Cross Choke From Closed Guard

Submission Gi only

Also known as:

Cross Collar Choke From Closed Guard

The cross choke from closed guard is a high-percentage gi submission where the bottom player feeds both hands deep into the opponent's collar with grips crossing over each other, creating a scissoring action across the neck. It is one of the first submissions available from closed guard and remains effective at all levels due to its deceptive simplicity and the difficulty of defending once both grips are secured.

Quick Reference

Key principles

· The first grip must be fed palm-up as deep as possible into the far side of the collar, with knuckles pressing against the neck.
· The second hand enters palm-down underneath the first arm, creating the cross-grip scissoring mechanism that compresses both carotid arteries.
· Breaking the opponent's posture with your closed guard and pulling them down is essential before and during the choke to prevent them from posturing out.
· The choking power comes from expanding your chest and drawing your elbows down toward your own hips, not from squeezing with your hands.
· If the opponent tries to posture up, use your legs to break them back down or threaten a hip bump sweep to force them to base with their hands.

Execution

1 From closed guard, break your opponent's posture by pulling them forward with your legs and gripping behind their head or collar.
2 Feed your first hand palm-up deep into their far-side collar so your knuckles sit snugly against the side of their neck.
3 Slide your second hand palm-down under your first forearm and grip deep into the opposite collar, forming an X at the wrists across their throat.
4 Squeeze your elbows tight to your body, flare your wrists outward, and pull your elbows toward your hips while hugging them down with your guard to finish the choke.

Common mistakes

× Shallow grips where the fingers only grab the collar edge result in a crushing windpipe crank rather than a clean blood choke, giving the opponent time to escape.
× Attempting the choke while the opponent has full upright posture allows them to stack, create distance, and peel grips—posture must be broken first.
× Crossing the arms too high near the chin instead of snug against the neck turns the technique into a face crank that strong opponents can endure and escape.

Do it from

Positions and situations where the Cross Choke From Closed Guard shows up.

Closed Guard Bottom