Mastering the Final Push: Two Hacks for Completing BJJ Sweeps
In Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, few moments are as frustrating as being on the verge of sweeping your opponent but falling just short. Your grips are solid, your hips are loaded, but they post out or recover their base at the last second. Black belt Tom Davey, who trains under John Kavanagh at Straight Blast Gym Ireland, has honed two clever adjustments that make all the difference. These aren't flashy new moves—they're subtle tweaks to refine your closed guard sweeps, applicable across MMA, BJJ competitions, and no-gi grappling.
Whether you're a white belt grinding through fundamentals or a purple belt hunting for that edge in tournaments, these hacks will boost your bottom-game efficiency. Let's break them down step by step, with real-world applications for training and sparring.
Hack #1: The Shoulder Crunch for Space Creation
The first hack targets the common issue where your opponent's arm posts heavily on the mat, blocking your sweep. Instead of muscling through (which drains your energy and risks counters), use your shoulder to disrupt their structure.
Step-by-Step Breakdown:
1. Establish Your Base Grips: From closed guard, secure a collar tie on one side and a sleeve grip on the opposite arm. Pull their posture down and off-balance them toward your strong side.2. Hip Escape Setup: Open your guard slightly, shrimp your hips out, and reload into a strong scissor or hip bump position. Ensure your bottom leg is hooked firmly behind their leg.
3. The Crunch: Here's the magic. As you initiate the sweep by pushing their sleeve arm across and lifting with your hips, drive your shoulder—specifically the one on your strong side—directly into their ribcage or armpit. Crunch your shoulder upward and inward, like you're trying to touch your ear to your shoulder. This compresses their torso, forcing their posting arm to lift off the mat involuntarily.
4. Explode Through: With their base compromised, kick through with your top leg and roll them over. Follow up by transitioning to side control or mount.
Why It Works
This shoulder crunch exploits basic human anatomy—pressure on the ribs disrupts breathing and posture, making it nearly impossible to post effectively. In MMA contexts, where opponents have striking backgrounds, this prevents them from sprawling or punching back during the sweep attempt.Pro Tip for Practice: Drill this slowly with a partner, focusing on the shoulder pressure. Start with 10 reps per side, then add resistance. In live rolls, use it when you feel their arm digging in—it's a low-risk adjustment that conserves gas for later rounds.
Variations Across Sports:
- Muay Thai Clinch Transitions: Similar shoulder pressure helps off-balance strikers before taking them down.
- Wrestling: Mimics the inside trip when chaining to double-legs.
- No-Gi: Switch the sleeve grip to an overhook for added control.
Hack #2: The Delayed Leg Drag for Base Disruption
The second hack addresses sweeps where your opponent anticipates and bases out early with both hands. Tom calls this the 'leg drag'—a sneaky way to unweight their lead leg without them noticing until it's too late.
Step-by-Step Breakdown:
1. Standard Sweep Entry: Again from closed guard, break their posture with cross-collar and sleeve grips. Threaten the sweep to bait their base— they'll post one hand forward and widen their stance.2. Insert the Drag: With your bottom leg hooked, use your shin or instep to hook the inside of their far ankle (the one away from you). Don't pull yet—keep tension to control their movement.
3. The Delay: As you lift and push for the sweep, pause for a split second. Then, explosively drag their ankle across your body toward your opposite shoulder. This yanks their base leg out from under them while your hips drive upward.
4. Finish Strong: Their torso will topple as the leg slides free. Use the momentum to sweep and advance position.
Why It Works
Timing is everything here. The delay sells the feint, making them commit their weight forward. Dragging the leg creates a fulcrum effect, toppling even heavy opponents. In high-stakes rolls, this counters reactive defenses from experienced grapplers.Pro Tip for Practice: Shadow drill the drag motion on a heavy bag or dummy to perfect the hook-and-pull. In partner drills, emphasize the pause—rushing kills the setup. Track your success rate over 20 rolls; aim for 70% completion.
Variations Across Sports:
- Kickboxing: Disrupts low kicks by unweighting their stance mid-range.
- MMA Ground-and-Pound Defense: Clears space to reverse into top control.
- BJJ Gi vs. No-Gi: In gi, grip their pant cuff for extra leverage; no-gi uses a forearm wedge.
Integrating These Hacks into Your Game
Tom emphasizes drilling these in context, not isolation. Start every warm-up with 5 minutes of sweep-specific flows: enter guard, attempt a standard sweep, apply the hack when they base, finish, reset. Progress to positional sparring—start in closed guard, sweep or submit within 60 seconds.
For gear heads: A quality BJJ gi enhances grip reliability during these setups. Look for reinforced collars and cuffs that hold up under constant pulling. Rash guards prevent mat burns during shrimping, and mouthguards protect against accidental elbows in scrambles. At Apollo MMA, browse our collection of top brands like Tatami, Fuji, and Hyperfly to gear up properly.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Over-Gripping: Relax your hands—tension telegraphs your intent.
- Rushing the Finish: Both hacks rely on patience; breathe and explode.
- Neglecting Head Position: Keep your head on their belly to block posture recovery.
Real-World Applications
Tom's students have used these in IBJJF tournaments and MMA cages. One purple belt credits the shoulder crunch for sweeping a wrestler twice his size at a local comp. In training, they chain seamlessly: miss the first sweep? Drag the leg and circle back.Level Up Your Bottom Game Today
These hacks transform incomplete sweeps into reliable offense. Commit to 50 reps per technique this week, and you'll feel the difference. Whether prepping for BJJ worlds, MMA fights, or just surviving Wednesday night open mat, Tom Davey's wisdom delivers results.
Stay gritty, keep drilling, and check out Apollo MMA for all your training essentials—from gis to gloves—that support a smarter, stronger game.
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