Edwin Najmi and Alec Baulding Share D’arce Choke Details
The D’arce choke is typically a submission that we see more in a no gi setting. Cinching this incredibly tight strangle is a bit easier without the gi material in your way. However, it is not uncommon to see a D’arce in the gi from time to time. With an arm entering at the armpit and exiting at the neck, the D’arce creates a very tight loop around our opponent’s neck, and then when secured with the bicep, it comes to life. Some attention is usually given to the body in the form of control as well, such as a knee on the belly, a hip switch, or capturing a leg. Most of these elements find their way into every D’arce attack to form the ultimate choking tool.
I remember being put in this choke for the very first time. I had no idea what was happening and before I knew it, I was tapping. Done properly and when fully locked, there is little chance of escape. As with any technique, there are details with the D’arce that can make it tighter and more secure. Knowing these smaller intricacies can be the difference between commanding the tap and burning your arms arm from an improper squeeze.
For some instruction on the D’arce, lets go to Edwin Najmi. Najmi has been working his way through the competition scene in style and though he is more well-known in the gi, recently he’s been participating in more no gi contests, and as you might have guessed, he’s doing just fine. Najmi has an incredible top game and sports an unorthodox and dangerous style. He’s been prepping for ADCC this coming weekend and needless to say were excited to watch his get out there and do his thing in the incredibly stacked 77kg division. Let’s take a look at this first video!
Top half guard is the perfect place to snag a D’arce. With the likelihood that the bottom player will attempt to come up and achieve an under hook, they do most of the work for you. An idle under hook will always be the perfect platform to catch a D’arce choke. This is where Najmi begins his instruction.
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As his partner sits up to secure an under hook, Najmi locks an arm in guillotine style configuration of the arms with one entering at the armpit and the other over top of the head and neck. He begins to bring all of his weight forward, smothering his partners head with his belly and chest.
Next, he’ll need to remove his leg that’s trapped in the half guard. To do this, he recruits his opposite instep to begin prying his foot free. As the foot becomes loose, Najmi rolls through to his left rib cage, perpendicular to his partner.
Using a pendulum style kicking motion with his leg, Najmi now begins to come up on top. During this transition, he’s also using the locking of his hands and the leverage of his elbow to close his partner’s elbow and remove it from his hip. As he continues to make his way to the top, he circles toward his partner hips and begins to settle in to finish the attack.
From the top position, Najmi uses his grip to slide the loop he’s created with his arms deeper under his partner’s neck so that his right hand becomes visible on the backside of his partner. Najmi can now secure his bicep, squeeze his elbows together, and stilt towards his partners head to finish the submission.
The tiniest detail is a huge player here, as Najmi recommends squeezing the elbows together at the completion of the submission to realize its full potential. Keep this in mind the next time your applying the D’arce!
Alec Baulding will also be throwing his hat into the ring on September 28th at ADCC. Securing gold at the 2018 ADCC trials, Baulding earned his trip to ADCC 2019 and will look to put his skillset on display for the entire grappling world to see. Baulding is well known for his excellent guard work, wrestling, speed, strength and agility. These are fantastic qualities to be successful in the ADCC format and were looking forward to watching his performance!
Baulding also happens to know a thing or two about the D’arce choke. IN this video he gives us the basic overview of the choke from a beginner perspective. This is really helpful if you don’t have a lot of experience with the D’arce and would like to begin training with the technique. Check it out!
Baulding begins with some ideas on how this submission may present itself and chooses to demonstrate how to secure it when passing. In this case his partner is using a frame to try and defend their guard from being passed. This is incredibly common and it would serve us well to understand how to apply the D’arce here.
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As Baulding’s partner frames, he angles his body a bit and pushes the frame down and across his body. Here, he drops his arm nearest to his partners body below the level of their ribcage and begins to thread it under the armpit, where it then reemerges on the other side of the neck. Baulding then leans forward putting downward pressure on to the lock. This pressure makes sure that there is a solid connection between his partners arm and their own neck as well as Baulding’s arm and his partner’s neck. This is what will eventually cause the tap. Baulding then takes his free arm to the backside of his partner’s body and begins to lock up the D’arce by grabbing his own bicep. Pulling his partner in tight to his body and then squeezing to apply pressure gets Baulding the tap. The under-hook option is almost identical except that Baulding has to move out a bit to get more perpendicular to his partner.
Learning the D’arce is essential. It presents itself more often than you might think and as you can see, it’s a great option gi or no gi. It seems like if there’s and under hook present, there’s also a D’arce in there somewhere waiting to be found as well. Baulding’s passing variation is also a great thing to keep in mind, as catching submissions in transition is always a good idea. Great stuff here from these two titans of BJJ.
We’re looking forward to watching these great athletes perform this weekend at ADCC 2019. It’s a privilege to have them as part of the BJJ Fanatics family! Good luck gentlemen!
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