Jozef Chen: Passing Half Guard With Your Hips in the Air
Jozef Chen's half guard pass from his ADCC 2026 bronze match against Gabriel Brod (13-0): head on the mat on the far side, hips high, and the free leg that strips a locked half guard into side control. Plus the branch he teaches when the opponent puts in a butterfly hook: flatten it, read the frame, step up to mount or go double unders. Each why comes from Jozef's own B-Team teaching.
Flow outline
Top of half guard
- The bottom player wants one of two things: a knee or frame back inside to rebuild guard, or a hook to off-balance you.
- Flo: Chen vs Brod, ADCC 2026 bronze, 9:35 (player time).
Head to the mat, far side
- Head to the mat on the far side of his head, across his body. Why (Jozef): with your head on the same side, they shoot through the knee shield and come up to half guard. Far side closes that lane.
Hips up, legs long
- Weight on your head, hips the highest point.
- Why (Jozef): elongate instead of staying tight. Too tight and it's easy for them to frame and carry your weight.
Read: what does the opponent do?
- Jozef: once you're here, they choose. Lock up half guard, or insert a butterfly hook (he prefers the hook).
Opponent locks the legs
- What Brod did: legs locked on the trapped leg.
- Flo: Chen vs Brod, ADCC 2026 bronze, 9:37.
Free foot pushes, knee comes up
- One leg can't pull itself out of two locked legs. His free foot pushes Brod's legs down while the trapped knee comes up toward his chest. Opposite directions, so the lock slides off. Head and hips keep Brod flat, so he can't follow to re-lock.
- Flo: Chen vs Brod, ADCC 2026 bronze, 9:51-9:59.
Side control
- Pass: 3 points (ADCC). Same head and hips on his first pass, earlier in the match.
Opponent gets a butterfly hook
- The reaction Jozef prefers to pass against.
Flatten over the hook
- Why (Jozef): move your hips away from the hook and you give it strength. One hook with flat hips means no forward shift.
Read: what is the opponent fighting with?
- The opponent's arm fighting for inside position, or a frame on your knee.
Hand on hip, elbow on quad, step up
- If the opponent fights inside position with an arm.
- Why (Jozef): the opponent can't bring his knee to his chest, so you clear the knee and go straight to mount.
Push the knee through, double unders
- If the opponent frames on your knee and you can't step up.
- Hand to the opponent's knee, hips up, push it through. Since he's framing, that hand goes to an underhook: double unders.
Mount
- Both butterfly-hook passes end in mount.
Branch conditions
- opponent fights inside with an arm
- opponent frames on your knee