Outside Trip

Last updated: June 4, 2026

What is an outside trip?

The outside trip belongs to a family of leg trips, takedowns that use the attacker’s own leg to knock a standing leg out from under the opponent. What makes it an “outside” trip is which leg gets attacked and from where. The fighter wraps up the opponent in a clinch or body lock, traps the leg on the same side as their own trapping leg, and reaps or blocks it from the outer side while pushing the upper body in the opposite direction. The opponent loses the post, holding them up and falls back over the trapped leg.

Most outside trips start once both fighters are already tied up. A body lock, an over-under clinch, or a collar tie gives the attacker the upper-body control needed to break the opponent’s balance before the leg ever comes into play. That clinch-range setup is the whole point of the technique. A fighter who cannot win a clean shot at the legs can still walk an opponent into the cage, get to a lock, and trip from there.

How the outside trip works

Two forces happen at once. The arms and chest drive the opponent’s weight backward over their heels, and the leg sweeps or blocks the post they would normally step back onto. Because those forces pull in opposite directions, the opponent rotates around the trapped leg and goes down. The longer the reaping leg travels, the more the fall resembles a hard judo throw rather than a slow collapse.

Commitment separates a finished trip from a failed one. Half-hearted attempts leave the attacker balanced on one leg with nothing behind it, which is why coaches often warn beginners against reaching for the outside trip before they can drive through it. When the weight transfer and the leg arrive together, the opponent has no base left and the takedown lands cleanly.

Outside trip vs inside trip

Both are leg trips thrown from the clinch, and the difference sits in where the attacking leg goes. On an inside trip, the fighter threads a leg between the opponent’s legs and hooks the same-side leg from the inside. On an outside trip, the attacking leg stays on the outside of the opponent’s leg and sweeps it away from the body. The setups overlap so much that fighters often chain them: when an opponent defends one, the other opens up.

Feature	Outside trip	Inside trip
Leg position	Attacks the opponent’s leg from the outer side	Threads inside, hooks the same-side leg
Direction of fall	Backward and slightly to the side	Backward, toward the threaded leg
Common setup	Body lock, over-under, collar tie	Body lock, arm drag, overhook
Closest judo cousin	O soto gari	O uchi gari

Is the outside trip the same as o soto gari?

They are close relatives, and in many gyms, the names get used for the same motion. O soto gari, Japanese for “major outer reap,” is the judo throw where the attacker reaps the opponent’s leg from the outside with the full length of their own leg while driving the upper body back. The mechanics of an MMA outside trip are nearly identical, which is why fighters with judo backgrounds tend to land it well. The main difference is context: o soto gari is a scored throw under judo rules, while the outside trip in MMA usually aims to put the opponent on the mat and follow into top position rather than win on the throw itself. Ronda Rousey, a judo Olympic medalist, carried her o soto gari into the UFC, and clinch-heavy wrestlers such as Daniel Cormier and Khabib Nurmagomedov have leaned on body-lock trips throughout their careers.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the outside trip legal in MMA?

Yes. Leg trips are allowed in MMA and in most grappling rulesets. They are banned in Greco-Roman wrestling, which forbids attacks below the waist, according to Wikipedia’s overview of takedowns.

Is an outside trip a wrestling or a judo move?

Both claim a version of it. Wrestling uses it as a body-lock finish, judo formalizes it as o soto gari, and sambo and BJJ use it too. MMA borrows from all of them.

Do you need to be strong to land an outside trip?

Not especially. The trip relies on timing and the opponent’s own backward weight shift rather than raw power, which is part of why it works against larger opponents.

What sets up an outside trip best?

A tight clinch where the attacker already controls the upper body. A body lock or over-under gives enough control to break balance before the leg sweeps.

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Sources

1. Wikipedia. “Takedown (grappling).” Accessed June 2026.
   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takedown_(grappling)
2. Fight Encyclopedia. “Standard O Soto Gari Trip.” Accessed June 2026.
   https://fightencyclopedia.com/techniques/takedown/trip-takedown/outside-trip/o-soto-gari-trip/standard-o-soto-gari-trip
3. Evolve MMA. “5 Takedowns You Need In Your MMA Game.” Accessed June 2026.
   https://evolve-mma.com/blog/5-takedowns-you-need-in-your-mma-game/
4. Evolve MMA. “5 MMA Takedowns From The Clinch.” Accessed June 2026.
   https://evolve-vacation.com/blog/5-mma-takedowns-from-the-clinch/
5. BJJ World. “The Inside Trip Takedown For Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.” Accessed June 2026.
   https://bjj-world.com/inside-trip-takedown-for-bjj/

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