also affect how you decide to pass the guard. For example, passing a butterfly guard versus a closed guard will require different technical moves. In MMA, the types of guards used is typically simpler with the most common types being butterfly, closed, and half guards. This is because many of the more complex guards create more areas where the bottom man can be hit. In the sport of Jiujitsu, the wide variety of guards is more often put on display. Jiujitsu competitions may showcase more advanced guards along with the three simpler ones listed above including spider guard, de la riva guard, or x guard.

After Passing 

Sport BJJ: After passing, the primary goal of pure jiujitsu competitors should be to move to a more dominant position such as taking the back or full mount, or hunting for submissions such as kimuras or americanas. 

MMA: When passing in MMA, moving to a more dominant position is also an option, however, the primary goal should be to end the fight using ground and pound strikes. Submission opportunities, should they arise, also should be taken to end the fight. In MMA you are fighting to finish your opponent rather than to obtain points. 

Despite the fundamentals being the same, the goals and stakes of passing the guard differ between the two sports. MMA favors quicker and more aggressive styles of passing that minimize the potential damage that the top man could endure. Sport BJJ offers various ways to pass such as the style of pressure passing that is not available in MMA. For tips on guard passing, check out the course below.