At times, it feels like the term “Mixed Martial Arts” is a bit of an overstatement. Take a second to contemplate this. For a sport that espouses the best from a spectrum of martial arts, there are only a few techniques from boxing, wrestling, Muay Thai and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu that form the bedrock of MMA
Fighters are always trying to permute and combine the intricacies of these sports. This isn’t a knock on MMA, but the most effective and opportune techniques are those that are drilled relentlessly and very rarely do we see finishes coming by a predominantly undiscovered instrument.
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Guillotine chokes, rear naked chokes, triangle chokes, armbars and kimuras are the few representatives of centuries-old martial arts that MMA draws inspiration from. Why is that? Perhaps because one of the commandments of BJJ is to wrangle for position over submission?
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Or is it because these are the most efficient game changers within the context? The answer is moot because the point I’m coming to is that there are certain fighters who worship the submission, which, contrary to its description, is more a science than an art.
To paraphrase Conor McGregor’s movement coach and overnight MMA guru Ido Portal, when you look at the arm rather than the punch, you’re more aware of the possibilities. Oleksiy Oliynyk probably shares that perspective, which is why possibly he has more wins by Ezekiel Choke than everyone in the history of MMA cumulatively.
Now this isn’t a tribute to the Boa Constrictor, but a commemoration of the most elusive and artful submissions in recent MMA:
#10 Ryo Chonan submits Anderson Silva with a flying scissor heel hook
The Submission of the Year in 2004. Chonan’s slick and fluent transition made it look as though even average Joes could pull off the Sambo takedown and the agonising leg lock. Former UFC Heavyweight Champion Josh Barnett, who was commentating for the fight, said that he “lost his mind” when Chonan pulled off the submission.
Barnett’s retelling isn’t without histrionics, as he makes it sound like Chonan capped a fairytale comeback with a miraculous submission.
The truth is, Chonan was most likely ahead on the scorecards and Silva, aware of this, was upping his offence. In 2004, Silva’s reputation was nowhere near the mythical heights it would scale in the years to come. But anyone who watches the video will instantly recognise The Spider’s duck-and-weave, sniper-like style.
Silva’s dervish calms for a moment, a moment too long he would realise painfully. Chonan scouts Silva’s lead leg and pounces on it. Watch the video and imagine the magnitude of pain that forced Silva to tap almost instantly.
#9 Nick Diaz submits Takanori Gomi with a Gogoplata
This was PRIDE’s matchmaking at it’s best – the brash American versus the decorated hometown legend. Diaz was by no means a novice, but many doubted his odds against the 2005 Fighter of the Year and then PRIDE Lightweight Champion, Takanori Gomi.
The first round was a firefight, with “The Fireball Kid” giving Diaz’s famed chin all it could handle in the onset. Diaz gave twice as good as he got as the round wore on and when the bell sounded, Gomi looked like he had just swum across a sea after being chased by hounds.
As soon as the bell signalled the second round, Diaz smelled blood. Out of desperation, a fatigued and frustrated Gomi shot for a slipshod takedown. Fans who are aware of this submission, know that the reason for its rarity is the contortionist-like flexibility needed to snap it in.
For pro-wrestling fans, this is the submission The Undertaker has adopted as “the Hell’s Gate”. But Diaz’s razor-sharp BJJ made it look as natural as a young lion hunting a gazelle. Years later, McGregor-vanquisher and Nick’s younger brother Nate submitted Gomi with an armbar.
#8 Alexander Otsuka’s double armbar against Mike Bourke
Another gem from PRIDE’s heyday and more importantly, one of the few sparks from Otsuka’s spluttering MMA career. A pro-wrestler-turned-mixed martial artist, Otsuka’s style in MMA always evinced his wrestling roots and a time when the lines often blurred between the two sports, this wasn’t a hitch.
Mike Bourke had taken this fight on short notice and dwarfed Otsuka by 60 lbs. The American used his size and power to quickly assumed top position. Bourke’s wrestler-brawler style had no answer for Otsuka’s Jiu-Jitsu, and to everyone’s wonder, the “Diet Butcher” turned what looked like a hip drill into a never-before double armbar!
#7 Charles Oliveira’s calf slicer against Eric Wisely
A Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu prodigy who began collecting prize medals as a teen, Oliveira tore into the UFC’s Lightweight division with a couple of submission wins. But two losses and one no-contest later, he decided to drop to Featherweight.
His first fight in that weight class was against fellow 145-lbs debutant Eric Wisely. The tough and experienced striker looked completely out of his depth and was forced to tap to a torturous Calf Slicer in the first round.
#6 Frank Mir’s inside shoulder lock on Pete Williams
Another one from the archives, which, coincidentally, proffers insight into the evolution of MMA itself. It’s been fifteen years since Frank Mir almost wrenched Pete Williams’ arm off his torso. Mir, one of the all-time greats of MMA grappling, was one of the first to see the painful possibilities of the terrifyingly beautiful art of BJJ.
