A classic closed guard sweep that off-balances the opponent and lands in mount.
The scissor sweep is one of the first sweeps taught in BJJ. From closed guard, you get a cross-collar grip and a sleeve grip, open your guard, place your shin across their stomach (knee shield), and scissor your legs — top leg pushes across while the bottom leg sweeps their knee. Timing is critical: execute the sweep as they drive forward into your knee shield. It lands you directly in mount.
Key points
- Break posture before attempting the sweep
- Angle the hips out before loading their weight
- Pull the upper body as the legs scissor through
Common mistakes
- Trying to sweep from flat hips
- Leaving the opponent’s posture intact
- Using weak shin pressure across the torso
Common reactions
- Opponent posts a hand wide
- Opponent pulls posture backward and widens base
Position Flow
Details
Type
sweep
Difficulty
beginner
Ruleset
Gi & No-Gi
Tags
sweep, fundamental, guard, beginner