https://www.youtube.com/embed/EI5epyFBM30
Check out this video of one of Kurt’s classic escape breakdowns. If you haven’t downloaded it already, you can also get my "7 Must-Know Escapes eBook" for FREE Right here – [7 Must Know Escapes eBook].
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No one likes to get caught in the back mount, it’s really that simple.
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is a sport of movement, of motion, of poetry and the back mount makes that entire outlook void. When an opponent grabs hold of your back and sinks their hooks in or locks on a body lock, you feel helpless and have nowhere to go. All you can do is hope for the best and fend off any time of choke.
However, despite the panicked state that tends to take over when your opponent gets here, there is a way you can go about escaping from this hold. The back mount is not a death sentence and can be taken care of properly given the correct steps.
Today I’m here to share a rather…colorfoul…back mount escape from the infamous Kurt Osiander. Osiander is a decorated black belt and even has some MMA experience. Known for his outrageous and vocal video techniques, Osiander is a cult icon in the world of BJJ.
Don’t Give Them Any Real Estate
Right off the bat, when your opponent grabs hold of your back, you must protect your neck! Kurt stresses this big time in the video, and tells you to drive your chin to your chest so “never even a credit card” could get through.
To properly protect your neck, there are three techniques Kurt shares that you can do with your hands:
- The Prayer
- The Home Alone
- The X
All do the same thing and that is to protect the neck from any possible choke hold. As you protect your neck, the next step is to bridge backwards onto your opponent. Maintaining the neck protection, you want to pick a side to slide off too.
Wiggling slightly, fall off to that side until your back is firmly on the mat. DO NOT turn and allow them to obtain your back once more, that’s the very last thing we want to do. If you’re a fan of Kurt’s off-the-wall sense of humor, his side control escape is here in this bigger blog about BJJ escape strategy.
Once you a free from any potential neck choke, you can disengage your hands and continue to work.
Transitioning Out Of Back Mount
From here, the next focal point will be to grab hold of your opponents pant leg just above the knee. This will play a pivotal role in what we have to do.
Knowing they will want to obtain mount, we have two realistic options:
- We can sweep them with that grip we obtained and end up in their closed guard.
- If that isn’t there, then we can elbow escape and insert our butterfly hooks and eventually switch to closed guard.
Despite his use of graphic language, Kurt Osiander sure knows what he’s talking about. This back mount escape is very effective and can be easily taught to any grappler at any level. Now go out there and give it a shot!
Dan Faggella