At UFC 316, Merab Dvalishvili locked up a north south choke on Sean O'Malley in the third round of a bantamweight title fight. O'Malley tapped at 4:42. Most people watching didn't even realize what happened.
It doesn't look like much from the outside. No flashy spinning attack. No dramatic squeeze. Just position, pressure, and then the lights go out.
Marcelo Garcia built a career on it. Jeff Monson racked up 17 MMA wins with it. Research shows it takes an average of 9.4 seconds to put someone unconscious once it's locked in properly.
But it's also called the "hardest simple" choke in BJJ. The difference between finishing it and just laying there squeezing is a handful of small details most people never learn. Here's every detail that matters.
What Is the North South Choke?
Most people assume this is an air choke. They think you're crushing the windpipe. They're wrong.
The north south choke is a blood choke. It compresses both carotid arteries simultaneously, cutting blood flow to the brain. You're not waiting for someone to run out of air. You're shutting down the blood supply. That's why it works so fast.
Here's how it works mechanically. You're in north south position, chest to chest with your opponent, your head pointing toward their feet. Your choking arm wraps under their neck. Your bicep compresses one carotid artery while your lat and shoulder compress the other side.
Think of it as a rear naked choke in reverse — same bilateral compression, just from the opposite direction.
One important distinction. The north south choke does NOT include the opponent's arm in the strangle. That's what separates it from an arm triangle. Think of it as an upside-down arm triangle minus the arm. Just your body against their neck.
The choke is legal at all belt levels in both IBJJF and ADCC competition. Legal in the UFC and every major MMA organization. Zero restrictions on when you can use it.
How to Set Up the North South Choke
Most people fail this choke before they ever start squeezing. The entry matters more than the finish.
Here are four setups that actually work.
From Side Control When Your Opponent Pushes
This is the most natural entry and the one Robson Robinho teaches in the Breaking Guard System.
You start in side control with a solid cross face. You're controlling their shoulder and pushing their face. As Robinho puts it: "Your goal is to make the position uncomfortable for your partner. Have to be uncomfortable to him to be comfortable to you."
When your opponent starts pushing you to create space (and they will), that's your window. Switch your arm to trap their neck and transition to north south. Speed matters here. Robinho drills this as one explosive movement: "When he start pushing me, I step here, boom, drop my body weight here. I trap his neck."
From a Failed Kimura Attempt
This is one of the best setups because it solves a critical problem automatically.
The opponent's head must be OFF the mat for the north south choke to work. That's a common failure point. When you hunt a Kimura from side control, the opponent naturally lifts their head to defend. They just created the exact opening you need.
Abandon the Kimura. Thread the arm. Transition to north south. The choke is right there.
From a D'Arce Escape
When your opponent escapes a D'Arce choke by extracting their arm, they move directly into prime north south choke position. Most people see a D'Arce escape as a failure. Smart grapplers see it as a setup.
The D'Arce and the north south choke are perfect complements. Miss one, catch the other.
Against a Defensive Opponent
Marcelo Garcia points out something most people miss. The north south choke is actually most available when the bottom player is on full lockdown, refusing to move. Their defensive posture creates the opening because they're so focused on not giving anything up that they forget about the neck.
Step-by-Step North South Choke Execution
Five steps. Get each one right and the tap comes fast. Miss one and you'll be grinding away wondering why nothing's happening.
Step 1: Secure the Position
Get chest to chest in north south. Sprawl your hips. Keep your base low and wide. Your weight should be heavy on their upper body. Don't rush past this. A weak position means a weak choke every single time.
Step 2: Thread the Choking Arm Deep
This is where most people lose the choke. You need to get your arm as deep as possible under their neck BEFORE you start moving your body into finishing position.
Here's a detail from my buddy Babu — Sergiio "Babu" Gasparelli — that changes everything. Arm depth varies by body type. As Babu explains: "My arm doesn't go too deep under his neck. Pedro goes deeper because his arm is smaller. So he needs to put it deeper, but I don't."
Shorter arms? Go deeper. Longer arms? You don't need to thread as far. Either way, get the depth FIRST, then move.
The lat muscle is your real weapon here, not your bicep. The deeper the arm goes, the more your lat engages in the compression.
Step 3: Trap the Opponent's Arm
This is the detail that separates people who finish the north south choke from people who just hold the position.
Robson Robinho makes the comparison to an arm triangle: "You still can finish with this choke, but this one is way stronger. Two hands against his neck and trap one behind here."
Push their near arm down and away from their neck. Robinho breaks it down: "I have to push this arm, make free here. When I have this free position, I hold."
Why does this matter so much? My buddy Babu nails it: "If Pedro's here and you just pressure here, you won't get much because Pedro's holding you. So he won't feel your weight. When you break his elbow, he's gonna feel all of your weight."
Their arm gives them a frame to resist. Remove the frame and your full body weight transfers into the choke.
Step 4: Connect the Gable Grip
Palm to palm. No thumbs locked. Robinho calls it "hand with hand."
Pull your elbows in slightly. The grip supports the structure and adds squeeze to what your body weight is already doing. Don't rely on the grip for power. It's there to lock the position in place.
Step 5: Drop and Finish
Drop your head and choking-side shoulder toward the floor. Sprawl your hips back.
Robinho is very specific about this: "Make sure your forearm keep on the floor. If you go like this, you lose leverage. Keep flat here, trap, and drop."
Babu adds another critical cue: "Turn your hips. There you go. If you put your hips straight to the ground, it's even better."
