The Half Guard in MMA: What went wrong for Neil Magny vs. Michael Chiesa
Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC
The half guard is one of the most complex positions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and mixed martial arts. We regularly see top-level fighters struggle when they’re required to use the half guard, this was displayed when Neil Magny fought Michael Chiesa in the main event of UFC Fight Night on ESPN 20.
Magny continuously committed what legendary Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and MMA mastermind John Danaher calls the “cardinal sin” of guard retention - he failed to stop Chiesa from making a chest-to-chest connection.
Being on the bottom with an opponent establishing a chest-to-chest connection is one of the worst scenarios for a guard player to be in. This is because the guard passer has control of the head and shoulders which inhibits movement, ability to generate space to frame and escape, thus making guard passes an inevitability.
Chiesa often achieved a chest-to-chest connection which caused Magny to be flattened out, cross-faced and pinned to the mat. He took punches and had his guard passed as a result. This happened repeatedly because of the type of half guard Magny employed – the lockdown.
Chiesa landed blows, threatened guard passes and kept copious amounts of pressure on Magny because he secured a chest-to-chest connection.
Eddie Bravo popularized the lockdown as part of his 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu system and is a technique mainly used to avert guard passes.
The lockdown is implemented by the bottom player bringing the outside half guard leg inside to reinforce the inside foot. The inside foot, meanwhile, pushes into the metatarsals of the opponent. It is more painful and inconvenient than it is useful as it delays, not prevents guard passes. This is because a chest-to-chest connection will have been made with a cross-face usually in place, the bottom player’s movement will have been heavily restricted with the guard passer only needing to free the trapped leg.
Magny again insisted on the lockdown and Chiesa made a chest-to-chest connection, inserted a butterfly hook with his left leg to free his trapped leg and slid into the mount.
Due to a lack of defensive frames, Chiesa moved to the headquarters position forcing Magny into a dilemma between having his back taken or being flattened out and forced to deal with crushing pressure.
There are submissions that stem from the lockdown, an example being the electric chair (otherwise known as the banana split). Bravo wielded this in his famous match against Royler Gracie at Metamoris 3 in 2014.
The electric chair is primarily a submission that targets the groin (although Bravo claimed he heard Gracie’s knee pop several times). A lockdown is applied and an underhook is used on the other leg to lift the opponent up and over which aids the guard player in getting underneath the opponent’s base. From there, the arms will lock around the top leg and push down, while the lockdown will be driving the other leg in the opposite direction essentially forcing the receiver of the electric chair to do the splits.
Eddie Bravo used the lockdown to set up the electric chair. Notice the outside leg coming inside to reinforce his right foot pushing into Royler Gracie’s. There is an underhook battle taking place between Bravo’s left and Gracie’s right arms, Bravo loses and uses the forward momentum of Gracie to help get himself underneath to apply the submission.
Now it has been determined where Magny went wrong; the lack of knee shields – I’d like to delve into how I believe he could have utilised them. A low knee shield is a fantastic tool that controls distance and prevents a chest-to-chest connection by placing a powerful frame between the half guard player and the opponent.
Famous half guard player and Brazilian Jiu-Jitu world champion Bernardo Faria employs his free leg as a distance management tool on the chest of his partner.
Gordon Ryan controls distance using a low knee shield by extending his legs or bringing his knees to his chest to manipulate space. His feet remain crossed behind his training partner’s hip as another point of control and he uses a cross shoulder post to help prevent a chest-to-chest connection.
The high knee shield is equally effective and important for preventing the half guard from being passed. Opponents will try smashing a low knee shield to the floor to make a chest-to-chest connection, retrieving the high knee shield and inserting a cross shoulder post is a workable option to stay safe.
Cross shoulder posts are crucial for stopping a chest-to-chest connection as the guard passer has to deal with a robust frame against the shoulder and chest line. Gordon Ryan’s left-hand controls his partner’s left shoulder, his elbow impedes his partner’s right shoulder and the forearm obstructs his partner’s chest. These points of contact become a wedge that blocks a chest-to-chest connection.
Gordon Ryan uses a high knee shield and a cross shoulder post to prevent a chest-to-chest connection.
The butterfly half guard allows prompt switches from defensive to offensive actions, it also offers swift transitions between other guards like the traditional butterfly guard. Raphael Assuncao displayed this against Marlon Moraes in 2019. Upon hurting Assuncao, Moraes followed him to the ground, landed more punches and forced a half guard.
The butterfly half guard.
A sumi-gaeshi, known as a hook sweep from the butterfly half guard.
Assuncao cycled between a half guard, butterfly half and the butterfly guard to avoid being flattened out – even when hurt. Although short, there were many interesting grappling sequences in this fight.
Moraes forced a half guard causing Assuncao to shrimp, insert a butterfly hook to avoid being flattened out before transitioning to a regular butterfly guard.
Assuncao attempted a hook sweep and stopped Moraes hip switching over his left butterfly hook.
We can analyse another defensive issue of Magny’s now that some guard retention strategies have been established. Magny did have other good ideas, namely the deep half guard. He didn’t secure the correct grips nor did he get tight enough which resulted in Chiesa being able to move into dominant positions.
Magny got to a deep half guard but Chiesa still was able to pass. He needed to release his hands from around Chiesa’s waist and start hugging Chiesa’s left leg with both arms.
The deep half guard stops a chest-to-chest connection because the opponent is hoisted above the deep half player’s head. To execute the deep half guard successfully, the bottom player uses lateral rocking motions to create imbalances and sweep an opponent. Due to these imbalances, the top player cannot pin the guard player as the focus will be on not being swept. The deep half is an elite guard for sweeps which can also be used to open up escapes through the legs into back takes or to stand up.
The deep half guard.
A deep half guard entry from the regular half guard.
Fabricio Werdum used the deep half guard successfully against Alexander Volkov.
Back takes are an option from the deep half. Fabricio Werdum used a high crotch to pull Alexander Volkov into the deep half guard then used a back take known as “the kiss of the dragon”.
Contrary to popular opinion, the half guard and its variants are very effective when used correctly. In an excerpt below, John Danaher explains the paradox of the half guard and how it is a premier position for sweeping as much as it is for guard passing. Hopefully, fighters will come to this realisation in the future.
“The curious case of half guard: here’s an odd thing - many of the most respected Jiu-Jitsu authorities claim that getting to top half guard is one of the very best guard passing strategies in the sport and so advocate forcing your way to half guard as a superior passing strategy. Just as many respected Jiu-Jitsu authorities claim that bottom half guard is one of the premier sweeping positions in the sport and so advocate actively getting to half guard whenever playing bottom position so that you can sweep an opponent. I am part of this seeming contradiction myself. I always encourage my students to actively work to get to half guard whenever they can and exploit its strengths as a passing position. Yet I also claim that the bottom of half guard is a great position to play for sweeps and submissions.”