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A submission that has been terrorizing training rooms finally made it onto the big stages. The inverted d’arce. Here we’re going to discuss why it’s gaining traction, how it works, and how to best take advantage of its unique properties.

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Now let’s get into it.

What Is The Inverted D’arce?

Jiujitsu moves quick. There are different rulesets that favor different tactics which different athletes adapt to week over week to create novel winning methods. The submissions themselves are refined over time to better answer modern defenses. That means we get a new submission almost every week. The Abe lock, Woj lock, and Mussolini lock are just a few of the leg submissions that recently rearranged what we knew to work to break a leg.

Two weeks ago Jacob “Jayrod” Rodriguez brought a rarely seen strangle to one of submission grappling’s biggest stages. The inverted d’arce. Here is what it looks like.

Jayrod hops over Beuhring’s leg to go to leg drag. Then he steps over to mount. Beuhring props up to his elbow. Jayrod gets a claw grip with his right and wrist rides with his left. Jayrod keeps the wrist ride and backs up to reach under Beuhring’s arm with his right like he’s going for an arm triangle. Then he switches his grip for an inverted d'arce and chair sits to finish the submission.

Jacob “Jayrod” Rodriguez - Kevin Beuhring

You might be saying “okay but this would never work in the streets”. Maybe you’re right, but it is already working in the cages.

Khasan is passing half guard with head and arm control. Khasan puts his right shin on Weems’s belt line to hold Weems’s hips down so he can knee slice out. Khasan switches his grip so his outside arm is flush with his opponent’s back and his primary arm is grabbing his support forearm. Weems submits.

Joshua Weems -Khasan Magomedsharipov

These submissions were set up from different spots. What do you notice about the finish? Both matches ended as the defender got on their side to try to escape. That’s the key to understanding this submission and how it fits into the modern strangle skillset.

How Does The Inverted D’arce Fit In?

The best way to think about the inverted d’arce is as an extension of the arm triangle.

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