Rear Naked Choke

What It Is

The rear naked choke (RNC) is the go-to finish from the back in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Whenever you’ve secured back control, hooks or body triangle, with your opponent belly-down, turtle, or sitting, the RNC is your highest percentage weapon. No gi, gi, MMA, self-defense, it works. You get one arm under the chin (the choking arm), the other arm secures behind their head, and you lock everything tight to strangle with your arms, not your hands. Simple on paper, but easy to screw up on a resisting opponent.

Why It Works

The rear naked choke targets both carotid arteries by compressing the sides of the neck, cutting off blood flow to the brain. You’re not crushing the throat (unless you mess up the angle). When done right, it takes just a few seconds to put out even tough, stubborn opponents. There are no strong muscles in the neck to fight it off. From the back, you’re outside their line of sight and reaction is always a beat behind. If you’ve got solid back control, you can threaten, adjust, and finish while they waste energy.

Key Details

• Hand and Elbow Position: Your choking arm does most of the work. Slide that arm all the way across so your elbow points dead center under their chin. The biceps and forearm contact both sides of the neck.
• Palm-to-Bicep Grip: After you’ve snaked the choking arm across, grab your own biceps or shoulder. The opposite hand slides behind their head. No “figure four” with the hands clapping together, if you’re doing that, your pressure is off.
• No Space: The more space between your chest and their upper back, the less effective your choke. Pull their upper back into your chest with your seatbelt and hooks/body triangle.
• Head Position: Your head should be glued to the side of their head, like you’re sharing a secret into their ear. No daylight. This blocks them from hand fighting and backing out.
• Shoulder Squeeze: Don’t just squeeze with your arms. Pinch your elbows, squeeze your chest, and pull your shoulders back, think of trying to drive your choking-side shoulder through their head.
• Legs Anchor: Your hooks or body triangle matter. If you’re sliding off, your choke will lose power and you’ll lose the back.
• Tension, Not Muscle: You aren’t trying to rip their head off. Everything should be tight but not maxed out. If your forearms are gassing before you finish, you’re leaking energy somewhere.

Common Mistakes

• Arm Across the Face: If your arm slides above the chin (covering mouth or nose), you’re cranking the jaw, painful, but not a clean choke. Good people won’t tap to pain, and it burns out your grip.
• Hands in Wrong Position: Common beginner problem: hand-on-hand or not securing behind the head. Makes it easy for them to two-on-one your choking hand.
• Loose Chest Connection: If you’re not glued to their upper back, they’ll wiggle out, turn, or pull your choking arm down.
• Letting Them Get Two Hands on One: If you let them isolate and peel your choking hand, you’re getting nowhere. You have to manage the fight for wrist control and hand fighting.
• Over-Squeezing Too Early: Going full squeeze before you’re in position just burns you out. Don’t start the finish until you’re locked in and ready.

When To Use It

The RNC is king anytime you have back control and your opponent’s hands are off their neck (defending chokes or basing out). No gi is the most forgiving for the RNC; in gi, you have to fight harder to clear lapel and collar grips. It’s the highest percentage finish in MMA and submission grappling. If you’re rolling with someone who turtles or gives up the back to escape mount/side, hunt for the seatbelt and angle to set up the choke. In tournaments, with points or EBI overtime, the RNC is the workhorse.

Training Tips

• Drill the Hand Fight: Don’t just rep the finishing squeeze. Start from full back control, then have your partner fight your hands while you work to finish. Learn to clear their hands with your chin, wrist, and shoulder, not just yanking.
• Ride the Back, Don’t Rush: Get used to keeping chest tight, hooks locked, and making micro-adjustments as your partner squirms.
• Work Both Arms: Don’t always use your dominant arm to choke. Build coordination on both sides, tournaments and scrambles don’t care about your preferences.
• Start from Bad Spots: Let your partner defend deep, chin tucked, hands in. Figure out how to open windows for your arm, or threaten one choke to open the other.
• Short Rounds, 100% Squeeze: Occasionally, set up positional sparring where you go for a full power RNC after hand fighting, so you know what your real max squeeze feels like, just don’t do this every day, or your arms will hate you.

Final Takeaway

The rear naked choke is as core to BJJ as guard retention or wrestling up from bottom. It works across rule sets, skill levels, and body types. But details matter. Don’t expect tap-outs just by throwing your arm across someone’s throat. Get your chest glued to theirs, sink your elbow under the jaw, lock your grip behind their head, and squeeze with control. Drill the hand fight more than the finish, and respect how fast this choke puts people out. Nail the mechanics and the RNC will finish anyone you get behind, no gimmicks, just pressure.