Americana
- BJJ
- Mount Attacks
- fundamental
- Mount / side control
- 3 steps
Pin a bent arm to the mat, figure-four the wrist and lift the elbow to attack the shoulder. Also known as the Keylock or the Ude-garami (bent up). Here is the exact breakdown from the DARCE app: 3 steps, the details that make it work, and the mistakes to avoid.
Step by step
- 01
Establish mount
Control them and spot an arm bent on the mat.
- 02
Pin the wrist
Pin their wrist to the mat with one hand and thread your other arm under the elbow to grab your own wrist.
- 03
Paint & lift the elbow
Drag the hand down toward their hip ("painting"), then lift the elbow off the mat to crank the shoulder.
Key details
- Keep the wrist pinned flat to the mat throughout.
- Drag the hand toward the hip before lifting the elbow.
- Keep your own elbow tight so they cannot straighten the arm.
Common mistakes
- Letting the wrist lift off the mat.
- Lifting the elbow without first painting the hand down.
- Gripping high on the forearm and losing leverage.
Related techniques
- Armbar from MountBJJIsolate an arm from mount, climb to high mount and swing a leg over the head to attack the elbow.
- Cross-Collar Choke from MountBJJFeed both hands deep into the collars from mount and drop your weight to finish the strangle.
- Arm TriangleBJJTrap one of the opponent’s arms across their own neck and squeeze with your shoulder to strangle.
- Ezekiel ChokeBJJUsing a sleeve grip behind the neck and the other forearm across the throat, saw the choke closed.
See it animated in DARCE
Film a round and the app finds which techniques showed up in your game, where the Americana fits, and what to drill next. Private beta, 50 founding seats.
Join the waitlist