I'm a big guy and powerlifter. I am slow and defensive. Here is what works on me: Kimuras from leg scissor choke head control (I believe you have taught this move before) Armbars that are *well* set up. If your armbar setup is weak, no. If you know how to break grip, maybe. But leg engagement is *critical*. If you're not smashing my face hard with your legs, and preventing me from taking an angle, it's going nowhere and I'm passing to side control or hitchhiking my way outta armbar town. Rear naked choke is not strong against me. I know it's a vulnerability, so I start with guys on the back often. I rarely tap to a RNC with good shoulder defense. Setting up an armbar from RNC position is much easier and faster. If you think about it, the deadlift is the strongest movement for everyone (heavily compound movement), and the bicep is probably the weakest on just about everyone (small muscle group, being isolated), so if strength is the issue, this is the best chance you have to win on strength vs strength. Leg locks... They can, but you have to be careful there because it's very strong, but early on, there's still plenty of defense there and 50-50 positions are common where it's just a question of who can finish faster from an even opportunity. Leg attacks *can* finish me well, but I've had plenty of times where I am sitting in a leg lock position and I just pick up the other guys leg and do my own finish, which is stronger... I haven't been tapped by Americana for a long time. Darce and alternative chokes... Don't even bother unless you're much better than me. I had a black belt try to darce me for 12 minutes and he couldn't make it work. Just in regular rolling, he can tap me in under 5 seconds in about 50 different ways. Haha Best option is to take top position and wait a couple of minutes to tire me out and watch for openings. Because of my lats, elbows are usually not tucked well and open season. In order to get that gap closed, my hand has to go down near my hip. Easy pickin's. 250lb powerlifter of modest accomplishment. Not the strongest guy out there, but a big hassle for guys even a full belt level above me.
Mr. Eschelar, I practice jujutsu for 3+ years and nice words "With armchoke you cant slow opponent". I have studied in Group where guys have better fit and Im not experienced in chokes in parter 💥 Wish good luck, and when I do armchoke in stance , it's easier to throw opponent after 70° implement - it's good to improve with atemi if little height. Thanks
I'm a shorter guy so anyone over 6'3", I've been very successful (especially in warmer environments) with a modified triangle choke around the testicles. Please note though, that if its not above 60°F, you Must incorporate shaft, or a simple cough could land you in a tea bag choke. If this has happened to you, please like and follow for advanced counters, and I just might save your life.
@@KnightJiuJitsu I totally understand professor. I feel like now that the seeds been planted, when the opportunity sprouts, you'll know it when ya see it. 🙏 Much Respect
Being a 5’1 male and finally getting this information is greatly appreciated! I’ve been put in the worse positions for the last 2 months and I think it’s time that I approach my style more on logical stand point!! Thank you Eli!
I get it, trust me. I was very small for years when I first started, and still approach a lot as a smaller person than I actually am. I hope these ideas in this video are helpful!
I'm 5.6 and I fought a 6.2 240 guy.. and I had him tap out 3x. Guillotine. Rear naked and running arm bar. He never fought me again..I rolled with 6 footer won half time🤩🤩thank you for class
One thing about key locks (bent arm locks) against us bigger guys, most of us have very UNFLEXABLE shoulders and when they work they work quick. Add in that to get those shoulders many of us have jacked up our shoulders key locks do work, it's getting them in the first place the will be the challenge.
I agree with that. I'm 6'4 but not jacked, and my experience against stockier people is that shoulder locks work great if you can get them, because of the inflexibility. The struggle is if the set up isn't perfect and they muscle out of it. I prefer omoplatas because I'm using my legs and body against their arm, but at high levels omos tend to be low %, but if you can control the escape it's a good way to get on top. Top side shoulder locks are a different beast because you have gravity and the ability to move around on your side. I love mount, but I'd say if you're short and small, a very moving transitional knee on belly, North south, etc. approach is going to be the best. And if you're short, probably no omo sweeps. Just some Marcelo style butterfly, xguard, single x stuff. I think everyone can be choked. But triangle chokes, which I dearly love with my long legs, are just not a good idea against dudes with really wide shoulders and weight to use in the stack. Like I would never try and triangle a sumo wrestler, because that's a guaranteed way to get stacked and have it thrown off and end up in side control. Arm bars and back takes are my favorite, but traditional arm locks from guard are hard to set up against broad shoulder dudes, because they can widen their elbows and shoulders and you'll never get the shoulder isolation for the arm bar. But the widened elbows is where the armdrag and hip bump kimura guillotine sequence comes in. Also kimuras can be used to set up side guard and back takes.
@@seattlesoundisgrunge - You are describing just what smaller guys would use to get to my back and choke me. The other thing that works are things like 10 finger chokes.
Agree with you on the shoulders but no way a smaller guy has enough strength to finish with their arms. They will need to do like a Mir lock, omaplata or like the armlock gordon Ryan did in Kyle boehm with full body recruitment.
