Positional Game · GAME-KIM-04
Butterfly Kimura Trap
Developing kimura positional game from butterfly guard. Bottom player uses the kimura trap to create the submission-vs-sweep dilemma. Top player attempts…
Start position
POS-GRD-BUTTERFLY
Round length
4:00 rounds
Reset rule
Reset when the bottom player completes a sweep, submission, or back take; when the top player passes guard; or when the kimura grip has been completely broken and the bottom player's guard closed without re-establishing the grip within five seconds.
Top wins by
Pass guard to a stable top position.
Bottom wins by
Force the tap by rotating the shoulder past its range, sweep to top position keeping the figure-four grip, or take the back from the grip.
Game Description
The butterfly kimura trap creates a two-horn dilemma that is among the cleanest in the no-gi game: if the top player defends the kimura finish by leaning forward (breaking posture), the sweep is available; if they lean back to defend the sweep, the submission arc is available. The game isolates this exact dilemma by requiring the bottom player to have the kimura grip established as a precondition before the round starts.
This game develops the Developing practitioner’s ability to read which horn is available based on the top player’s posture rather than attacking a single predetermined path.
How to Run This Game
Setup: Bottom player in butterfly guard with the figure-four loop already established on one arm. Coach confirms the grip is correct before signalling start.
Bottom player reads posture, not techniques:
- Top player leaning forward (trying to flatten the bottom player) → submission is available: apply rotation toward the mat with butterfly hook lift.
- Top player leaning back (trying to keep hips high and deny sweep) → sweep is available: drive the hook and follow the posture collapse.
- Top player neither leaning nor back — neutral posture → apply submission pressure to force a lean, then read.
Top player tools:
- Post the free hand on the mat to base against the sweep — but posting the hand releases posture and the submission angle improves.
- Stand up to remove the sweep threat — but standing on one side with the arm in the figure-four creates the back-take window.
- Keep a low sprawl to prevent hook penetration — but the low sprawl shortens the rotation arc and loads the kimura faster.
Score: One point per win condition achieved. Play to five points per side.
Coaching Notes
The critical coaching insight for this game: the bottom player should be reading the top player’s weight distribution, not the top player’s hands. Hands are fast and easily faked. Weight distribution tells the truth. A top player who has shifted their weight forward has committed; that commitment cannot be un-committed in the time it takes for the bottom player to initiate the sweep.
Many Developing practitioners will attempt to force the submission on every rep regardless of which horn is available. This produces a submission attempt against a neutral posture — neither horn is live and the grip fails. Require the bottom player to name which horn they are attacking before initiating: “forward” or “back.” This builds the reading habit explicitly.
The butterfly hook position needs to be confirmed at the start of each rep. A hook that is on the shin (rather than under the inner thigh) does not have the lever length to complete the sweep against any resistance. Hook placement is part of the starting condition, not something the bottom player earns during the round.
Progressions
- Allow the top player to attempt to break the grip (adding grip breaking to their tools) — now the bottom player must also track when to convert to a different guard to re-establish the figure-four.
- Allow the bottom player to play the game from seated guard as well as butterfly — the kimura trap is available from multiple seated positions.
- Add the triangle as a secondary threat — the kimura trap from butterfly creates triangle exposure when the top player resolves the kimura threat by removing the arm.