Ask any judoka or old-school grappler, and they’ll agree that Osoto Gari is a classic. It’s one of those moves that looks simple at first, but once you really learn it, you realize why it’s a staple in every serious grappler’s game. Osoto Gari is all about breaking posture and killing balance. You step in, you sweep, and suddenly your training partner’s looking at the ceiling instead of standing up straight.
Learning Osoto teaches you timing, footwork, and how to feel when your opponent’s weight is just begging to be taken. Nail this, and you’ll not only hit cleaner takedowns, but your sweeps, passes, and scrambles will get sharper too.
Origins and Development of Osoto Gari
Osoto Gari has been around way longer than BJJ. It was one of the original 40 throws put together by Jigoro Kano, the founder of Judo, back in the late 1800s. In Judo, it’s considered an ashi-waza (foot technique) and taught super early because it’s effective, high-percentage, and teaches you a ton about balance and leverage.
When BJJ came along, a lot of Judo’s throwing game got blended in. But while Judo players stand upright, looking to throw, BJJ fighters crouch, stiff-arm, and guard their legs. That meant Osoto Gari had to be remixed for Jiu-Jitsu posture.
Fast forward to today, and you’ll see Osoto Gari in everything from self-defense demos to high-level IBJJF matches. It’s evolved from a traditional martial arts throw into a modern BJJ takedown that can be chained with guard passes and countered into scrambles.
How to Perform Osoto Gari: Step by Step
Step 1: Establishing Proper Position and Posture
Square up in a mirrored stance with knees soft, hips under you, and spine tall. Angle your chest just past their shoulder so you can guide their balance. Pull on the sleeve side while posting on the collar, lapel, or head in no-gi to load weight onto the leg you’ll reap.
Step 2: Setting Up the Move
In gi, stick with collar-sleeve or go palm-up on the forearm, pressing it into the stomach to make them step. In no-gi, use a collar tie, overhook, or two-on-one. Push and pull to turn their shoulders, force a step, and set their weight, then step in with your lead leg first to close the distance.
Step 3: Executing the Leg Reap
Hook your reaping leg behind their knee or calf like a hamstring slap while dropping your level and driving with your upper body. Use your hands to steer them, with one lifting and pulling, and the other driving back and out. Time the chop of your leg with that steering, chest upright and core tight. Think “can-can”: chop with one leg while stepping forward with the other until you’re lined up to finish.
Step 4: Follow-Through and Control
Stay on your feet and flow straight into control using either scarf hold, side control, or knee-on-belly. If they turtle, spin to a headlock or take the back; if you keep the sleeve grip, step into an armbar.
Importance of the Outside Leg Reap Technique in BJJ
- Enhances stand-up grappling – Gives you a high-percentage takedown so you don’t have to rely on guard pulls.
- Allows smooth transition to groundwork – Drops you straight into side control, mount, or back attacks.
- Builds better balance & body awareness – Teaches you how to feel weight shifts and control posture.
- Sharpens defensive positioning – Helps you understand grips and angles so you’re harder to take down.
- Creates offensive opportunities – Opens up paths to passes, submissions, and pressure-based control.
- Increases overall versatility in competition – Adds another dangerous tool to your stand-up and makes your whole game harder to predict.
Unique Adaptations and Setups for Osoto Gari Technique
One of the coolest things about Osoto Gari in BJJ is how different athletes make it their own. A few legends stand out for how they’ve used it:
Rickson Gracie
Known for his pressure-heavy style, Rickson used Osoto Gari as an extension of his grip fighting. He’d hang on you, make you carry his weight, and subtly shift your balance until the reap felt effortless.
Saulo Ribeiro
Saulo is a technician, and his version of Osoto Gari reflected that. He focused on precise grips, breaking posture just enough to expose the leg, then firing the reap at exactly the right moment. It was clean, efficient, and fit seamlessly into his competition strategy.
Travis Stevens
An Olympic judoka and BJJ black belt, Travis adapted Osoto Gari with a big emphasis on foot placement and hip rotation. He used his hips to generate huge leverage, making the reap explosive even against strong, defensive opponents. His approach shows how high-level Judo mechanics translate directly into BJJ competition.
Combining Osoto Gari with Other Throws and Sweeps
Uchi Mata (Inner Thigh Throw).
If your opponent resists the outer reap by shifting weight back inside, Uchi Mata is right there waiting. Swing the leg through the middle and dump them over your hip.
Harai Goshi (Sweeping Hip Throw)
When you get deep grips and your opponent circles to avoid Osoto, turning your hips in for Harai Goshi gives you a huge sweeping option.
Kouchi Gari (Small Inner Reap)
Perfect as a fake or follow-up, you can threaten Osoto, and when they step their leg back to defend, you cut inside with Kouchi to trip them up.
Transitioning from Osoto Gari to Submission Setups
Knee on Belly to Armbar: After the throw, post heavy with your shin across their torso. As they push on your knee to create space, swing your leg over their head and drop back for the armbar. The momentum from the throw makes the transition fast and hard to stop.
Side Control to Kimura: If you land square in side control, pin their hips, isolate the far-side arm, and lock up the figure-four grip. From there, you can finish the Kimura directly or use it to climb into even stronger control.
Your New Go-To Takedown
Osoto Gari gives you the power to break balance, hit clean takedowns, and flow straight into dominant positions or fight-ending submissions. Once you start drilling it and finding your timing, you’ll see why this move has been a staple from Judo mats to BJJ tournaments for over a century.
Make Osoto Gari your new go-to takedown by repping it until it’s second nature, then start chaining it with your sweeps, guard passes, and submission setups. And when you’re ready to keep building out your stand-up game, check out our other articles on BJJ techniques to keep leveling up.