Garrot Choke

What This Is

The garrot choke is a rear strangle applied with a single arm — the wrist and bicep of one arm create both points of bilateral carotid compression simultaneously. The name derives from the garrotte, a historical strangulation tool that applied bilateral neck compression using a wire or cord. The no-gi grappling version uses the forearm/wrist on one carotid and the bicep on the other, with the choking arm bent into the neck rather than extended as in the RNC.

The garrot choke is distinct from the RNC and short choke in that it is primarily a one-arm submission. The second arm assists with positional control — gripping the opponent’s arm, controlling the head, or maintaining the back position — but the strangle itself comes from one arm’s forearm/wrist and bicep configuration. This makes it available in situations where the attacker’s second arm is occupied with positional control.

The position has its roots in both back control and the front headlock system. From back control, the garrot is an alternative when a full seatbelt RNC is not available. From the turtle top / front headlock, the garrot is a submission threat that does not require the back to be fully taken first — the choke can be applied directly from beside the turtled opponent if the neck is accessible.

The Invariable in Action

The garrot choke compresses both carotids using the geometry of one bent arm: the forearm or wrist drives across one carotid from the outside, and as the arm bends (elbow drives down and toward the midline), the bicep of the same arm applies pressure to the other carotid from the inside. The bilateral compression is achieved by the angular force of a bent arm pressing both sides of the neck simultaneously. This is mechanically different from the RNC’s two-arm figure-four, but the requirement for bilateral compression is identical — one-sided compression alone does not produce the submission.

The garrot choke requires the opponent’s neck to be in a specific position: slightly forward, with the carotids accessible from the side or rear. From back control this is usually automatic — the seatbelt keeps the opponent’s head in front of the attacker’s shoulder. From turtle top, the neck must be exposed — if the opponent tucks their chin deeply and rotates their head away, the single-arm entry cannot find both carotids. Neck accessibility is the prerequisite.

The Mechanics

The garrot choke is applied with a single bent arm in a wrapping motion around the opponent’s neck:

The arm path: The choking arm reaches under or around the opponent’s head and neck. The forearm seats across one carotid artery at the side of the neck. The elbow drives down toward the opponent’s chest or collarbone on the far side, which creates the bicep pressure on the other carotid. The arm is bent — not extended as in a headlock — with the elbow pointing toward the mat.

Bilateral compression: As the elbow drives down, the arm’s bent shape closes around both sides of the neck simultaneously. The wrist or forearm bone on one side and the soft tissue of the bicep on the other. The compression is produced by the closing angle of the bent arm — not by pulling the wrist across and not by a figure-four.

Second arm role: The second arm controls the position. From back control, it maintains the back position or controls the opponent’s near arm. From turtle top, it may control the near shoulder or the opponent’s far arm. The second arm does not directly apply the strangle but prevents the positional escape that would break the choking arm’s position.

Depth check: The choking forearm must be deep enough that the elbow reaches the far side of the opponent’s neck. If the arm is shallow — the elbow stopping at the front of the throat — the arm applies tracheal pressure rather than bilateral carotid compression. Deep means the elbow past the midline.

Setup and Entry

From Back Control — Seatbelt

From seatbelt back control with both the strangle arm and control arm in position, the attacker can convert the strangle arm into a garrot entry: rather than extending the arm across the throat as in the RNC, the attacker wraps the arm around the neck in the bent-arm garrot configuration. This works particularly when the opponent’s chin tuck prevents the extended RNC entry — the garrot’s arm path does not require clearing the chin in the same way.

From Turtle Top / Front Headlock

The garrot from turtle top does not require the back to be taken first. When the attacker is beside the turtled opponent with one arm controlling the far side and the opponent’s neck accessible from the near side, the garrot can be applied directly: the near arm wraps around the neck in the bent-arm configuration, the far arm controls the opponent’s body to prevent the spin or sit-out escape. This is the front headlock connection — the garrot is the submission that does not require full back control before attacking the neck.

From Front Headlock Control

From an established front headlock control position with the opponent’s head controlled, the garrot arm wraps the neck from the front headlock’s head control — converting the head control into a strangling arm position. The entry differs from the guillotine family in that the garrot arm wraps to one side and compresses with the bent-arm geometry rather than extending the arm across the throat as the guillotine does.

Position Requirements

• Seatbelt Back Control (POS-BACK-TOP-SEATBELT) — Primary position. Strangle arm converts to garrot when RNC entry is blocked.
• Turtle Top (POS-FHL-TURTLE-TOP) — Available without full back control. Neck accessible from beside the turtle.
• Front Headlock Control (POS-FHL-CONTROL) — Head control position converts to garrot when the arm wraps the neck from the headlock angle.

Defence and Escape

Prevent neck access: The garrot requires the neck to be exposed. Tucking the chin toward the chest and turning the head toward the attacker’s choking arm reduces the arm’s ability to find both carotids from the single arm.

Two-on-one on the choking arm: Catching the choking arm’s wrist with both hands early in the entry — before the arm is deep — can prevent the depth needed for bilateral compression.

Create distance — back control escape: The upstream defence against all back control submissions is the back escape system. See the seatbelt defence page. Against the turtle top garrot specifically, the sit-out or inside roll creates distance that breaks the arm’s positioning around the neck.

Tap early: The garrot compresses quickly when the arm is deep. If the bent arm is fully seated with the elbow past the midline, tap immediately — the bilateral compression is applied in this arm position.

Common Errors

Drilling Notes

Arm path isolation. From a static position, practise the garrot arm path — wrapping around the neck, driving the elbow to the far side. Partner gives verbal feedback on where the forearm and bicep are contacting the neck. Confirm both carotids are covered before adding force. Ten reps.

Back control garrot entry. From seatbelt back control, practise converting the strangle arm to the garrot configuration — elbow driving down, arm bending around the neck. Compare the arm path to the RNC entry. Drill the switch from one to the other against a chin-tucking partner.

Turtle top garrot. From turtle top, practise the garrot entry from beside the opponent — near arm wrapping the neck, far arm controlling the body. No finishing force. Ten reps. The goal is to confirm the arm path is available from turtle top without a full back take.

Ability Level Guidance

Ruleset Context

The garrot choke is a standard rear strangle with no restricted status in no-gi rulesets.

Also Known As

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