@@seattlesoundisgrunge yep as a big guy purple belt, smaller guys submit me exclusively with rear naked choke or arm bars, wait I forgot heel hooks that happens too.
@@Zhcwu heel hooks destroy everyone lol 😂. I gotta watch out with my long legs. They're awesome, but sometimes it makes guard recovery harder when big guys sprawl/smash pass on me, because my legs are so long it's hard to get them back in the party; you'll never get passed them, until you do lol. And they make for a nice target for leg lockers. Only problems I see with the overuse or reliance on leg locks is they expose your back, and depending on the leg entanglement position, it can open up the face and body for strikes in MMA or self defense.
As the aforementioned big strong gorilla in this scenario, I will make a distinction while Arm-in chokes are a near impossibility to finish, whether that be guillotines or triangles, however a 10-finger or high elbow guillotine where my arms are out are pretty effective, because at that point my heavy body becomes a counterweight for your choke instead of something capable of pushing you around.
Thank you for these tips. I am competing in my first tournament in the 222+ category (I'm 230) and I'm expecting I'll run across some dudes in the 250+ category. Great channel with great content.
Thank you for the useful i information on submissions smaller guys might do to me as a 6'5.5", 220-225 lbs guy . Now I will know which submissions to avoid (*evil laugh*).
I don't believe in fight smaller opponents , the sport is about finding vulnerabilities within the opponent and exploiting it big or small . Fight anyone , the best one and get betger
As a new Jiu Jitsu practioner that is strong and big, I appreciate this video because I can understand what moves I can try to force myself out off. Thanks for the video
Heel hooking a big dude is the easy part, but exposing their legs is an entire different problem. They sit on their feet the entire roll! So how do you expose their legs cause them dudes are scared of leglock battles?
Professor Knight, question: you mention the Kimura and Americana needing spot on technique to submit the bigger guys. Is the inverse also true that bigger/stronger guys with sloppy technique can sub smaller guys due to strength?
Definitely. Across the board, flawed technique requires more physical attributes to make work, so the bigger and stronger guys have the advantage in that department.
The best submissions against big guys are the ones that happen 4 minutes into a 5 minute round, preferably in the last or next to last round of the day.
Eli and his honesty is something that is very rare if you been around the bjj community for at least a decade. I am 6'3, weight floats between 210-225lb( whatever I want it to be) my body fat never gets higher than 13%..i lift 7 days a week, two a days...been on the mats for over a decade. My bjj is average. Pretty much everything he talked about is fact rolling with people like us. I am still in the 1200lb club...400 press across the board. The only way I even come close to being handled is leg locks.....and thats not being cocky..thats being truthful....BUTTT...the truly high level bjj guys ( not just regular blackbelts.) Whose techniques are really high level...they can actually finish attacks on my upper body....its a very small percentage...but out of decade of training...I can count on 1 hand...those who were successful.
Size and strength are definitely huge considerations, and anyone saying they aren’t is either delusional or inexperienced. I appreciate the comment and the insight 🙌
Do you have a preferred way to take the back against bigger guys? I would guess slipping to the back for a take down on the feet is best, but what if we start from knees in training? Note: The best take down I've found against larger guys is the sumi gaeshi. Not great for back attacks,but it keeps them off you for a bit.
I have a white belt training partner who is 340 and athletic. I don't go for arm bars on him because his arm strength is INSANE. I prefer to go for chokes and omaplatas on him. If you want to make a strong man weak put his arm behind his back
Excellent video just what im looking for 😅 Im 98kg had a roll with 120kg+ i took him down but he reversed me got side control and i pulled guard he couldn't finish me . His trainer put his hand up at the end of the match .😂. i would say practicing some judo and wrestling definitely helps.
Wow...the truth hurts. As a smaller guy, this was incredibly discouraging. IF I can get to his back, IF I can get him into the perfect position for an arm bar or heel hook? Maybe I should just follow Master Ken's advice and kick him in the groin three or four times. Though your advice of only fighting smaller weaker people was pretty insightful as well.
Coincidentally, I just recently told my 3 kids to each specialize in your 3 recommendations. That way they can also all attack one big person and have a better chance because they wont be targeting the same limbs at once, while still being able to individually cause damage.
Another one I would say would be tough on guys with big traps and shoulders. But again, like any of the others, if you’re more technically proficient then it’s legit
I just found myself frustrated by this video. I roll with a larger opponent whom I just can't seem to get out from under. He's heavy, strong and keeps all his weight on to of me. Smh.
Great vid, professor. Can you go a bit further into the dangers of heel hooks? I had one attempted on me and I freaked out a bit because I understood the risk I was suddenly in and it was a whitebelt going for the submission (he had seen it in a YT video and had no idea he wasn't supposed to try that yet). Any chance you could make a vid explaining which submissions are appropriate at what belt level and the risks associated with those submissions? I know this sounds painfully fundamental but most schools I have been to never actually take the time to explain these critically important basics.
