Inside Sankaku

Last updated: June 1, 2026

What is the inside sankaku?

The inside sankaku is one of several leg-entanglement positions a grappler can use to isolate and attack an opponent’s lower body. The name comes from Japanese: sankaku means “triangle,” and the position earns it because the controlling grappler crosses their legs into a figure-four around one of the opponent’s legs. Most people meet the term while watching no-gi grappling, where commentators throw around a handful of names for the same thing.

Those names cause most of the confusion. The inside sankaku is also called the saddle, the honey hole, the 411, and cross ashi garami. Ashi garami translates roughly to “leg entanglement,” and “cross” refers to trapping the opponent’s leg across the controlling grappler’s centerline. Honey hole and 411 come from 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu terminology, while saddle describes how the top grappler appears to sit astride the trapped leg.

The term carries weight because of who built a system around the position. The grappling team known as the Danaher Death Squad, coached by John Danaher and featuring Eddie Cummings, Garry Tonon, and Gordon Ryan, used a hierarchy of leg positions to dominate competition in the mid-2010s, with the inside sankaku at the top. Their success pushed leg locks from a slightly disreputable corner of the sport into its mainstream.

How the inside sankaku works

Picture one grappler seated on the mat with an opponent’s leg trapped. The controlling grappler threads both of their own feet to the inside, between the opponent’s legs, then crosses them into a figure-four behind the trapped knee. That inside foot position separates the inside sankaku from related entanglements, and it is where the control comes from.

Two things make the position so hard to deal with. First, it pins the opponent’s hip, which shuts down the rolling and spinning escapes that work against weaker leg-lock positions. Second, the configuration keeps the controlling grappler’s own legs safe while leaving the opponent’s exposed, so the exchange is lopsided from the start.

Control usually runs along three points: the hip, the knee, and the foot at the far end of the trapped leg. Hold all three, and the opponent has almost nothing to work with. Lose the foot, and they can start to spin free.

Inside sankaku vs. outside ashi and 50/50

Most searches for this term come from confusion with the other leg-entanglement positions, which look similar from the outside and share much of the same vocabulary. The dividing line is almost always where the controlling grappler’s feet sit relative to the opponent’s legs.

Position	Where the feet go	Control	Defining trait
Inside sankaku (saddle)	Both feet inside, between the opponent’s legs	Highest	Pins the hip; the opponent cannot counter-attack the legs
Outside ashi	Feet on the outside of the trapped leg	Moderate	Easier to reach, but the opponent can attack back
50/50	Legs mirrored, each grappler triangling the other’s leg	Even	Both grapplers can attack at the same time

The practical difference is that the inside sankaku gives one grappler the attack while denying it to the other, where 50/50 hands both grapplers the same options. Outside ashi sits in between: a common entry point that many grapplers pass through on the way to the inside position.

Submissions from the inside sankaku

On its own, the inside sankaku finishes nothing. Its value is the menu of submissions it opens up. The signature attack is the inside heel hook, sometimes called the reverse heel hook, which twists the foot and rotates the knee at an angle the body cannot defend well. The leg configuration turns the opponent’s foot upward and feeds it almost straight into the finishing position.

The position also threatens the toe hold, the kneebar, and the straight ankle lock. A grappler who feels the opponent defend one of these can usually switch to another without giving up control, which is part of what makes the inside sankaku so punishing.

These are advanced and dangerous submissions. The heel hook, in particular, can tear ligaments from the ankle through the knee with little warning before the damage is done, which is why most schools restrict who drills it and why competition rules treat it carefully.

Is the inside sankaku legal in competition?

The position itself is legal in most rulesets. The question that matters is which submissions a competitor may apply from it, and that varies widely.

Under IBJJF rules, heel hooks and knee reaping became legal in adult no-gi brown and black belt divisions on January 1, 2021. The gi is stricter. Heel hooks stay banned in every IBJJF gi division at all belt levels, and they remain off-limits to lower belts and to masters competitors in no-gi. Because the heel hook is the position’s headline attack, that one rule shapes where most grapplers use the inside sankaku.

Submission-only and professional formats are far more permissive. ADCC and most sub-only events allow heel hooks across belt levels, which is why the position appears so often in high-level no-gi grappling. A beginner is most likely to meet it in a no-gi gym that trains leg locks, rather than in a traditional gi competition.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is the inside sankaku called the honey hole?

The name comes from 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu, which popularized “honey hole” as slang for the position. It stuck because the spot opens up so many submissions. Saddle, 411, and cross ashi garami all describe the same position.

What is the difference between inside and outside sankaku?

The difference is foot placement. In the inside sankaku, both of the controlling grappler’s feet sit inside, between the opponent’s legs. In outside positions, such as outside ashi, the feet stay outside the trapped leg, which gives less control and leaves the controlling grappler more exposed.

Is the inside sankaku dangerous?

The position is safe to hold, but the submissions it sets up, especially the inside heel hook, can cause serious knee and ankle injuries quickly. That is why most gyms introduce it carefully, and many competition rulesets restrict the finishes.

---

Sources

1. BJJEE. “Danaher Shows Powerful Attack Series from Ashi Garami and Inside Sankaku Positions.” Accessed June 2026.
2. Evolve Daily. “Ultimate Guide To The Inside Sankaku/411 In BJJ.” Accessed June 2026.
3. BJJ Fanatics. “Inside Sankaku: Power of Position.” Accessed June 2026.
4. Grapplearts. “411 Position.” Accessed June 2026.
5. International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation. “New Rules Updates,” effective January 1, 2021. Accessed June 2026.
6. GrapplePages. “Inside Sankaku.” Accessed June 2026.

Related MMA Terms