The MMA Gospel Technique of the Week for this week starts and entire new three technique chain. Again we turn to 4th degree Hapkido black belt Ed Perdomo and student instructor Johnny Rodriguez to guide our readers through the details of how to string basic techniques into killer submission chains that win fights in the cage. This week, we use a jab to set up a very basic but often successful small outside leg hook (Kosoto Gake) and follow it through to an arm-triangle choke from the scarf-hold position. These two techniques are presented as one because the most common result of an outside trip is to land in half-guard. This only happens because the average fighter thinks takedown, position, submission in three steps. Using the takedown with the intention of moving directly into the choke as in this example forces the user to begin executing his pass to side mount or scarf-hold during the takedown instead of after. This ensures you land in side mount every time you use the sweep.
Ed Perdomo and Johnny Rodriguez stand at the ready. Ed wants to take Johnny down but knows better than to shoot straight in.
Ed steps in with a jab, forcing Johnny to bring his arms up to block the punch. It may take one jab or several to get Johnny bring his hands up and out of position to defend.
As soon as Johnny's elbows are parallel with the floor or higher, Ed steps in deep with his left foot, grasp Johnny around the waist, and presses his head tight to the side of Johnny's hip. Here Ed's arm is out wide for easier viewing, in practice, he would keep this hand close to his jaw and ready to shoot straight around Johnny's back.
Ed now grips Johnny tightly about the hips and wraps his right foot tighly around Johnny's left calf, isolating the ankle for the sweep.
Here we see the proper foot position. Notice that they are ankle to ankle. This is because a person is weaker away from their center of mass, making it easier to sweep and control the foot near the ankle than it is higher on the calf. A common mistake young fighters make is to wrap their leg about their opponents knee.
Simultaneously, Ed drives forward with his shoulder, pulls Johnny's hips into his chest, and reaps his right leg backwards to complete the sweep. Notice that he maintains control of Johnny's left leg throughout the sweep. This is very important as it prevents Johnny from closing his half-guard and allows Ed to easily pass to scarf-hold position or side control.
As soon as he completes the takedown, Ed does three things. A: He shoots his left arm up and around Johnny's neck to control his head. B: He begins to pass to side mount, sliding his chest forward and pulling his left leg quickly over Johnny's left hip. C: He uses his head to control Johnny's left arm behind the tricep, isolating his head and arm from the rest of his body.
Once his leg is safely out of Johnny's guard, Ed sits on his left hip in the scarf-hold position. He then drives his head into Johnny's tricep to further isolate the head and arm an to allow him to grab his right bicep with his left hand behind Johnny's head.
Having secured the arm-triangle, Ed sits out further into scarf-hold and raises his hips to tighten the choke, forcing Johnny to either tap-out or take an unscheduled nap.
Ed next secures his left hand against his right bicep by closing closing his right elbow. He then uses his right hand to force Johnny's head down towards the mat and drives the arm triangle in deeper with his head.
Recap:
- Use your jab to bait your opponent. You want him to raise his elbows at least parallel with the ground to give you the space to shoot in.
- Step in deep and shoot for your opponents hips, keeping your hands in tight.
- Clasp your opponent firmly about the waist and wrap your outside leg around your opponents calf, placing your heel just inside his Achilles tendon.
- Simultaneously drive forward with your shoulder, pull your opponents hips in, and reap their leg backwards.
- Maintain control of your opponents leg with your foot to prevent them from closing their half-guard.
- Slide up your opponent’s body and control his head and arm with your outside arm and your head behind his inside tricep while pulling your free leg through his open guard into scarf-hold position.
- Drive your head into your opponent’s tricep and grab your bicep to close a figure four grip around his head and arm.
- Sit your hips out and walk around into a deep scarf-hold.
- Raise your hips to finish the choke.
Next week, we will use our opponent’s defense against this choke to take his back and apply our own rear-naked choke. This will in turn lead us through another three submission arch, using each moves defense to set up the next attack. They say submission grappling is a chess match and chess is a game of planning. A chess master thinks 40 or 50 moves ahead in order to defeat an opponent and that’s what a young fighter should aspire to be, a master. Thinking three or four steps ahead makes your opponent his own worst enemy.
*Ed Perdomo is a 4th degree black belt in the Korean grappling art of Hapkido and is head instructor of the Hapkido Institute in Morris, IL.
