No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu

Armbar

Category: Joint lock Rank: #3 Used Count: 518

Overview

The armbar is one of the most classic and effective submissions in grappling. Applied by isolating the opponent’s arm, securing control of the shoulder line, and extending the elbow against the hips, it creates a powerful joint lock that can force an immediate tap. Its mechanics are simple, reliable, and usable at every level, making it one of the cornerstone attacks in jiu-jitsu.

In modern no-gi, the armbar is part of a broader attacking system built around breaking posture, controlling the shoulders, and using constant threats of back exposure, triangles, and off-balancing to isolate the arm. High-level athletes often chain failed armbar attempts with leg entanglements. Its versatility and high success rate make it a staple submission from guard, mount, back control, and scrambles.

Common Applications

From closed guard: Break posture, isolate the arm, angle the hips, and extend through the elbow while controlling the opponent’s shoulder line.
From mount: Step over the head, fall to the side while maintaining arm isolation, and finish with tight hip extension and controlled wrist positioning.
From back control or triangle setups: Threaten the strangle or triangle to force defensive reactions, then transition directly to the armbar as the opponent exposes their arm.
During scrambles: Catch the arm when the opponent posts, reaches, or frames, turning their defensive movement into a controlled extension. This is often done with the use of the Choi bar.

Related Techniques

Choi bar, Omoplata, Triangle

ARMBAR ATHLETES (RANKS 1–20)

