Table of content
To become the best player in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and secure top ranks in BJJ charts, you must learn certain positions and BJJ techniques that distinguish you from other BJJ fighters. Almost all BJJ fighters learn basic BJJ techniques and positions. How will you take an edge over your opponents if you also learn those basic BJJ techniques and moves or positions? How will you become better than them? They also learn those same BJJ techniques and moves or positions. So, this will not help you take advantage of your opponent.
The point is to learn those BJJ moves or techniques that are not common and that others find difficult, such as BJJ diagonal control. You can escape from a particular position in many ways. Also, you can take a grip on your opponent in many ways, such as by taking your opponent’s back. So, try to learn those BJJ moves or techniques that others do not or find difficult to learn. This will give you an advantage over your opponent.
1. What is BJJ Diagonal Control?
BJJ diagonal control is one of those BJJ techniques and moves that will help you distinguish yourself from others. BJJ diagonal control is the position or technique in BJJ in which you control your opponent across their body in a diagonal position. You control your opponent by simultaneously controlling their upper and lower body portions. You control their shoulder or arms with your hands. At the same time, you control their legs by trapping them in between your legs. This makes the diagonal position. Hence, it is called BJJ diagonal control.
It is also known as BJJ shoulder-to-hip control because you control the shoulder and hips at the same time. What distinguishes this move from others is that you control your opponent diagonally. It means you control your opponent by applying force on their right shoulder and left leg or left shoulder and right leg. You will control your opponent diagonally. You can't control your opponent by gripping your opponent’s right leg and right shoulder.
2. Understanding And Mastering BJJ Diagonal Control
2.1 We Must Keep Our Opponent in Control
While playing a professional BJJ game, we always try to take control of our opponent’s body. BJJ diagonal control provides us with this type of control. So, suppose your opponent is sitting on the mat. Eventually, what you want is control of both your opponent's hip and your opponent's shoulder line. Try to have control of your opponent's entire body without hooking (underhook or overhook).
2.2 Best Way to Control Your Opponent
The best way to do this is through some form of diagonal control. Diagonal control gives you full control of your opponent's body, ranging from one hip to the opposite shoulder. If you have control of your opponent's right hip through your right hand, you should try to control your opponent's left arm in some way. Once you have gripped their shoulder, you have control of your opponent's entire body, ranging from the right hip to the left shoulder. You don't have to control your opponent’s entire body by gripping both shoulders and hips. But you should control their entire body, ranging diagonally from one side to the other.
2.3 Why Only BJJ Diagonal Control?
If you can control the angle with a cross-body ride or insert one hook and get far wrists, you have complete control of your opponent's body, ranging from one shoulder diagonally across to the opposite hip. You may be wondering why it is so necessary to control your opponent diagonally. Why can't you control your opponent in the same line, i.e., right shoulder and right hip, or left shoulder and left hip? The answer is here. For example, if you have one hook in and don't have diagonal control, your opponent could always turn and face you.
It will be incredibly hard for you to follow your opponent. You can't control them for a long time in that way. You get to your opponent's wrist if you haven't formed a diagonal control. This will give you the ability to follow your partner wherever they go. To control your opponent effectively, you can control one part of their lower body through your hook and one part of their upper body through control of your opponent's wrist and shoulder.
2.4 With BJJ Diagonal Control, You Can Follow Your Opponent
Controlling your opponent’s wrist will allow you to carry yourself through and put everything into place, or you can go into attacks. But if you don't have a wrist control, just have one hook, for example, the lower part of your opponent’s body. If you want to go roll or wait for your opponent, there is no way you will ever follow your opponent. You will lose that part, too.
So whether you have control of your partner with just one hook and a far wrist or you have control of your partner with some form of cross-body ride, you always should look initially to get to a form of diagonal control. Eventually, you may want a back-headed arm, two hooks, or a body triangle, giving you full control of your opponent's body.
2.5 Perfect Form of Opponent’s Control
But until that point, you have to fight your limbs. So you can get one hook in place to control one hip and then one hand to control your opponent's far shoulder to control the opposite side of the body. So you have control of one hip, the right hip, or the left hip, and then you cross diagonally to control the opposite side of your opponent's body. With diagonal control, you have true control of your opponent's body. So you can eventually follow your opponent through wherever they go, insert two hooks, and go for finishes and attacks from the back.
3. Significance of BJJ Diagonal Control
BJJ diagonal control has many benefits and significance, making it crucial for you to learn this BJJ technique. The following are some points that prove the significance of BJJ diagonal control.
Through BJJ diagonal control, you imbalance your opponent. Your opponent loses control over themselves, which makes it easier for you to take submission over your opponent.
Through BJJ diagonal control, you are controlling your opponent across their body. It means that you are leaving no room for them to escape. It makes it very hard for your opponent to escape. Thus, using BJJ diagonal control increases your chances of taking your opponent to submission.
Once you have your opponent in BJJ diagonal control, you have many options for attacks and sweeps to take your opponent into more control for submission.
It decreases the safety of your BJJ opponent. They are prone to submissions, attacks, chokes, mounts, and sweeps.
You have full control of your opponent. Now, it doesn't matter which way your opponent goes. If your opponent decides to go up to the way, go up, go back, you will stay behind them. If they decide to roll through, you will also stay behind them. Either way, you have their back.
All these points make BJJ diagonal control a great BJJ technique and move for controlling your opponent and taking them for submission.