His submission skills would make him one of the most feared and successful fighters of his day and empower him to trample a path of snapped limbs en-route to the UFC Heavyweight Championship.
Pete Williams has a place in the UFC Hall Of Fame for engineering the first head kick knockout in the promotion’s history. But this was an era characterised by one-dimensional tough guys who rode their reputations until they were stopped in their tracks by nascent experts of the finer points of MMA. Williams retired after this fight with a record of 12-6.
#5 Chris Lytle’s double-barrelled Inverted Triangle Choke and Armbar against Jason Gilliam
Chris “Lights Out” Lytle would indubitably find a place in the upper reaches of a list of fan favourites who never won a title. The 20-fight UFC veteran was the first fighter in the promotion’s history to win “Submission of the night” and “Knockout of the night” bonuses.
A former pro-boxer with twenty-two wins by submission and three “Submission of the night” bonuses, Lytle retired in 2011 with a win over Dan Hardy. The firefighter and TV host was never knocked out or submitted in the UFC, with the only stoppage coming on doctor’s orders after a cut.
This was Gilliam’s second and last fight in the UFC, with his other contest ending in a submission loss to Jamie Varner.
#4 Phoenix Jones rises from the ashes to submit Roberto Yong with a Head Scissors
Easily the most interesting fighter in this list, Phoenix Jones (real name Ben Fodor) is a crimefighter in real life. And not of the organised or uniformed variety; he’s, well, for lack of a better term, a superhero. Like Kick-Ass. And his oeuvre isn’t to be scoffed at – he’s prevented automobile theft, drunk driving and assault.
But, no good deed goes unpunished and Jones, who has been called “a costumed vigilante” and “a deeply misguided individual” by authorities, was once arrested and detained after he broke up a fight using pepper spray.
Like Batman against Bane or almost any other superhero, Jones literally had his back to the wall against the quick-fisted Yong. Just when a knockout looked certain, Jones took Yong down and used a Kimura to lock in an uncommon Leg Scissors Choke. Jones’ next fight in WSOF was against his foster brother, ex-UFC fighter Carlos Fodor.
#3 Jamelle Jones serves Danny Holmes just desserts with a Banana Split
Ordinarily, the term “Banana Split” would induce salivation; but for Danny Holmes, it possibly causes a twinge in the groin. In the second MMA fight of his career, Jones transitioned to a position native to amateur wrestling, which is used to pin an adversary on their back for a point.
The commentators echoed the fans’ bewilderment, which turned to gaping admiration when Holmes tapped verbally. An uneducated guess, but I am of the opinion that most fighters would prefer to get choked out rather than stretched out like this. This is as close to the medieval torture practice of drawing and quartering as we’ll witness in the modern age.
#2 Toby Imada puts Jorge Masvidal to bed with an Inverted Triangle Choke
MMA fans would be interminably occupied by and immeasurably grateful to anyone who could compile a list of the most spectacular finishes outside the UFC. You’d be surprised by the number of them.
Journeyman Toby Imada concocted 2009’s Submission Of The Year against a raging Jorge Masvidal. The streetfighter-turned-mixed martial artist all but drowned Imada with his strikes and looked like he had the win locked.
But Masvidal showed the same cavalier manner that cost him a sure UFC win against Al Iaquinta. Late in the third round, Imada, almost parasitically, took Masvidal’s back and locked his legs around Gamebred’s neck.
Like something more common to Animal Planet than sports, Masvidal went limp like a python’s prey and Imada secured a spot in the Lightweight Championship tournament final, in the most dramatic fashion.
His fairytale resurgence would be in vain as he would be submitted by eventual winner and longtime Lightweight king, not to mention future UFC 155 lbs champion, Eddie Alvarez.
#1 Chan Sung Jung turns Leonard Garcia into a Mobius Strip with a Twister
Up to this juncture, this list bears no definite order; but make no mistake, this is the rarest documented submission in the history of MMA. The Korean Zombie is always a draw and has more than a handful of awards as testament “Fight of the year”, “Knockout of the night”, “Fastest (tied) knockout in UFC history”, etc.
But his “Submission of the year 2011” will possibly be awarded a spot of its own, unique from the rest of the trophies. It is the only Twister in the history of the UFC, and we daresay, MMA.
Relatively obscure in the West due to originating his MMA career in his homeland of South Korea, “The Korean Zombie” quickly captured audiences with his dauntless aggression and steely chin. After losing a split decision to Leonard Garcia in the WEC, which many believed unjust, Jung stepped in as a late replacement for Nam Phan to rematch Garcia in the UFC.
After the momentous win, Jung was asked how he contrived such a manoeuvre and he replied sheepishly that he learnt it from watching Youtube videos of BBJ maverick Eddie Bravo.
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