Armlock variations, defenses and counters

Variation 1:
Break your opponent's posture and attack their neck with a choke. This forces them to use their hands to defend the neck. At this point, place your left foot on their hip (if you are attacking their right arm) and push your thigh inwards against their elbow.

Keep enough pressure to ensure that they can't pull their arm back to safety. Now using the left foot to pivot, shift your hip's angle and use your right leg to push down on their upper body. All you need to do now is pass the left leg over their head and finish the armbar.

Tips:

• Make sure that their thumb is pointing up so that you are actually putting pressure against the elbow joint.
• Do not cross your legs! It will create space in between your legs which is the opposite of you want. Instead, squeeze the legs together when you are finishing the move and keep everything tight.

Variation 2:
Get a single grip on their sleeve. This doesn't feel threatening to your opponent.

Next, use your free hand to push outwards on their knee, and then scoop around their leg as you start shifting your angle. As you do this, make sure you don't lose your original single grip.

If your opponent doesn't react using their free arm to base, they will get swept. If this is the case, just finish the sweep and you'll be on the mount.

​If they do base, you have everything you need to complete the armbar. Just pass your left leg over their head and complete the armlock.

​Armlock From Closed Guard Using the "Two One" Grip

The "Two One Grip" is very powerful and it creates a good setup to drag your opponent's arm across when they are in your closed guard.

If you are right handed, your right hand will grab your opponent's right hand's sleeve, and your left hand will grab under their right armpit.

You can use this setup to drag their arm across and start your armlock attack.

​Place your left foot on your opponent's hip, making it impossible for your opponent to bring their arm back to a safe position.

Then shift your angle using your left foot to pivot, and with your right leg push down to keep their posture broken. Finally, pass your left leg over their head and finish the armlock.

​Armlock Defense: Padlock, Stacking & Pressure

Being trapped in someone's closed guard is a dangerous place to be.

Things get worse if your opponent breaks your posture and initiates an armlock attack.

As soon as your opponent has an effective armlock setup, you have very little time to act.

The most urgent thing is to use your free arm and place it underneath your trapped arm.

The next step is to start stacking, and as you do this keep bringing your free arm towards you forming a padlock, and ideally placing your free arm's hand behind your opponent's leg.

If you manage to place your hand here, you are temporarily safe, but it's important to keep the stacking pressure to keep improving your position, and place your knee behind their back as you keep stacking and mounting pressure on them.

​Once your opponent is dealing with a lot of your pressure, you'll feel safe to pull your trapped arm out. At which point you are free to pull from their lapel and establish a strong side control.

​Countering The Padlock Armlock Defense Attacking The Free Arm

The padlock defense to the armbar from closed guard is very effective. However, the beauty about Jiujitsu is that there's always a counter to your opponent's counter.

(For the purpose of this technique description we'll assume that you attacked your opponent's right arm originally)

Once your opponent places their left arm to set up the padlock, use your hands to "scoop" the left arm, which is on the outside of the padlock and therefore available for you to control.

Then use your right foot to step on their hip, and shift your hip position and angle by escaping the hip (pay attention to the details in the video).

As you shift your hip positioning, your left shin will end up in a new position, across your opponent's neck.

Ensuring you have control of the trapped arm (their left arm now, not the right arm anymore) you will now pass your right leg over their head and push down.

You can now apply pressure and finish the armlock.

The positioning of your legs may seem a bit awkward at first sight but it's a very strong control and armlock.

If you are in Auckland, New Zealand and you want to find out more about training at DS Team Jiujitsu, find out more information at https://www.dsteamjiujitsu.co.nz
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