Back after an extended break for the holidays, Ed Perdomo and Johnny Rodriguez bring the next step in the current arc of MMA Gospel’s Technique of the Week. This time, Johnny manages to get his arm out of position from last week’s Inverted Gi-Less Clock Choke, forcing Ed to take a different path to victory. He does so with a straight Armbar from the head and arm position. The sudden reversal of the pressure between the two attacks will actually cause the opponent to assist in setting up the Armbar itself, but Ed must be quick to pull off this simple switch effectively.
Johnny has managed to get his head to the mat, bringing his arm out of position for the choke Ed was working for. In order to save both his position and the submission attempt, Ed must act quickly and switch to an Armbar. Ed starts by controlling Johnny’s arm behind the shoulder with a tight underhook and bridging hard with his outside leg to begin bringing his outside leg around Johnny’s head (LEFT).
Ed will pull the underhook tight to his chest, brace his free hand on the mat beside Johnny’s head, and then bring his leg around Johnny’s head (RIGHT). This sets up the position where Ed can turn into the Armbar. It is very important that Ed keep Johnny’s shoulder and arm trapped tight to his chest with the underhook as control of that arm is what is preventing Johnny from hipping out of the position.
Next, Ed reaches down with his free hand to underhook Johnny’s arm at the armpit (LEFT). He then slides his other underhook up to Johnny’s elbow to help straighten and isolate the arm completely prior to turning in to the submission. It is very important to note that the first three steps in this submission are done almost simultaneously and should be drilled very thoroughly in order to be effective.
Finally, Ed finishes the submission by extending and isolating the arm entirely. To do this he makes a quarter-turn into Johnny, sits to the mat as close to Johnny’s shoulder as possible, and squeezes tightly with his knees. He then lays back to the mat, sliding his hands up Johnny’s arm to wrist control, and raises his hips to hyper-extend and eventually dislocate the elbow (RIGHT).
Recap:
- As soon as you realize your opponent has blocked the choke, tightly secure the underhook on their arm behind the shoulder.
- Place your free hand on the mat beside your opponent’s head and bridge your outside leg in order to swing it around your opponent’s head, into a kneeling position.
- Secure a second underhook at your opponent’s shoulder with your free hand and slide your first underhook up to your opponent’s elbow.
- Execute a quarter-turn into your opponent, sit to the floor as close to your opponent’s shoulder as possible, and grip their arm tightly to your chest.
- Squeeze with your knees, lie back, slide your hands to wrist control, and elevate your hips to elicit the tap.
This technique is extremely simple but requires frequent practice to develop the speed needed to make it truly effective against a trained ground fighter. It is an extremely tight Armbar that can cause instant severe damage to an opponent who is too stubborn to tap and is thus a very good attack to have in your repertoire when faced with a particularly hard-nosed opponent. Next week, Ed and Johnny will finish this arc with one of the most damaging moves in the Kimura family of submissions.
*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, Illinois.
