EZEKIEL CHOKE

The ezekiel choke, known in Japanese as sode guruma jime (sleeve wheel choke), is a gi-based strangulation that uses the attacker's own sleeve as the anchor of the choking arm. Named in BJJ circles for Ezequiel Paraguassú, the Brazilian Olympic judoka who used the technique to dominate Gracie practitioners during cross-training sessions in the 1980s, the choke earned its reputation as a position-agnostic finish that works from mount, guard, side, and back — a rarity in the BJJ submission library.

The mechanics begin with the attacker threading one arm across the opponent's neck and gripping deep into the cuff of their own opposite-arm sleeve, palm down. The free hand then drives the gripping hand forward and the elbow of the choking arm closes toward the centerline, sandwiching the carotid arteries between the wrapping forearm and the opponent's own neck musculature. The finish is fast — typically under eight seconds — because the gi cuff provides a static anchor that the opponent cannot strip or peel like a normal wrist.

What makes the ezekiel notable is its applicability from positions where most chokes are unavailable. From mount it works as a counter to the upa escape — when the bottom player bridges and rolls, the ezekiel cinches even tighter. From the bottom of mount it works as a defensive submission against a careless top player who has dropped their head forward. From closed guard it works as a desperation finish when the opponent has stacked the bottom player and posture cannot be broken any other way.

The modern revival of the ezekiel was led by Aly Sergeo and a handful of European competitors who built entire competition strategies around it as a no-look counter during scrambles. Defensively the choke is escaped by stripping the gripping hand at the wrist, peeling the gi cuff outward, or turning the chin into the elbow crease before the lock closes. It is illegal in IBJJF no-gi competition because the technique fundamentally requires the sleeve to function.