Leg Drag
Leg Drag
A guard-passing technique in BJJ in which the attacker grips and drags the opponent's leg across their own body, clearing the obstruction and opening the path to side control.
Quick Facts
Definition
The leg drag is a modern guard-passing technique that gained wide popularity through Brazilian guard-passing specialists around the turn of the 21st century and today forms part of the standard repertoire of competitive BJJ and no-gi grappling. The principle is that the attacker grips the opponent's leg (typically at the ankle or calf) and, in one continuous motion, drags it across their own hip or thigh to the opposite side of their body, completely removing the barrier that leg represented between the two grapplers. This is what fundamentally distinguishes the leg drag from more traditional guard passes such as the torreando, where the attacker circles around the opponent's legs, whereas in the leg drag it is the leg itself that is relocated. After a successful leg drag, the opponent's body ends up in a disadvantageous position where the guard cannot easily be re-established, and the attacker can immediately follow into back control, side control, or the so-called knee-slide position. The leg drag is often combined with a grip called the x-pass or with control on the gi pants or the ankle in no-gi, and mastering it requires a good sense of timing and pressure so the opponent cannot pull the leg back before the drag is completed.
Related Terms
Core BJJ bottom ground position where a practitioner controls the opponent using their legs.
Guard PassGuard PassBJJ tactical sequence where the top fighter bypasses the opponent's legs to establish side control.
Half GuardHalf GuardIntermediate ground position where the bottom fighter traps one of the top fighter's legs with both of theirs.
Spider GuardSpider GuardOpen guard system in BJJ utilizing sleeve grips combined with feet placed directly onto the opponent's biceps.