Basic Ways to Flatten an Opponent Out by Gordon Ryan

Overview

Gordon Ryan demonstrates how to flatten an opponent from the over-back grip in half guard. He identifies two critical defensive reactions: extending away or maintaining an inside knee shield. The core strategy is to chase the hips first by driving the knee across to the opponent's far hip, establishing a knee-elbow connection to control the lower body. From there, he details a reactive system for the upper body: using an inside bicep tie and cross-face to break posture, or lifting the elbow to pummel inside when the opponent resists. He emphasizes locking the hands and connecting the ear to the shoulder to prevent the opponent from recovering the inside position.

What's covered

1. 0:00Over-Back Grip & Opponent Reactions
2. 0:30Chasing the Hips & Knee Control
3. 2:00Upper Body Entries & Cross-Face
4. 4:00Lifting the Elbow & Pummeling Inside
5. 6:00Ear-Shoulder Connection & Locking Hands
6. 8:00V-Grip Ankle/Knee Push & Summary

Techniques in this video

1. 01
   Half Guard Flatten — Cross-Face Entry

   2:00 – 4:00·Half Guard·Pass
2. 02
   Half Guard Flatten — Ear-Shoulder Connection

   6:00 – 8:00·Half Guard·Pass
3. 03
   Half Guard Flatten — Hip Chase

   0:30 – 2:00·Half Guard·Pass

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