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WABUKAN Journal · Technique · 裸絞

Rear naked choke (hadaka-jime): how it works and how to train it safely

· 4 min read

In Brazil it is called mata-leão, "lion killer". In judo it is hadaka-jime, the "naked strangle", because it does not need the jacket. In English it is the rear naked choke. Whatever the name, it is one of the most effective and most studied techniques in grappling, and precisely for that reason one that demands the most care in training.

In Brazilian jiu-jitsu, back control is the door to the rear naked choke.
In Brazilian jiu-jitsu, back control is the door to the rear naked choke. WABUKAN illustration

An old technique with many names

Strangling an opponent from behind is as old as fighting itself. Old works of art already show it, like this Khmer relief from Cambodia. In Japan, the old jujutsu schools taught it, and when Jigorō Kanō organised Kodokan judo from 1882, hadaka-jime became one of the shime-waza, the strangling techniques, and one of the forms demonstrated in the Katame-no-kata.

Khmer bas-relief (Cambodia) showing a rear choke: the technique is very old.
Khmer bas-relief (Cambodia) showing a rear choke: the technique is very old. Author: Thunder n lightning · Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

In Brazil, the Gracie family and their students turned control of the back into a central position in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, with the rear naked choke as its natural finish. When the first UFC events from 1993 showed fighters of different styles against each other, the technique became world-famous, and it is still one of the most common submission finishes in MMA.

How it works

The mata-leão is a blood choke, not an air choke. The goal is not to crush the windpipe, but to compress the carotid arteries on both sides of the neck, between the forearm and the biceps of the choking arm. With blood flow to the brain reduced, a person can lose consciousness in a matter of seconds. That is why it is so effective, and why it is so dangerous if held too long.

The classic position has four elements:

Instructors' demonstration: arm under the chin, hand on the biceps, the other behind the head.
Instructors' demonstration: arm under the chin, hand on the biceps, the other behind the head. Author: Unknown author · Licence: Domínio público / Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

If the forearm presses on the front of the throat instead of the sides, the technique becomes an air choke: slower, painful and riskier for the larynx. In training, correct placement is therefore also a safety question.

There are variants. Some practitioners join the hands palm to palm instead of gripping the biceps; with the jacket, judo and jiu-jitsu add related rear chokes such as okuri-eri-jime, which uses the opponent's lapel. The principle stays the same: control first, then close the space around the neck.

Defences

The best defence comes early: do not give up the back. Once the back is taken, the defender protects the neck with the hands and lowers the chin, fights the choking hand with both hands, and tries to bring the back to the mat and turn out of the position. Escaping from back control is a whole chapter of jiu-jitsu, trained slowly and with a partner who cooperates at first.

Safety: the rules that are not negotiable

Studies of judo chokes, such as Koiwai's review of 1987, concluded that in sport practice, applied correctly and released in time, these techniques have a good safety record. Outside sport the story is different: prolonged neck holds have caused deaths in arrests, and many police forces have restricted or banned them. A choke is a technique of control, not of punishment.

Why it is taught

The mata-leão teaches some of the deepest lessons of grappling: position before submission, the use of the whole body instead of the arms, patience and control. In judo it shows that a fight on the ground can be decided cleanly; in jiu-jitsu it summarises the logic of the art; in self-defence it reminds us that responsibility grows with effectiveness.

To read how the jiu-jitsu of the Gracies met other styles, see BJJ and vale tudo.

Timeline

  1. 1882Kodokan: hadaka-jime enters judo as a shime-waza.
  2. 1920sIn Brazil, the Gracies develop groundwork and back control.
  3. 1993First UFC: chokes become world-famous.

Related pages on Wabukan

bjj judo mma sambo Master: Hélio Gracie Master: Jigorō Kanō BJJ and vale tudo Seoi-nage explained

Sources

Original WABUKAN text, written from these cross-checked sources (facts, not sentences).

  1. Jigoro Kano, Kodokan Judo, Kodansha International, 1986
  2. Renzo Gracie, Royler Gracie, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu: Theory and Technique, Invisible Cities Press, 2001
  3. Koiwai EK, Deaths allegedly caused by the use of 'choke holds' (shime-waza), Journal of Forensic Sciences, 1987
  4. Wikipedia (EN) — Rear naked choke

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