The Kneebar submission has been around since the beginnings of BJJ and has featured heavily throughout MMA history and grappling in general. Being one of the main leg lock attacks, it can end a fight quickly and break the knee instantly. With this in mind, it is considered as a dangerous attack for any BJJ or MMA practitioner.
At the same time, if done without enough control then it can also put you in significant danger by putting you in a bad position, especially with strikes involved. Below we will look at how to successfully apply the kneebar in the most efficient way possible.
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Entries into the kneebar submission
Firstly, the kneebar can be entered via the top or bottom position. When training in a BJJ gym it may be fine to attempt a spinning kneebar from the top as the consequences aren’t so bad. However, to attack a kneebar from the top in an MMA setting has bad consequences if it goes wrong and could result in losing the dominant, top position.
It’s worth noting that kneebars come with risk in a fighting scenario whereas for sport Jiu Jitsu they’re less risky without strikes. Even with this being said, failing a kneebar in a BJJ competition can often lead to getting crossfaced and ending up in side control.
Perhaps the most common entry for kneebars is from guard. For instance, if your opponent stands in your closed guard then it becomes a possible attack. If you underhook a leg then swing your body underneath by inverting then you can attach to the underhooked leg. Here you should have both legs attached to theirs and then hip into the knee.
This should generate enough force to sweep your opponent to the floor and from here you can apply more hip pressure into the knee to create a bend. To add to the bend you should try and control their foot, either by holding their ankle or forcing it behind your armpit. Combined with a hip extension this should get a tap from your opponent due to great force put into their knee socket.
Having said this, Kneebars can also be entered by other means. For example, in Sambo it can be attacked from the standing position by rolling into it. In some rare cases, it can also be used from the top position which is also referred to as the dogbar. Although these are also ways to get to the knees, they are generally considered uncommon.
Finishing the Kneebar
Mechanically speaking the kneebar submission is similar to the armbar in terms of hipping into the joint to create torque. Another common control method on the ankle is using the rear naked choke grip to tightly secure the leg against your chest.
Please note that in training you should only apply the submission slowly as it may come on fast. There is no reason to injure your training partner.
Another common entry to the kneebar is from the bottom half guard. If you put your outside leg in as a butterfly hook, underhook their far leg and then use your far arm to push into their far armpit and kick to the far side you should create momentum to elevate the opponent. This results in a similar entry to before where you can then latch onto your opponent’s leg and start applying pressure to finish the submission.
When thinking about sport BJJ, the half guard can also be applied from the top in a spinning manner. Leg lock specialist Dean Lister was known for this during his prime, where he would backstep from the knee shield position and collect the leg during the process. When the leg is collected and the top player hits the floor, they just need to control their opponent with a leg entanglement to secure the position and then can apply pressure to get the finish.
Problems with the Kneebar when lacking control
As has been touched on, the Kneebar can be great but it can also have its problems. Perhaps the biggest issue with the Kneebar is when it is applied in a sloppy manner. Fundamentally, there is nothing wrong with the submission, but it is common to see people try it without enough control.
For example, some people will spin into it trying to surprise the opponent with speed and trickery rather than control. If this goes wrong then you can give your back or end up getting your guard passed.
Because of this, it can be bad for both BJJ and MMA. Remember, when doing a kneebar you must isolate the leg to begin with and not try to wildly yank it out. Secondly, you must also make sure your leg entanglement is tight when trying to submit. If not, the opponent can turn their knee inwards to get to the 50/50 position and defend the position completely. Although this logic can be applied to all submissions, losing the position with the kneebar is especially dangerous when compared to others.
Final Thoughts
In MMA the kneebar submission has been used for years. One famous and noticeable use was by Frank Mir in his first fight against Brock Lesnar. Mir was losing the fight badly and was taking some big punches to the head. However, he managed to recover to an open guard position and then inverted under Lesnar to create the entry.
From there he managed to sweep Lesnar by putting pressure on the knee cap which then leads to controlling the leg on the floor and then the submission. In the end, it won Mir the fight from a losing position, which proves how effective it can be in changing the fortunes of a match.
Overall it is a fantastic weapon and should be both feared and respected. In MMA it offers an attack from the bottom and in BJJ its threat can be used to open up passing opportunities and fakes. As mentioned earlier though, it can have some downfalls, if your kneebar fails then you can lose a dominant position. With this said, all practicing martial artists should take note of the kneebar and would do well to study its many benefits and weaknesses.
