My impression is that hand fighting is not taught much in BJJ classes.
What I mean by hand fighting is gaining an advantageous position or angle where you can set up your attacks easily by clearing your opponent’s hands/arms with your own hands/arms.
This is relevant in many situations, but especially when you and your opponent are standing and looking for takedown opportunities when you are trying to pass your opponent’s guard and when you are playing the guard.
I’m inclined to think that learning how to hand fight in the standing situation will give you the biggest returns.
Why? Because what you learn for this situation will directly translate into the guard passing situation and the guard playing situation.
If you know how to get the underhook in the standing situation, you can apply that skill to the guard passing situation. Or if you are playing the half guard, the same is true.
I’m only directing your attention to the importance of learning how to hand fight here rather than how to do it here.
But… do consider improving your hand fighting skills. It might sound like a small portion of the whole game, but these small elements can help you become better overall.