A wrist lock is a BJJ submission that bends or turns the hand past the range of the wrist while the forearm is held still against your body or the mat. Wrist locks are small and fast, and they hurt long before anything is damaged, which makes them the lock to apply slowest of all.
- In BJJ: available from closed guard, mount, side control and any time a partner leaves a hand flat on your body.
- Directions: flexion (palm bent toward the forearm), extension (palm bent back) and rotation (hand turned around the forearm).
- Rule of thumb: control the elbow and the wrist cannot escape; the hand alone is never enough.
What is a wrist lock?
The wrist has far less range than the elbow or shoulder, so a lock needs only a few centimetres of movement. The work is in the set-up: the forearm has to be fixed against your body or the mat so the whole arm cannot turn to relieve the pressure. Once that is done the finish is a slow push on the back of the hand or a slow turn of the hand around the forearm.
BJJ Heroes records that in the 1970s the toe hold was called pé de vaca because it looked like the mão de vaca, the wrist lock, done on the foot.
How do you do a wrist lock correctly?
The steps describe the flexion wrist lock from closed guard, the most common one in training.
- Catch the hand. When your partner posts a hand flat on your chest or stomach, trap it there by hugging their forearm to your body with both arms.
- Fix the elbow. Clamp their forearm between your biceps and your ribs so the elbow cannot rotate away.
- Fold the wrist. With their palm still on your body, slide your hands up to the back of their hand and fold the hand toward their forearm.
- Add your body. Sit up slightly or curl your chest toward their hand, so the bend comes from your trunk and your hands only guide it.
- Finish slowly. Increase the fold a little at a time and stop the moment they tap.
The common mistake is yanking the hand to beat a partner who is already pulling away. Wrist locks are caught, never chased: if the forearm is loose, attack something else. On the receiving end, tap at the first sharp pressure.
Is the wrist lock legal in BJJ and judo?
Under the IBJJF Rules Book's table of illegal moves, the wrist lock is illegal for everyone under 18 and for adult white belts, and legal from adult blue belt.
In judo the IJF Sport and Organisation Rules allow joint locks on the elbow only, so a wrist lock is hansoku-make.
How should you train wrist locks?
Many clubs ask you to warn a new partner before you wrist lock them. Ask your coach what your gym allows. Finger tape for sore hands and the rest of the kit is in our BJJ training gear.
Sources
- BJJ Heroes records, BJJ Heroes
- IBJJF Rules Book, IBJJF
- IJF Sport and Organisation Rules, International Judo Federation
Related terms
Closed guard, Americana, Kimura, Joint locks, Tap / tapping out, Finger tape.