4. How Can You Take Your Opponent’s Back Using BJJ Diagonal Control?
4.1 Back Control in BJJ
There are a few different ways in which BJJ diagonal control presents itself in the sport of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. One of the probably most common and well-known methods is on the back. When you are behind somebody and in diagonal control. When BJJ diagonal control refers to back control, it means a situation where you control from one of your opponent's hips diagonally to the other shoulder. It could be from the right hip up to the left shoulder or from the left hip to the right shoulder.
4.2 You Can Track Your Opponent
But the idea here is that if you can control the hip on one side while controlling the shoulder on the other, you can control your opponent's movement. Left or right, it doesn't matter which way they go. So, if your opponent goes to the right, you can track that. If your opponent tries to move to the left, you can track them. If your opponent tries to turn to their right-hand side, you can track them through your hook. If your opponent tries to turn to their left-hand side, you will be able to track them through your right arm. The same applies on the opposite side.
4.3 Way to Get Back By BJJ Diagonal Control
Let's look at one very neat way of getting to diagonal control. That is a time-tested method of getting there. Suppose your opponent is going to be in a BJJ turtle situation. Start with a tight waist on your opponent. The key to a tight waist is to control your opponent's hip with your elbow. Post your hand on the mat on your right-hand side. Your right knee is going to block next to your opponent’s knee. Then, start a sagging motion where you will sag away on your opponent. Start to draw your weight out when you feel like your opponent leaves your elbows in.
4.4 BJJ Kazushi
When you feel like your opponent is reaching that point, they will fall to the point of Kazushi. Remove your knees and allow them to fall into your created space. Most of the time, your opponent will not fall on the shoulder in a competitive situation. They are going to fall on the elbow. If your opponent falls on their shoulder, go ahead. That is even better for you; it will be an easy day in the office.
4.5 You Have BJJ Diagonal Control
Suppose your opponent is on the bottom, but again, in a competitive situation, your opponent will fight for every single form they can win. So they are not going to fall to a shoulder. They're going to fall to an elbow. When your opponent falls to an elbow, you will take your right hand under your opponent's armpit and grasp your opponent's hand. So now you have control of the right shoulder. You need to insert a hook on the left-hand side so you will take your head forward. So now you have BJJ diagonal control.
5. How Can You Take Opponent’s Side Using BJJ Diagonal Control?
5.1 Side Control in BJJ
You must keep up your progress whenever you pass your opponent's guard. So, certain BJJ side control positions are good for maintaining forklifts. The second position is when you are facing towards your opponent’s legs, and the third position is when you are facing towards your opponent’s head. But there is one problem in these positions. The problem is that when you try to attract in most of these positions, a space becomes available for them to escape. There is a window of opportunity for them to start to move. Making full use of this opportunity, they can create scrambles, making it difficult for you to control your opponent.
5.2 Side Control Through BJJ Diagonal Control
So, the position you should be going for is not a cross-body position that makes you close to your opponent's legs. You also should not try for a north-south position against your opponent either. Because then, many more powerful opponents trap your arms in a bridge and roll. So, what you should be doing when taking side control is to try putting yourself in a position called diagonal side control or simply diagonal control.
5.3 Benefits of Side Control Through BJJ Diagonal Control
- Diagonal side control is when you are diagonal against your opponent. The idea is that Once you have this position, you can maintain it. You can exhaust your opponent by keeping constant pressure. This also allows you to attack in advance without giving them space to move.
- Whenever you have someone in this position, one of the hardest things is to collect the arm. They are defensive enough to keep their arms tight if they are really good. But if you just use your hips to put pressure on the head while stabilizing the arm. Eventually, it opens up the opportunity for your opponent to move their arms and give you a chance to attack. This diagonal side control blocks the inside hip and keeps pressure on your hip on the head.
6. Last Words
BJJ diagonal control is one of the best controls you can have over your opponent. It provides you with many options for submitting and taking your opponent down. You can attack, make sweeps, and do submissions, giving you an advantage over your opponent. Once you have your opponent in BJJ diagonal control, you leave them with no room for escape. This significance makes BJJ diagonal control crucial to learn. Learn and practice each day to become a master of this useful BJJ technique.
7. Frequently Asked Questions
7.1 What is a BJJ Diagonal Control?
BJJ diagonal control is the position or technique in BJJ in which you control your opponent across their body in a diagonal position. You control your opponent by simultaneously controlling their upper and lower body portions. You control their shoulder or arms with your hands. At the same time, you control their legs by trapping them in between your legs. This makes the diagonal position. Hence, it is called BJJ diagonal control.
7.2 What is the Significance of BJJ Diagonal Control?
Through BJJ diagonal control, you imbalance your opponent. Your opponent loses control over themselves, which makes it easier for you to take submission over your opponent. You are controlling your opponent across their body. It means that you are leaving no room for them to escape. Once you have your opponent in BJJ diagonal control, you have many options for attacks and sweeps to take your opponent into more control for submission. It decreases the safety of your BJJ opponent. They are prone to submissions, attacks, chokes, mounts , and sweeps.
7.3 Why is BJJ Diagonal Control Better Than Other Types of Opponent’s Controls?
If you have one hook in and don't have diagonal control, your opponent could always turn and face you. It will be incredibly hard for you to follow your opponent. You can't control them for a long time in that way. You get to your opponent's wrist if you haven't formed a diagonal control. This will give you the ability to follow your partner wherever they go. To control your opponent effectively, you can control one part of their lower body through your hook and one part of their upper body through control of your opponent's wrist and shoulder.
Now, it doesn't matter which way your opponent goes. If your opponent decides to go up to the way, go up, go back, you will stay behind them. If they decide to roll through, you will also stay behind them. Either way, you have their back.
Leave a comment
This site is protected by hCaptcha and the hCaptcha Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.