BJJ Escapes Masterclass: Survive Every Position

In BJJ, the ability to escape bad positions is as important as the ability to attack. Even the best competitors get caught in inferior positions — what separates them is the ability to recover systematically and efficiently.

Side Control Escapes

Side control is the most common dominating position encountered in BJJ. Escapes require framing, creating space, and leveraging hip power.

Elbow-Knee Escape (Elbow Push)

• Frame your near elbow into opponent's hip, far hand frames their neck
• Bridge and shrimp simultaneously to create space
• Bring your far knee to the elbow space
• Pull your other knee through to recover guard
• Key: the elbow creates the space, the hip escape creates the distance

Granby Roll Escape

• When opponent has tight side control, roll to your far shoulder
• Invert your hips as you roll
• Recover inverted guard or stand to create space
• Works best when opponent is very tight and you have no space to frame

Ghost Escape

• Best when opponent is too high (head near your head)
• Reach your near arm over their back
• Turn into them instead of away
• Come up to your knees behind them

Mount Escapes

Mount escapes must be initiated early — waiting until the opponent has established full mount makes escaping much harder.

Trap and Roll (Upa)

• Trap opponent's same-side arm and leg with your arm and leg
• Plant your foot and bridge explosively
• Roll them over to end in their guard
• Only works well if you catch the arm before they post it

Elbow Escape from Mount

• Frame with elbows into hip creases
• Shrimp your hips to create space
• Pull the near knee up through the space
• Continue shrimping to recover half guard, then full guard

Timing Escapes

• Escape when opponent transitions or commits to submission setup
• Bridge when they reach for your collar
• Shrimp when they reach for an armbar

Back Escapes

Back escapes are the most difficult — the attacker has control and visibility while you cannot directly see them. Focus on defending the choke first, then escaping.

Chin Tuck Defense

• Immediately tuck your chin when back is taken
• Grip the choking forearm with both hands
• Pull down to prevent the choke completing

Roll to Guard

• Remove bottom hook by pulling foot off your thigh
• Roll over your shoulder to their guard
• Better to give up the back and fight from guard than be choked

Seat Escape (Slide Out)

• When opponent's hooks are shallow, slide hips out
• Turn to face them as you escape
• Establish guard position

Knee on Belly Escape

KOB creates acute pressure — the key is to move before the pain becomes overwhelming.

• Push the knee: Frame both hands on the knee, push laterally as you shrimp
• Duck under: Bring near elbow under the knee, turn into turtle
• Take the back: If they over-commit, reach under and take single-leg

Building Escape Reflexes

• Positional sparring starting in mounted position
• Solo drills: shrimp, bridge, granby roll, technical stand-up
• Have training partners apply progressive weight to build tolerance and timing
• Study your worst positions on video — identify where you lose the fight