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Armbar

Isolate the arm. Load the elbow past its structural limit.

Adapted from InGrappling, Armbar. System Games did not invent this curriculum.

The armbar is the foundational elbow hyperextension submission. The attacking practitioner places the opponent’s arm across their hips — elbow down against the hip joint — and extends the hips upward while pulling the wrist downward. The elbow is loaded into hyperextension: past the natural 0° extension limit, into the posterior capsule and collateral ligaments.

This page is the family rather than a technique. Everything below — the finish mechanics, the 90-degree rule, the injury profile, the four generic defences — is what every armbar on the site has in common, and it is worth reading once before any of the individual pages.

What it deliberately does not contain is how to do one. An armbar from mount and an armbar from guard are related and different: the angle is made differently, the failure modes differ, and what a failed attempt costs differs most of all. Those live on the instance pages, listed below and grouped by the configuration line skill actually transfers along.

Ruleset context This technique is legal in all major competitive formats.

Elevated RiskArmbar is an elevated risk technique. The armbar loads the posterior elbow capsule and collateral ligaments through hyperextension. The elbow reaches its structural limit at 0° extension — any further extension is hyperextension and loads the ligaments directly. Fast hip drive closes the warning window to near-zero. Elbow injuries from armbars can be severe and have long recovery times. Speed is the primary risk factor. Serious injury can occur at or immediately past 0° extension — fast hip drive leaves minimal warning window.

If you are new to this technique: read this section before anything else. Understanding the danger is part of understanding the technique.

The person applying the technique is responsible for releasing immediately.

Communicate before drilling. Know your partner's experience level with this position.

Do not train this technique while fatigued or in live rolling without established mat culture.

Tapping culture and why it matters → Injury guide for this technique → The Armbar as a Hub

Method. Reverse-Phase Progression · Repetition Without Repetition

Series. Armbar System

Invariants. INV-09 · INV-14 · INV-S05

Canon pages

Juji Gatame / Straight ArmbarThe canonical finish: hips on the face-side shoulder line, knees pinched, hips up.Armbar from MountHigh mount, isolate one arm, swing the leg, keep the far knee as a post until the pivot is done.Armbar from Closed GuardBreak posture, angle, climb, finish. Same invariant as the endgame — longer approach.Back ArmbarBack armbar — the trapped arm taken as it peels out of the straitjacket. Timing-bound, and the only armbar whose defining decision is tradinBaratoplataThe Baratoplata in no-gi: a shoulder lock that clamps the opponent's elbow between the thighs and turns the wrist outward, attacked mainly fBicep SlicerThe bicep slicer wedges a forearm, shin, or knee into the bent elbow, crushing the bicep and brachialis to attack the joint in flexion. WherChoi BarChoi Bar — shoulder rotation submission; arm pulled across the body while the shoulder is externally rotated. From side control.Crucifix ArmbarCrucifix armbar — the trapped arm extended by the attacker's legs while their hands stay free on the other arm. No step-over, no rotation, aDeadlift ArmbarDeadlift armbar — the near arm clamped from top turtle and the attacker standing to lift or walk the opponent over. The legs turn them; the Guard ArmbarGuard armbar — the armbar played from underneath. The angle is made by the hips rather than by stepping over from above, and the stack is thInverted ArmbarInverted armbar — attacks the elbow in supination with the arm rotated so the elbow faces upward; the attacker's chest or shoulder is the fuKesa Arm-CrushKesa arm-crush — the near arm broken over the attacker's thigh from the scarf hold, usually as the answer to a defended leg americana. LegitMir LockThe Mir lock in no-gi: an overhook shoulder lock on a bent arm, trapped across the attacker's torso and turned up and away — attacked from gMounted ArmbarMounted armbar — the arm isolated from above, the leg stepped over the head, and the attacker falling back to land perpendicular with the hiNear-Side ArmbarNear-side armbar — the near arm taken from a top pin by rising up and stepping over the head, with one shin in the armpit and the attacker'sRolling ArmbarRolling armbar — trap a turtled opponent's near arm, post a shin on the head and somersault forward over your own inside shoulder to land peShotgun ArmbarShotgun armbar — the wrist trapped in the attacker's armpit with their own forearm as the fulcrum under the elbow. Played from K-guard, Z-guSpinning ArmbarSpinning armbar — the far arm taken from a top pin. The head is trapped, the attacker rotates through to perpendicular, and the hip becomes Straight ArmlockStraight armlock — the arm-crush attack on an arm run across its owner's chest, compressed downward against the attacker's sternum from sideStraight Arm Shoulder LockStraight shoulder lock — arm in extension; downward shoulder pressure. Available from mount, side control, and knee on belly.3/4 ArmbarThe 3/4 armbar is the bent-arm counter to the standard armbar — entered when the opponent bends their arm to defend.Top Mir LockThe Mir lock from a pin: the bottom player's framing arm is overhooked above the elbow, folded across your chest and turned up and away.Top Shotgun ArmbarTop shotgun armbar — the near arm taken from a pin without rotating at all. The wrist is clamped in the armpit, the attacker's forearm is thWristlockWristlock — radiocarpal joint attack via hyperextension or deviation. Shorter injury window; restricted in beginner contexts.Armbar System — Full ExpressionFrom the catalogArmbar vs Triangle — The Guard DilemmaFrom the catalogGuard Armbar vs the Stack — Reading the DefenceFrom the catalogGuard Armbar — Achieve the Finish PositionFrom the catalogMount Armbar — Arm Extraction and Finish PositionFrom the catalogTriangle and Armbar — Two-Way Combination GameFrom the catalogTriangle System — Full ExpressionFrom the catalog

Games

Armbar System — Full Expressionarmbar · full-system · closed-guard · CLA · nogi-friendlyArmbar vs Triangle — The Guard Dilemmaclosed-guard · armbar · triangle · dilemma · CLA · nogi-friendlyGuard Armbar vs the Stack — Reading the Defenceclosed-guard · armbar · stack · triangle · CLA · nogi-friendlyGuard Armbar — Achieve the Finish Positionclosed-guard · armbar · finish-position · posture · CLA · nogi-friendlyMount Armbar — Arm Extraction and Finish Positionmount · armbar · s-mount · extraction · back-take · CLA · nogi-friendlyTriangle and Armbar — Two-Way Combination Gametriangle · armbar · closed-guard · combination · CLA · nogi-friendlyTriangle System — Full Expressiontriangle · full-system · closed-guard · armbar · CLA · nogi-friendly