MMA Coach John Kavanagh (SPG Ireland) dropped into the studio last week. For Henry ‘The Machine’ McKean, it was a golden opportunity to learn some MMA moves from the man who has trained UFC star Conor McGregor for the last ten years.
Last July, Kavanagh oversaw the victory of four of his fighters at UFC Fight Night in the 3Arena. McGregor dispatched his opponent in the first round, by way of knock-out. The three remaining matches were decided with a technique known as the Rear Naked Choke.
"We don’t have to get naked," joked Kavanagh, as he explained the name.
‘Rear’ implies the fighter positions himself behind his opponent. ‘Choke’ is pretty straightforward, the move involves a chokehold.
"(It’s called) naked because we don’t use the cloth," Kavanagh explains. "In traditional Japanese Jiu Jitsu, I would use your own jacket against you, to strangle you. When we’re fighting in MMA we have no tops on, so obviously there’s no jacket."
The technique restricts blood flow to the brain which can cause temporary unconsciousness within seconds.
Extremely difficult to escape, the 'Rear Naked Choke' is a popular submission technique in MMA and Henry learned quite quickly how effective it can be.
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