The triangle is good on any size opponent. IMO Say a street fight you catch the bigger person with a flying or guard triangle. You can use your body to push and pull them into elbows or fists. If for some reason the person doesn't 💤. If you have the right angle you can break their elbow or just switch to an arm bar. If it's open. Anyway you look at the triangle it's highly effective in multiple positions. Even standing toe to toe.
Hi Eli thank you for this. I’ve got a few solid heavyweights in my gym I roll with regularly, so this is explaining what I know from experience! Any attempt at said bad submission ideas lead to being stacked and held in bottom side control or north south. This one guy loves to pass the guard and easily manages to pin my legs together and pass. I can pass his guard when he pulls, but when he comes forward like a tractor it’s HARD WORK. What would your strategy be? Ps: I’m your fan, when are you coming to Australia to teach??
Man, Australia is definitely a place I want to visit and I’ve spoken to people in the past (pre-pandemic) so it will definitely happen in the future. As for the guy pinning your legs when passing, it’s tricky to say without seeing the exact pass sequence, but there’s typically a battle for control of the knee line. From what you’re describing, I tend to like to use a Heisman style post for butterfly recovery. And it sounds like butterfly and half guard will be your friends against a dude like that.
Thanks for your response. I’ll try the Heisman escape next time! Gotta catch him early though haha he’s got like 40 kg on me. When you come to Australia make sure to let us know! Would love to promote whatever seminar you choose to do and to learn from you in person. Mullumbimby is the coolest little town you’ll ever visit, next to Byron Bay. Waiting for your visit!
You mentioned nobody has super muscular ankles, but you didn't really talk about the straight ankle lock. I'm a relatively small (145lbs, 5'11) 4 stripe white belt, and thats one of the few leg locks I have some experience with. Assuming I learned it properly and safely would you recommend I focus more on the heel hooks instead of the straight ankle for bigger opponents?
The straight ankle can be a powerful tool for sure, and if you’re having success with it, then kudos. I was just mainly saying that, mechanically, heel hooks are harder to resist generally speaking. Plus, most gyms tend to frown upon white belts doing any leg attacks beyond the straight ankle.
Very helpful vid! I think it'd be worth your time to do a gi-specific sequel. I don't think all gi chokes are created equal for defeating giants, especially since it's harder to break them big boi grips As an aside, I'm glad people are finally okay talking about realities of mismatched size and athleticism instead of mindlessly repeating 90s Gracie marketing. Technique can make up that gap, but there is a gap! Icy Mike has a great vid on the topic as well edit: that icy mike vid is called "BJJ is not designed for small people" and it's worth a watch just to see his Chewy impression 😂
For most chokes, absolutely. But you have gi-only game changers like bow and arrow and cross collar and others like Ezekiel who's no gi analog is meaningfully different in application and defense. But fwiw, I think the ol RNC is prob the best strategy against big boys, gi or no gi, especially since agility can be useful in back takes
Great content ! Are biceps slicer and generally compression locks efficent against bigger guys ? (since you're pretty much pressing their big muscles against their bones ? 👀)
Good question. I would say no, typically. It’s hard to break things with compressions (thought possible). And with bigger opponents especially, the tap should come from threat of breaking or sleeping rather than just from pain.
Love the video but I can’t use chokes and arm bars keep me away from the body. I’ve used americanas from side control. They work great cause usually the bigger guys are not as flexible, so as soon as they feel the stretch, they’ll stop fighting.
Professor Knight, your content is always amazing - one quick suggestion: get a better microphone for your video camera -if you film with your iphone, there are many great, low costs options there which will significantly improve your audio! Just an idea from a weaker and frankly scared blue belt..
I'm was also use to buff people because I was a wrestler,so I love to wrestle someone who's more of a challenge because of buffs arms; however, handling to much wait when grappling can cause your arms to fill numb and weird after grappling.
Great Insight. The thing is that for a bigger stronger guy to become way more technical than a smaller guy the big guy eventually have to lose some weight and get smaller to become more technical unles he is Yoel Romero lol.
I have slim arms but when I do sparring I can easily not get dominated by my buff and also I tried to go where the most muscles are to submit my opponent.
As a fair sized dude ( 6'1" x 290lbs ) I enjoy these videos . I do this mostly for the fun and exercise . The self defense side is a nice benefit as well . I like finding ways others can do well against me . What take downs work , what doesn't , chokes ( most don't cause I don't have much neck ) , submissions and other things . The reversals are one thing I stress when rolling , as they go for something they are opening themselves up to me just muscling it my way . Thanks for these so we can work on them !
In my gym the only way to submit bigger guys is sweeping, mounting and going for armbars or like you said, leglocks. In the gi I can do chokes as well.