Here's the key that ties everything together. The power comes from moving your body backward and down, NOT from squeezing your arms. Let the position do the work. The tap will come.
5 Mistakes That Kill Your North South Choke
You've probably tried this choke 50 times and gotten maybe two taps. Here's why.
Mistake 1: Squeezing With Your Arms
You lock everything up, squeeze as hard as you can, and nothing happens. Your arms burn out. Your opponent waits you out.
Stop squeezing. Start sprawling. Move your body backward. Drop your weight. The choke comes from body positioning, not bicep strength.
Mistake 2: Not Threading the Arm Deep Enough
If your arm is shallow under the neck, your lat never engages. The lat creates compression on the far-side carotid. Without it, you're only pressuring one side.
Thread the arm deep BEFORE transitioning your body. Once you're in position, it's too late to adjust arm depth without giving up the choke.
Mistake 3: Opponent's Head Is Flat on the Mat
If their head is resting on the ground, the mat is actually supporting their neck against your pressure. You're fighting gravity and the floor at the same time.
Their head needs to be elevated. This is why the Kimura setup works so well. It forces them to lift their head to defend, creating the perfect angle for the choke.
Mistake 4: Failing to Trap Their Arm
With their arm free, the opponent has a frame. They can push against you, create space, and relieve the pressure.
Babu puts it directly: "If Pedro's here and you just pressure here, you won't get much because Pedro's holding you."
Trap the arm. Remove their leverage. Then your full weight drops into the choke.
Mistake 5: Lifting Your Head or Forearms Off the Mat
Every inch your head rises gives your opponent space to work their arms in and defend. Every time your forearm lifts off the floor, you lose the leverage angle.
Robinho is emphatic: "If you go like this, you lose leverage." Keep everything flat. Head down. Forearms on the mat. Toes on the mat for extra tightening.
How to Defend and Escape the North South Choke
Knowing the defense is just as important as knowing the attack. If you train this choke, your partners are going to start catching you with it too.
Early Defense: Stop It Before It Starts
The moment you feel your opponent transitioning from side control to north south, frame hard against their shoulders and immediately turn onto your side.
This is the highest-percentage defense by far. If you can prevent them from getting chest to chest and isolating your head, the choke never develops. The position IS the submission. Deny the position, deny the choke.
Mid-Defense: Fight the Grips
If their arm is already under your neck but they haven't connected the Gable grip, you still have a window.
Keep your elbows tight to your body. Fight to prevent them from trapping your arm. Your arm frame is what keeps their weight off your neck. As long as you maintain that frame, they can't generate full pressure.
Late Escape: Damage Control
Once the grips are locked and the shoulder drops, you're in trouble. You have maybe 9 seconds before things go dark.
Push their head away to create any gap you can. Insert your arm as a wedge between their choking arm and your neck. Pry downward on their choking arm. Bridge hard and shift your hips to create space for shrimping or rolling to turtle.
If they've got the position locked with the arm trapped and the shoulder dropped, your best option was defending 30 seconds ago. The earlier you react, the easier the escape.
North South Choke in Competition: From Marcelo Garcia to Merab Dvalishvili
The north south choke has finished world champions at the highest levels of both BJJ and MMA.
Marcelo Garcia
Four-time ADCC champion. Five-time IBJJF world champion. Approximately 7% of his competitive wins came by north south choke. Garcia regularly submitted opponents significantly larger than himself.
Garcia also has a slick tactical trick. If the bottom player is defending hard and won't tap, Garcia feigns releasing the position. He lets go of the head and moves forward, giving the illusion he's abandoning the choke. The moment his opponent starts to move in response, Garcia locks it back in with better position. Deception at black belt level.
Jeff Monson
Seventeen MMA victories with this choke. They literally call it the "Monson Choke." At UFC 57, Monson submitted Branden Lee Hinkle by north south choke in the first round. Monson is also a two-time ADCC world champion, proving the technique crosses over between pure grappling and MMA.
Josh Barnett
Barnett used a modified north south choke to submit Dean Lister at Metamoris 4. Lister is a two-time ADCC world champion. Submitting a grappler of that caliber with this choke tells you everything about how effective it is when the details are right.
Merab Dvalishvili
The most recent high-profile finish. At UFC 316 in June 2025, Dvalishvili transitioned from side control to north south and submitted Sean O'Malley at 4:42 of Round 3. First submission victory of Dvalishvili's UFC career.
Patient setup. Dominant position first. Technique over strength. That's the pattern every one of these elite finishes shares.
North South Choke in Gi vs No Gi
You'll see this choke ten times more often in no-gi than gi competition. There's a good reason for that.
In no-gi, the choke thrives. No fabric friction to fight through. Your arm threads cleanly under the neck. Everything relies on body positioning and pressure, which is exactly what this choke is designed around.
In the gi, it gets harder. The gi material creates friction that slows down the arm thread. Your opponent has lapel grips and sleeve grips that give them more defensive options. You're fighting through fabric at every stage of the setup.
The choke still works in the gi. It's just less common and requires cleaner execution. You need to be faster getting the arm in and more precise with your body positioning because the gi gives your opponent extra tools to resist.
If you're primarily a no-gi or MMA grappler, the north south choke should be a staple in your game. If you're a gi player, it's a solid weapon to have, but don't make it your primary attack from top position.
If you want to build a complete submission game from the ground up, check out FightScience Advanced BJJ Competition System. It covers the positions, transitions, and submissions that make techniques like the north south choke a reliable weapon in competition.