Rear naked

Category: Strangle Rank: #1 Used Count: 1023

Overview

The rear naked strangle is one of the most fundamental and effective submissions in grappling. Applied from back control, it targets the carotid arteries on both sides of the neck using a variety of arm configurations. When properly secured, it produces a rapid strangle, making it one of the highest-percentage finishes in both sport jiu-jitsu and MMA.

In modern no-gi, back control and the rear naked form a complete attacking system built around maintaining hooks or a body triangle, constantly threatening the strangle, and using hand-fighting to expose the neck. High-level athletes blend repeated strangle attempts with leg-based arm traps and controlled grip exchanges to break defenses and apply the submission. Its efficiency, reliability, and ability to finish elite opponents without relying on strength make it one of the most successful submissions in all of grappling.

Common Applications

From back control: Slide the primary arm under the chin, lock the figure-four, and compress the neck while maintaining chest-to-back connection.

Related Techniques

Rear triangle, Rear kata gatame, Armbar, Twister

Note: The term “rear naked” broadly refers to any strangle applied from back control in no-gi, including mandible strangles, non–figure-four finishes (such as gable-grip variations), and one-arm rear naked finishes.

REAR NAKED ATHLETES (RANKS 1–20)

Rank	Athlete	Count
1	Gordon Ryan	31
1	Gianni Grippo	31
2	Roberto Jimenez	30
3	Dante Leon	26
4	Andrew Tackett	24
5	John Combs	20
5	Giancarlo Bodoni	20
6	Roosevelt Sousa	17
6	Luke Griffith	17
6	Andy Varela	17
7	Alex Enriquez	16
7	Keith Krikorian	16
8	Felipe Pena	15
9	Craig Jones	14
9	Marcelo Garcia	14
9	Jett Thompson	14
9	Ethan Crelinsten	14
9	Davis Asare	14
9	William Tackett	14
9	Jacob Rodriguez	14
10	Joao Miyao	13
10	Max Hanson	13
11	Dorian Olivarez	12
11	PJ Barch	12
11	Nick Rodriguez	12
12	Mica Galvao	11
12	Declan Moody	11
13	Vagner Rocha	10
13	Adam Wardzinski	10
14	Pedro Marinho	9
14	Ryan Aitken	9
14	Nick Mataya	9
15	Kyle Boehm	8
15	Matheus Diniz	8
15	Deandre Corbe	8
15	Kevin Beuhring	8
15	Mateusz Szczecinski	8
15	Jozef Chen	8
15	Ffion Davies	8
16	Helena Crevar	7
16	Mayssa Bastos	7
16	Nick Ronan	7
16	Tommy Langaker	7
16	Mason Fowler	7
16	Patrick Gaudio	7
16	Haisam Rida	7
17	Kaynan Duarte	6
17	Kieran Kichuk	6
17	Paulo Miyao	6
17	Lucas Barbosa	6
17	Gabriel Sousa	6
17	Garry Tonon	6
18	Michael Sainz	5
18	Keenan Cornelius	5
18	Dominic Mejia	5
18	David Garmo	5
18	Jasmine Rocha	5
18	Josh Saunders	5
18	Elisabeth Clay	5
18	Andre Galvao	5
18	Reese LaFever	5
18	Jacob Couch	5
18	Oliver Taza	5
18	Nicky Ryan	5
18	Raquel Canuto	5
18	Fabricio Andrey	5
18	Izaak Michell	5
18	Victor Hugo	5
18	Charles Negromonte	5
19	Joao Gabriel Rocha	4
19	Bobby Sandhu	4
19	Fabian Ramirez	4
19	Faris Ben-Lamkadem	4
19	Roger Gracie	4
19	Beatriz Mesquita	4
19	Andrew Wiltse	4
19	Geo Martinez	4
19	Alan Sanchez	4
19	Injana Goodman	4
19	Kennedy Maciel	4
19	Victor Delibero	4
20	Placido Santos	3
20	Josh Hinger	3
20	Josh Cisneros	3
20	Danielle Kelly	3
20	Gustavo Batista	3
20	Adam Benayoun	3
20	Felipe Machado	3
20	Taylor Pearman	3
20	Chris Wojcik	3
20	Felipe Costa	3
20	Elder Cruz	3
20	Hunter Colvin	3
20	Cameron Mellott	3
20	Inacio Santos	3
20	Diego Oliveira	3
20	Eddie Cummings	3
20	Levi Jones-Leary	3
20	Yigit Hanay	3
20	Max Gimenis	3
20	Brandon Reed	3
20	Janette Gloger	3
20	Kron Gracie	3
20	Amanda Bruse	3
20	Jason Rau	3
20	Ryan Hall	3
20	Kenta Iwamoto	3
20	Nathan Haddad	3
20	Alexandre Ribeiro	3
20	Johnny Tama	3
20	Gairbeg Ibragimov	3
20	Jon Blank	3