You've seen it a thousand times. A UFC fighter slides behind their opponent, snakes an arm under the chin, and suddenly it’s over. The "Mata Leão" or Lion Killer. It looks effortless, right? Honestly, it’s anything but. Most beginners—and even some blue belts who should know better—actually struggle with the finishing mechanics of how to do rear naked choke effectively because they rely on Vitamin S (strength) rather than actual leverage.
If you're squeezing until your forearms burn and your opponent is still breathing, you're doing it wrong.
The rear naked choke (RNC) is arguably the most dominant submission in all of grappling. Statistics from decades of MMA bouts back this up. It is the king of the mountain. But there's a massive gap between "grabbing the neck" and "applying a blood choke." One is a fight; the other is physics.
Getting to the Back Without Losing the Position
Before you can even think about the neck, you need the back. This is where most people fail before they even start. You can't just hover there. You need "sticky" hooks. Your feet should be hooked into the insides of their thighs, but please, for the love of your ankles, never cross your feet. If you cross your ankles in front of their hips, a savvy opponent will just cross their own legs over yours and bridge, snapping your ankle like a dry twig. It’s a rookie mistake that ends fights in the most embarrassing way possible.
Control the hips first. Think of yourself as a backpack. Your chest should be glued to their upper back. If there is daylight between your chest and their spine, you have no control. Use a "seatbelt" grip: one arm over the shoulder, one arm under the armpit, clasping your hands together in the center of their chest.
This diagonal control is the foundation. Without it, they'll just slide out the side.
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The Chin is the First Boss
You’ve got the back. Now you want the neck. The problem? Most people have a chin. They’ll tuck it down like a turtle retreating into its shell. You'll see guys try to "mandible claw" or just squeeze across the jaw. Does it hurt? Yeah. Is it an RNC? Not really. It’s a face crank. While a face crank can get a tap in a street fight or a gym roll, a high-level competitor will sit there and let you burn out your arms while they wait for their chance to escape.
To get under the chin, don’t just shove your arm forward. Use your hand like a blade. You can "walk" your fingers across their collarbone or use your thumb to find the soft spot under the ear. Some guys, like the legendary Demian Maia, use their forehead to push the opponent's head forward, forcing the chin to lift just a millimeter—which is all the space a seasoned black belt needs.
Mastering the Mechanics of How to Do Rear Naked Choke
Once your arm is under the chin, the "choke arm" (the one around the neck) needs to be deep. Your elbow should be aligned almost perfectly with their chin. If your elbow is off to the side, you’re just pulling on their windpipe. That’s a "nasty" choke, but we want a "sleepy" choke. A true RNC targets the carotid arteries on the sides of the neck, cutting off blood flow to the brain.
Here is the secret sauce: the "Hand-to-Biceps" transition.
Once your arm is deep, your choking hand needs to find your other arm's biceps. Do not—I repeat, do not—reach out into the air where they can grab your hand. Keep your movements tight. Slide your choking hand across and grab your own biceps muscle. Your other hand (the support hand) should then slide behind the opponent's head.
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- The Palm Placement: Your support hand should be palm-down against the back of their head.
- The "Comb" Action: Instead of just shoving the hand behind the head, think about "combing" their hair. Slide it in so there’s zero space.
- Hide the Fingers: If your fingers are sticking out, the guy on the bottom will grab them and peel them off. Tuck everything away.
The Finishing Squeeze: It’s Not About the Arms
This is the part everyone gets wrong. They squeeze their biceps as hard as they can. Their face turns red. They grunt. And thirty seconds later, their arms are cooked and the opponent is still fighting.
The finish is a "rotational" squeeze combined with an expansion of the chest. Think about trying to make your elbows touch behind your own back. At the same time, puff your chest out into their spine and pull your elbows back and down. It’s a slow, steady constriction. It’s not a jerk; it’s a boa constrictor.
John Danaher, often cited as one of the greatest minds in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, emphasizes the "short arm" versus "long arm" variations. In a "short" choke, you might not even get the biceps grip; you might just palm-to-palm it. But for the classic RNC, it’s all about removing the space. If you do it right, they should be unconscious in 6 to 10 seconds.
Why You’re Probably Failing
If you're still struggling with how to do rear naked choke, check your alignment. Are you falling to the side? Falling to the side is actually good, but you want to fall to the side of your "under" arm (the arm under the armpit) to make the escape harder. If you fall to the side of the choking arm, you're making it easier for them to put their weight on your arm and "pin" it.
Another common fail point: the "bridge." Some people try to arch their back to finish. Don't do that. You're actually creating space when you arch. You want to crunch. Think about bringing your head close to theirs, hiding your own neck, and becoming a ball of pressure.
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Real-world check: In a self-defense situation, the adrenaline is going to make you want to rip their head off. Slow down. Adrenaline kills your gas tank. If you have the position, you have the time. Breathe. Set the hooks. Trap an arm if you can (using your leg to pin one of their arms is a "cheat code" for the RNC). Then, and only then, go for the neck.
Common Misconceptions and Safety
Let’s talk about the "windpipe" versus "blood" choke distinction. People often think they’re the same thing. They aren't. A windpipe choke (tracheal compression) is incredibly painful and can actually damage the thyroid cartilage or the hyoid bone. It’s dangerous and takes much longer to render someone unconscious. A blood choke (carotid sinus compression) is actually "safer" in a training environment because it results in a quick loss of consciousness without the same level of structural damage—provided the person lets go immediately upon the tap.
Always respect the tap. In the gym, the moment you feel that double-tap on your leg or arm, you let go. No exceptions.
Actionable Steps for Your Next Training Session
Stop trying to force the submission from a bad position. If you want to get better at the RNC, you need to drill the components separately.
- Back Maintenance Drills: Have a partner try to shake you off for 30 seconds. Don't go for the choke. Just stay glued to them. If you lose the back, you lose the choke.
- The "One-Handed" Finish: Try to finish the choke using only your choking arm and your head to trap their shoulder. This forces you to find the perfect mechanical alignment of the elbow under the chin.
- The Seatbelt Switch: Practice transitioning from a left-side seatbelt to a right-side seatbelt without losing chest-to-back connection.
- Hand Fighting: This is the real game. Your opponent will be 2-on-1ing your choking arm. Learn to use your "under" arm to strip their hands and clear the path for your "over" arm.
The rear naked choke isn't a move; it's a system. It starts at the hooks and ends at the expansion of your ribcage. If you treat it like a technical puzzle rather than a feat of strength, you'll find that even much larger opponents will start tapping out much sooner than they expected. Practice the "no-gap" principle. If there’s air between you and them, you’re losing. Close the distance, hide your hands, and let the leverage do the heavy lifting.