Rank	Athlete	Count
1	Adele Fornarino	15
1	Dante Leon	15
2	Mateusz Szczecinski	12
2	Jasmine Rocha	12
3	Deandre Corbe	11
4	Haisam Rida	10
4	David Garmo	10
5	Mica Galvao	8
5	PJ Barch	8
5	Ffion Davies	8
5	Fabricio Andrey	8
5	Max Hanson	8
6	Gordon Ryan	7
6	Kenta Iwamoto	7
6	Roberto Jimenez	7
6	Keith Krikorian	7
6	Roberto Abreu	7
6	Jon Blank	7
6	Dominic Mejia	7
7	Joao Miyao	6
7	Aurelie Le Vern	6
7	Alexandre Ribeiro	6
8	Helena Crevar	5
8	Kendall Reusing	5
8	Morgan Black	5
8	Andrew Tackett	5
8	Gianni Grippo	5
8	Amanda Bruse	5
8	Mason Fowler	5
8	Michael Sainz	5
8	Ana Mayordomo	5
8	Vagner Rocha	5
9	Jason Rau	4
9	Sarah Galvao	4
9	Achilles Rocha	4
9	Grace Gundrum	4
9	Alan Sanchez	4
9	Daniel Sathler	4
9	Renato Canuto	4
9	Josh Cisneros	4
9	Brianna Ste-Marie	4
9	Ross Nicholls	4
9	Alex Enriquez	4
9	Felipe Pena	4
10	Fellipe Andrew	3
10	Shawn Melanson	3
10	Felipe Machado	3
10	Aaron Johnson	3
10	Placido Santos	3
10	Carlos Henrique	3
10	Mayssa Bastos	3
10	Charles Negromonte	3
10	Cole Abate	3
10	Marcelo Garcia	3
10	Roosevelt Sousa	3
10	Davis Asare	3
10	Lucas Barbosa	3
10	Lachlan Giles	3
10	Giancarlo Bodoni	3
10	Elijah Carlton	3
10	Elizabeth Mitrovic	3
10	Kaynan Duarte	3
10	Julian Espinosa	3
10	Ethan Crelinsten	3
10	Izaak Michell	3
10	Frank Rosenthal	3
10	Felipe Costa	3
10	Oliver Taza	3
11	Bobby Sandhu	2
11	Abraham La Montagne	2
11	Beatriz Mesquita	2
11	Craig Jones	2
11	Derek Rayfield	2
11	Elisabeth Clay	2
11	Fabian Ramirez	2
11	Faris Ben-Lamkadem	2
11	Gabrielle Garcia	2
11	Garry Tonon	2
11	Gavin Corbe	2
11	Ingridd Sousa	2
11	Javier Barter	2
11	Jeremy Skinner	2
11	Jett Thompson	2
11	John Combs	2
11	Kade Ruotolo	2
11	Lily Houben	2
11	Lucas Pinheiro	2
11	Luccas Lira	2
11	Margot Ciccarelli	2
11	Maria Clara Cardoso De Abreu	2
11	Meyram Maquine	2
11	Nicholas Meregali	2
11	Nikolay Vetrov	2
11	Owen Jones	2
11	Paulo Miyao	2
11	Ryan Aitken	2
11	Samuel Nagai	2
11	Sirena Allen-de Guzman	2
11	Yuri Simoes	2
12	Joao Assonitis	1
12	Fabyury Khrysthyan	1
12	Almog Britch	1
12	Johnny Tama	1
12	Espen Mathiesen	1
12	Jonnatas Gracie	1
12	EoghanO'Flanagan	1
12	Josh Hinger	1
12	Josh Saunders	1
12	Joshua Squires	1
12	Jozef Chen	1
12	JT Torres	1
12	Eoghan O'Flanagan	1
12	Shay Montague	1
12	Emily Leyva	1
12	Keenan Cornelius	1
12	Eliazar Guardiola	1
12	Eddie Cummings	1
12	Dylan Benningfield	1
12	Kevin Beuhring	1
12	Kieran Kichuk	1
12	Kody Steele	1
12	Kostiantyn Zhyvanov	1
12	Kron Gracie	1
12	Diogo Reis	1
12	Lara Dempsey	1
12	Layla Szymanska	1
12	Liam Urwin	1
12	Liisi Vaht	1
12	William Tackett	1
12	Declan Moody	1
12	Tainan Dalpra	1
12	Tammi Musumeci	1
12	Danielle Kelly	1
12	Marco Mendes	1
12	Marcus Almeida	1
12	Tarik Hopstock	1
12	Taylor Ellis	1
12	Chris Wojcik	1
12	Chloe Roberts	1
12	Max Gimenis	1
12	Cassia Moura	1
12	Caroline Vinhaes	1
12	Taylor Pearman	1
12	Brandon Reed	1
12	Bradley Schneider	1
12	Mikey Musumeci	1
12	Bernardo Faria	1
12	Nathan Haddad	1
12	Tommy Langaker	1
12	Nick Mataya	1
12	Nicky Ryan	1
12	Nicole Evangelista	1
12	Travis Haven	1
12	Bella Mir	1
12	Tye Ruotolo	1
12	Paige Borras	1
12	Paige Ivette Clymer	1
12	Adam Benayoun	1
12	Pedro Machado	1
12	Bartosz Lukaszewicz	1
12	Anton Minenko	1
12	Raajus Dewan	1
12	Andy Varela	1
12	Andy Murasaki	1
12	Andrew DeGraff	1
12	Roger Gracie	1
12	Andre Galvao	1
12	Ana Lima	1
12	Ruslan Abdulaev	1
12	Victor Hugo	1
12	Salla Simola	1
12	Vitoria Vieira	1
12	Anabel Lopez	1
12	Geo Martinez	1
12	Gase Sanita	1
12	Gairbeg Ibragimov	1
12	Hayden Bailey	1
12	Helder Rodrigues	1
12	Gabriel Sousa	1
12	Igor Tanabe	1
12	Indy Briar	1
12	Savion Maranon	1
12	Gabriel Brod	1
12	Jacob Couch	1
12	Jadeya Reber	1
12	Jake Straus	1
12	Jansen Gomes	1
12	Francisco Lo	1
12	Ffion Davis	1
12	Sean Yadimarco	1
12	Jayden Groner	1
12	Sebastian Attard	1
12	Sergio Rios	1