Developing — Kimura System

CurriculumDeveloping — Kimura SystemThe kimura as a submission system — one grip, many positions, three outcomes. How to develop the kimura from a single submission into a positional…

The kimura is probably the most mechanically useful submission in no-gi grappling — not because it finishes often against skilled opponents, but because the grip it establishes opens a whole system of positions, sweeps, and chained submissions. This page covers the kimura system at developing level.

At foundations, the student was introduced to the americana (stage 6) and probably shown the kimura grip in the context of escapes. At developing level, the kimura becomes a primary system — one of the attack frameworks every developing-level student should have real fluency in.

The reasoning: the kimura grip is reachable from more positions than any other submission grip. Side control, north-south, half guard top, half guard bottom, closed guard, open guard, turtle top, and even back control (as a transition). A student who knows what to do once they have the grip has an attack option from nearly every position on the mat.

See the kimura system concept page for the system overview. This curriculum page covers how to develop the system session-by-session.

The kimura grip — figure-four wrist control with the wrist-grabbing arm being the inside arm — is what unlocks every attack. Everything the kimura system offers depends on establishing and maintaining this grip.

This is a significant shift from how the kimura was introduced at foundations, where it was one submission. At developing level, the grip is the thing to chase. The finish is one of several outcomes from that grip, not the only one.

At developing level, the student adds kimura attacks from these positions:

Side control. The cleanest kimura finish — top player isolates the far arm, figure-fours, finishes.

North-south. Kimura from top north-south. Often easier than from side control because the defender’s arm is already extended.

Half guard bottom. The kimura trap — bottom player establishes the grip and uses it for sweep, back take, or submission (see the three outcomes below).

Butterfly guard. Kimura as part of the butterfly attack chain, often as a sweep-setup before the submission.

Closed guard. Kimura from closed guard with the pull-to-side setup.