Berimbolo from Single-Leg X Guard

Berimbolo from Single-Leg X Guard is a sweep that puts the bottom player on top built around a handful of repeatable controls. Bottom player is supine in single-leg X / waiter position with one of the opponent's legs loaded across the chest and the other knee pinched between the knees. Another common starting shape: bottom player is seated in a De La Riva or single-leg-X style open guard, with hooks and grips engaged on the standing opponent's lead leg and sleeve. The ideas that hold it together are elevate first, sweep or back as a fork, and use their post against them.

The berimbolo chain is a sequence of small controls, not one athletic burst. Extend both legs to elevate the opponent's hips off the mat. Pull the trapped sleeve down toward the hip to keep the opponent from posting the arm. If the opponent posts the free hand to defend, release the sweep direction and spin under the posted side for a berimbolo entry. Insert the hook and chase the back when the rotation completes. Drive the opponent's weight onto a compromised base by attacking a hook and a grip simultaneously. Use the bottom hooks to elevate one of the opponent's posts while pulling on a sleeve or wrist to spin them past their base. Bottom player has either swept the opponent over the top to mount, or chased their basing hand and arrived behind them with hooks in.

Later in the berimbolo, kuzushi, two-on-one mechanics, and rotation off the hook tend to decide whether the position stays on track. Watch for these mistakes: Letting the loaded leg slide off the chest, losing the elevation. Forcing the sweep against a strong post instead of switching to the back-take. Pulling with the arms before the hook has elevated the opponent's leg, allowing them to step out and recover base. Failing to follow the rotation onto top, leaving the bottom player flat and exposed to a counter pass. The high-percentage version of berimbolo from single-leg x guard is the one you can still chain when the top player posts or re-bases.