Ouchi Gari

What This Is

Ouchi gari — the major inner reap — is the foundational inside reaping throw of judo. The attacker drives the opponent’s upper body forward and reaps the near (inner) leg with a large arc from inside, sweeping the leg backward as the upper-body drive forces the opponent’s weight onto it. Where osoto gari attacks the outside of the posting leg, ouchi gari attacks the inside of the same leg from between the opponent’s legs. The two throws form the foundational entry pair: same collar-tie clinch, mirror-image leg targets.

Ouchi gari is the inside complement to osoto: when an opponent defends osoto by widening their stance or rotating their hip away, the inside line opens and ouchi becomes the available throw. The osoto–ouchi combination is the foundational two-direction attack from the collar-tie clinch — see the dedicated section below.

The Invariant in Action

Throw Mechanics

The Drive — Forward and Diagonal

The throw begins with a drive of the opponent’s upper body forward and slightly across — the collar tie pulls or pushes the head over the reap-side foot. The opponent’s reactive step lands the near foot forward, loading it with the attacker’s drive force. The drive direction is angled (toward the reap side), not straight forward; a straight drive loads both legs and gives no target.

The Reap — Inner Arc Backward

The reaping leg — the attacker’s near leg, on the same side as the opponent’s near leg — sweeps from inside, with the back of the calf or hamstring contacting the back of the opponent’s near calf or knee. The reap direction is backward and slightly outward — sweeping the leg out from between the opponent’s stance and toward the open side. The arc is inside-out, not a straight kick. The reap fires while the opponent’s weight is on the leg, not before.

Upper-Body Pressure During the Reap

The collar tie or underhook continues to drive forward as the reap fires. Without continued upper-body pressure, the reap moves the leg but the opponent’s body has no force to fall over — the opponent hops and recovers. The drive and reap together create the rotation: upper body forward, lower body backward, opponent rotates onto their back.

Landing

The opponent lands on their back with the attacker following down on top. The grip is maintained through the landing. The attacker arrives in a top control or in a scramble for top depending on the commitment of the throw — a fully committed ouchi lands clean side-control or front-headlock-adjacent; a partially committed ouchi creates a scramble where the attacker has the higher position but must work to consolidate it.

No-Gi Grip Entries

Single Collar Tie — Primary No-Gi Entry

The far hand on the back of the opponent’s neck. The drive direction is forward and across, pulling the head over the reap-side foot. This is the same entry as osoto, with a different drive angle and different leg target. See: Single Collar Tie.

Over-Under Clinch

The underhook on the reap side; the overhook on the far side. The underhook lifts and drives forward; the inside leg position is naturally available because the underhook arm is already on the inside line. The over-under is the strongest no-gi configuration for ouchi because the underhook side is also the reap side. See: Over-Under Clinch.

Double Collar Tie

Both hands behind the neck. The drive is straight forward and down. The opponent’s defensive forward step into the pressure loads the near foot — the ouchi fires on that step. See: Double Collar Tie.

A Note on “Minor Outer Reap”

Ouchi gari is sometimes confused with “minor outer reap” — that is a different throw. The correct mapping:

• Ouchi gari = major inner reap. Attacks the inside (near) leg from between the opponent’s legs.
• Kosoto gari = minor outer reap. Attacks the outside of the far leg from outside.

The Japanese names disambiguate cleanly: uchi = inner; soto = outer; o (大) = major; ko (小) = minor. Ouchi (o-uchi) = major inner. Kosoto (ko-soto) = minor outer. They are different throws with different leg targets, different reap directions, and different finishing positions. Practitioners searching for “minor outer reap” want the kosoto gari page; this page covers the inside reap that pairs with osoto.

The Osoto–Ouchi Combination

Osoto and ouchi together form the foundational two-direction attack from the collar-tie clinch. The combination works because the two throws share an entry but attack mirror-image targets:

• Osoto first, ouchi as follow: The attacker drives the head back and threatens osoto. The opponent defends by stepping back and rotating their hip away from the reap. The defensive rotation exposes the inside of the near leg — ouchi follows immediately on the rotation, before the opponent can re-square their stance.
• Ouchi first, osoto as follow: The attacker drives forward and threatens ouchi. The opponent defends by widening their stance and pushing back. The wide stance and posting posture loads the far leg — osoto follows on the established post.

The two-direction threat is what makes either throw work in live exchanges. A standalone osoto can be defended by stepping back; a standalone ouchi can be defended by stepping forward. The combination removes both single-direction defences — the opponent’s defence to one throw becomes the entry for the other.

Common Errors

Drilling Notes

• Reap arc without partner. Drill the inside-out backward arc against air. The reaping leg sweeps a half-circle from in front of the planted foot to behind it, on the inside line. Twenty reps per side.
• Static drive-and-reap. Cooperative partner in collar-tie posture; attacker drives forward at the reap-side angle, waits for the reactive step, and reaps. Slow tempo. Builds the trigger.
• Osoto–ouchi combination drill. Attempt osoto; on the opponent’s defensive step-back, immediately switch to ouchi on the same side. Repeat with the order reversed (ouchi first, osoto as follow on the wide stance defence). The drill builds the two-direction reactive selection.

Ability Level Guidance

Also Known As

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