I ranked every major guard pass in jiu jitsu from useless to essential based on what actually works when you’re trying to pass against good people.
In this episode of the I Suck at Jiu Jitsu Show, I break down the best guard passes in grappling using three criteria: risk, finishability, and versatility. If you’ve ever felt stuck inside someone’s guard, constantly getting swept, submitted, or forced into bad decisions just trying to pass, this will help you see things a lot more clearly.
This isn’t just a list of flashy passes. I’m talking about what actually holds up in real training and competition. Which passes are worth building your game around, which ones are more situational, and which ones probably aren’t worth your time right now.
I cover passes like the knee cut, torreando, leg drag, side smash, leg weave, float pass, tripod pass, body lock pass, long step, over under, double under, single under, X pass, Sao Paulo pass, cross pant grip passing, back step, reverse knee cut, knee staple, surfer pass, hip switch, cross body half guard passing, and more.
If you’re newer and trying to figure out where to focus, or you’ve been training for a while and want to tighten up your passing system, this should give you a solid direction.
And if you think I got something completely wrong, I want to hear it. Drop your hottest take in the comments.
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Greatest Guard Passing Seminar Ever: https://youtu.be/aDAwqBVoDP4
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0:00 Intro
0:17 Why This Episode Will Change Your Guard Passing
1:47 The Tier List Criteria
5:50 Risk in Guard Passing
8:13 Finishability
10:04 Versatility
12:23 Torreando Pass
14:41 X Pass
16:08 Leg Drag
17:17 Cartwheel Pass
18:57 Datsusara Sponsor Break
20:24 Single Under Pass
21:58 Knee Cut Pass
24:59 Reverse Knee Cut
26:06 Back Step Pass
29:25 Over Under Pass
32:03 Competitor’s Journey Ad
33:24 DLR Stepover Pass
34:27 Double Under Pass
35:28 Body Lock Pass
37:22 Side Smash / Folding Pass
40:00 Near Side Underhook Pass
41:34 Leg Weave Pass
43:20 Knee Weave / Dope Mount
43:49 Smash Half Guard Pass
44:46 Float Pass
46:00 High Step Pass
47:23 BJJ Mental Models Sponsor Break
48:36 Sao Paulo Pass
50:09 Tripod Pass
51:06 Long Step Pass
52:56 Knee Staple Pass
54:45 Cross Pant Grip Pass
55:40 Surfer Pass
57:13 Double Under Lapel Pass / Squid Pass
59:42 Reverse Leg Drag
1:01:26 Hip Switch vs Crossbody Half Guard Pass
1:03:14 Crossbody Half Guard Pass
1:04:04 How to Build Guard Passing Combos
1:04:56 Torreando Combo
1:05:54 Leg Drag Combo
1:07:21 Knee Cut Combo
1:09:20 Knee Weave Combo
1:10:35 Why Stack Passes Ranked Lower
1:13:12 Final Thoughts on the Tier List
1:14:16 951 Hot Take + Guard Passing Seminar
1:14:57 Why the Tier List Trilogy Ends Here