These “Orders of Operation” are what you must follow to properly sink in a triangle choke, according to Ryan Hall’s (the Lloyd Irvin prodigy) How to Master the Triangle Choke course. It’s good stuff.

Threaten the Triangle Choke

One arm in, one arm out.

When you have one of your opponent’s arms inside your guard and one arm out you have effectively threatened the triangle choke.

Lock the Triangle Choke

Once you have threatened the triangle it’s paramount that you lock it in to place quickly to prevent your opponent’s escape.

To lock in the triangle choke you place the top of your ankle/bottom of your shin into the bend of the opposite knee to create what’s called a figure four.

After you achieve this position it’s difficult for your opponent to escape.

Attain a Perpendicular Angle

As soon as you lock it down you’ll rotate your body away from the trapped arm to eliminate the space that remains.

Finish

From here you are looking to underhook the outside arm or the closest leg to assist your rotation.

Squeeze those knees together and rotate until you get the tap.



About the author: Jonathan Stamey is the Editor and Director of Operations for Atlantic MMA, Inc. He can be reached at jstamey@atlanticmma.com.