The most effective choke in grappling. From back control, wrap the neck and finish.
The rear naked choke (mata leão in Portuguese, hadaka-jime in Japanese) is widely regarded as the most effective choke in all of grappling. From back control, you wrap your arm around the opponent's neck and apply pressure to both carotid arteries.
The RNC is devastating because your opponent has no arm leverage to defend. It works with or without a gi and is legal at every level of BJJ competition.
The RNC is the primary finishing tool from back mount — which is the highest-scoring and most dominant position in IBJJF rules.
Follow these steps to execute the Rear Naked Choke correctly. Every step matters — skipping one leads to a failed attempt.
Establish back control with a body triangle or two hooks. Seatbelt grip secures the position before you commit to the choke.
Your hooks prevent the opponent from escaping while you work the choke. Never lose your hooks during setup.
Slip your choking arm under the chin. Your bicep should be on one side of the neck, your forearm on the other.
Grip your own bicep and place the other hand behind the opponent's head. This structure creates maximum pressure with minimum effort.
Squeeze your elbows together and pull the head forward with your other hand. The choke finishes in 5 to 10 seconds when locked correctly.
These are the most common errors people make when attempting the Rear Naked Choke. Recognize them in your own game and fix them systematically.
Trying to finish the RNC before controlling the opponent's hands leads to defended chokes and lost back position.
Fix: Secure the position first, break the defensive hand grips, then apply the choke.
A chin-to-chin grip gives the opponent bone to defend against. The forearm must be across the trachea or carotid.
Fix: Thread deep under the chin — your bicep on one side of the neck, forearm on the other.
If the opponent escapes your hooks mid-choke, they can turn into your guard and nullify the attack.
Fix: Maintain both hooks until the submission is locked. Body triangle helps.
Pulling too hard with the hand behind the head can compress your own choking arm uselessly.
Fix: Let the elbows and bicep do the work. Hand behind head is structural support, not the primary force.
The Rear Naked Choke is a beginner-level technique that is tested and refined at different stages of belt progression. White belts learn the mechanics, blue belts refine the setups, and purple belts integrate it into complex chains.
Mastery of core techniques like the Rear Naked Choke is one of the things professors evaluate when considering a promotion. Beyond time in grade, your practical application of fundamentals matters.
Open the BJJ belt calculator to see where you stand against IBJJF minimums.
Open CalculatorYes. The RNC is widely considered the highest-percentage finish in all of grappling. Used by virtually every top competitor.
Yes. The RNC is legal at every belt level and in every BJJ ruleset, both gi and no-gi.
A correctly applied RNC finishes in 5 to 10 seconds. The opponent loses consciousness quickly if they do not tap.
Not directly — the RNC is a blood choke, not a crank. However, holding it after unconsciousness can cause serious injury.
Back mount with at least one hook in. Body triangles offer even more control if available.
Every BJJ practitioner builds an A-game over years — a small set of techniques they execute reliably under pressure. This technique either belongs in your A-game or sets up something that does. Drilling it for 6 to 12 months produces measurable skill gains; sporadic attempts produce nothing.
Track which techniques you actually finish in rolling. After 3 months of logging, the pattern becomes obvious: 3 to 5 techniques produce 80 percent of your finishes. Double down on what works. The 80/20 rule applies to BJJ technique selection more strongly than almost any other sport.
No technique exists in isolation. Each move chains into others. The mount, for instance, sets up armbars, americanas, ezekiel chokes, and back takes. Understanding the chains is what separates blue belts from purple belts. Your technique drilling should always include "what happens next" — the failed attempt that flows into another option.
The BJJ Belt Progress app logs your training sessions and helps you identify patterns in what you actually finish versus what you attempt. Data-driven A-game development accelerates progression.
BJJ Belt Progress shows your real progression based on training data. Free 14-day trial.
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