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Knee Cut Pass

Quick Introduction​

The knee cut pass — also called the knee slice — is the single highest-percentage guard pass in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. It works from white belt to black belt, in gi and no-gi, and against nearly every guard variation. The core mechanic is simple: slice your knee across the opponent's thigh line while controlling their upper body, cutting through their guard like a blade through paper.

What makes the knee cut so dominant is its versatility. You can hit it from half guard, headquarters position, knee shield, Z-guard, or even as a counter to single leg X entries. It chains naturally with leg drags, backsteps, and smash passes, making it the centerpiece of most competitive passing games.

Technique Overview​

From: Half guard, headquarters position, open guard | Best against: Half guard, knee shield, Z-guard, single leg X entries | Leads to: Side control, mount

Classic Knee Cut (Fundamental)​

  1. Establish headquarters position — inside knee up between their legs, outside knee posted on the mat, weight centered
  2. Secure a crossface with your near-side arm — drive your forearm or shoulder across their jaw, turning their head away from you
  3. Fight for the far-side underhook with your free arm — reach under their far arm and grip their lat or far shoulder
  4. With upper body control established, angle your cutting knee diagonally across their top thigh
  5. Drive the knee to the mat on the far side of their hip — slice across, not down on top of their leg
  6. As your knee clears, flatten your hips to the mat and pull your shin completely through
  7. Immediately settle your chest weight onto their torso
  8. Establish side control — crossface stays active, underhook controls their far arm

Key detail: The crossface is what makes the knee cut work. Without it, the bottom player can turn into you, frame, and recover guard. The crossface turns their head away and flattens their shoulders, eliminating the hip movement they need to defend. Establish the crossface before you cut — not after.

Backstep Knee Cut​

  1. Begin in standard knee cut position with crossface and underhook
  2. Opponent blocks with knee shield — their top knee frames against your shoulder or chest
  3. Instead of fighting through the shield, lift your cutting leg and backstep it behind you
  4. Plant your backstepped foot on the mat behind their bottom leg
  5. This clears your leg past their knee shield entirely
  6. Immediately re-angle your knee across their thigh from the new position
  7. Drive through to complete the pass — their shield is no longer in the way
  8. Settle into side control with crossface pressure

Key detail: The backstep is a direction change, not a retreat. You're going around the obstacle, not backing away from it. Maintain your upper body pressure and grips throughout — if you release the crossface to backstep, they'll recompose their guard. The backstep also opens a path to leg lock entries if you choose to attack the legs instead.

Knee Cut to Leg Drag​

  1. Set up the standard knee cut — crossface, underhook, begin slicing
  2. Opponent hip escapes hard, turning away from you to create distance and reguard
  3. As their hips move away, their top leg naturally extends and crosses their centerline
  4. Release the underhook and grab their top leg at the knee or ankle
  5. Push that leg across their body toward the mat on the far side (leg drag position)
  6. Circle your body toward their head on the open side
  7. Drive your chest onto their upper back or shoulder
  8. Complete the pass to side control — or take the back if they stay turned

Key detail: This is a reaction-based chain, not a planned sequence. The leg drag opportunity only appears when they hip escape to defend the knee cut. Read their movement — when you feel their hips turning away, switch to the drag immediately. Don't stubbornly chase the knee cut when they've already escaped it.

Core Principles​

  1. Crossface before cutting — Upper body control must be established before you move your legs. The crossface turns their head, flattens their shoulders, and kills their hip escape. No crossface, no pass.
  2. Knee goes across, not on top — The cutting angle is diagonal across their thigh toward the far hip, not downward into the top of their leg. Cutting on top pins you in place; cutting across slides you through.
  3. Win the underhook battle — The far-side underhook prevents them from framing on your hip, building a frame chain, or creating the distance needed to reguard. If they get the underhook first, reset before cutting.
  4. Headquarters is home base — One knee up between their legs, one knee on the mat. This is where you read, control, and choose your pass. Return here when things go wrong.
  5. Chain your passes — The knee cut is strongest when combined with backsteps and leg drags. If they block one path, another opens. Never commit to a single direction against active defense.

Common Mistakes​

MistakeFix
Cutting knee lands on top of their thighAngle the knee diagonally across — aim for the far side of their hip
No crossface before attempting the sliceEstablish crossface first, flatten their shoulders, then cut
Losing the far-side underhookFight for the underhook before committing — reset if they frame
Cutting too slowlyThe slice itself should be decisive — hesitation lets them recover
Staying in headquarters too long without actingRead and go; stalling lets them establish grips and frames
Forcing the pass against knee shieldBackstep or switch to leg drag instead of pushing through the shield

Next Steps​

  1. Half Guard Passing - The broader half guard passing system
  2. Side Control - Primary position after completing the pass
  3. Pressure Passing - Complementary heavy passing approach