Tozi Pass

What This Is

The Tozi pass is a guard-passing technique designed specifically to nullify butterfly and hook-based guards. The defining mechanic is the shoulder drop: the top player drops their near shoulder under the opponent’s near butterfly hook (or foot hook), pinning that leg to the mat with body weight, and then passes over or around the trapped leg to achieve side control or back control.

Where most passes try to push or redirect the legs, the Tozi pass traps one leg by going under it — making the hook useless by removing its structure from the outside. A butterfly hook functions by pushing up and lifting the opponent’s hips; a Tozi pass converts this into a leg that is pinned to the mat with the opponent’s own hook now working against their guard instead of for it.

The pass is named for Glenisson de Oliveira (nicknamed Tozi), a Brazilian practitioner who popularised the technique. It is widely used in no-gi grappling against butterfly guard, single leg X, and X-guard positions where the opponent’s hook is the primary guard retention tool.

The Invariable in Action

The butterfly guard’s structural resistance is the hook’s upward lifting force. The Tozi pass disrupts this by going under the hook — converting the hook from a lifting tool to a pinned leg. The disruption is positional rather than force-based: the top player does not push the hook away or override it with strength but places their shoulder beneath it, changing the hook’s mechanical relationship to the guard structure entirely.

The Tozi pass’s shoulder-under position distributes the top player’s body weight through the opponent’s near leg, pinning it. This is a pressure element embedded in what appears to be a directional pass — the weight distribution prevents the guard player from recovering the hook or hip escaping with the trapped leg. The pass and the pressure are simultaneous rather than sequential.

Setup and Entry

From Standing Against Butterfly Guard

The top player is in front of the opponent’s butterfly guard — the opponent has both feet inside the top player’s thighs as butterfly hooks. The top player takes a grip on the opponent’s near leg (the leg they will trap) — a thigh or shin grip. They then drop the near shoulder toward the mat, driving it under the opponent’s near butterfly hook while simultaneously dropping to their knee on the near side. The shoulder pins the near hook to the mat as the top player’s weight settles. The far leg is now the only active guard leg.

From a Knee Slide Position

When the top player is already in a knee-slide or leg drag position with one leg between the opponent’s legs, transitioning to the Tozi requires dropping the shoulder to the mat to pin the near leg. The grip configuration changes but the principle is identical — shoulder under the hook, weight on the leg, pass over.

Execution

Step 1 — Shoulder drop. Drive the near shoulder under the opponent’s near hook, aiming to get the shoulder blade in contact with the opponent’s shin or calf near the ankle. The shoulder is going under the leg, not onto it.

Step 2 — Weight settlement. Allow the top player’s body weight to settle through the shoulder onto the opponent’s leg. The leg is now trapped to the mat — the hook has been converted to a pinned limb.

Step 3 — Pass direction. With the near leg trapped, the top player steps the far leg over to the passing side — stepping toward the opponent’s far hip. The near leg that was trapped cannot hip escape because the shoulder is still pinning it. The top player walks around the pinned leg to achieve side control.

Step 4 — Complete the pass. Establish side control grip and chest pressure. The near leg is still between the top player’s legs or against their body at this point — establish the position before releasing the trapped leg completely.

Guard Responses

Hip escape to the far side. The guard player can hip escape away from the Tozi entry — moving the near hip out creates distance that makes the shoulder drop harder to land. The top player must time the shoulder drop to when the guard player’s hips are stationary.

Re-hook from the outside. If the near hook is being trapped, the guard player can transition to an outside hook or establish a De La Riva hook on the far leg. The Tozi traps the inside hook; the DLR hook from the outside is harder to Tozi against.

Underhook the shoulder. When the top player drops their shoulder, the guard player can underhook that shoulder — using the underhook to push the shoulder off the leg and prevent the trap. This requires quick reaction to the shoulder drop moment.

Common Errors — and Why They Fail

Error: Dropping the shoulder onto the leg rather than under it. Why it fails: Dropping the shoulder onto the top of the leg creates pressure on the outside but does not trap the hook to the mat — the hook can still be activated by the guard player’s leg extension. The shoulder must go under the ankle/lower shin, not on top of the calf. Correction: Aim the shoulder drop for the bottom side of the opponent’s ankle. The shoulder blade should contact the mat or very near it, with the leg resting on top of the shoulder.

Error: No weight on the trapped leg — shoulder down but body upright. Why it fails: The trap requires body weight through the shoulder onto the leg. A shoulder that touches the mat beside the leg but has no weight on it cannot trap. Correction: Commit weight through the shoulder. The pinning force comes from mass, not grip strength.

Error: Passing too slowly after the trap — guard player recovers the hook. Why it fails: The trap creates a window; it does not hold indefinitely. The guard player will work to free the leg. The pass must happen immediately after the shoulder settles — not after a pause. Correction: Step the far leg over immediately as the shoulder settles. There should be no pause between the trap and the pass step.

Drilling Notes

Systematic Approach

Phase 1 — shoulder drop mechanics. From standing in front of a kneeling partner with one leg presented, practise the shoulder drop under the ankle. Confirm the shoulder blade contacts the mat or near it. No pass. Ten reps each side.

Phase 2 — trap and hold. With shoulder under the leg, settle weight and feel the trap. Partner tries to free the leg by pulling it up — can they? If yes, more weight is needed. If no, the trap is correct.

Phase 3 — trap and pass. Full sequence: shoulder drop → weight → far leg step around → side control. Cooperative. Focus on the continuity between the trap and the step — no pause.

Phase 4 — live against butterfly guard. Against a guard player actively using butterfly hooks, apply the Tozi entry. The guard player uses only butterfly hooks — no grip fighting. Top player applies Tozi.

Ability Level Guidance

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