MMA Glossary

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Abu Dhabi’s - The ADCC (Abu Dhabi Combat Club) Submission Wrestling World Championship was created by Sheik Tahnoon Bin Zayed Al Nayan, son of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, former president of the United Arab Emirates, on suggestion of Renzo and Royler Gracie, and after Sheik Tahnoon Bin Zayed Al Nayan was impressed with the grappling Matt Hume taught his fighters. Prize money is significant and many popular mixed martial artists have competed in the tournament and held titles over the years.

Affliction – us a U.S.-based mixed martial arts promotion headed by Affliction Clothing executive Tom Atencio. Its first event, Affliction: Banned, was co-promoted by Affliction Clothing and Adrenaline MMA on July 19, 2008 and featured Pride FC heavyweight champion Fedor Emelianenko, who defeated two-time UFC heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia for the newly-created WAMMA heavyweight championship. The one-hour undercard was broadcast on Fox Sports network and The Fight Network while the main fight card was broadcast on pay-per-view.

Americana – usually applied from mount or side control, this figure four armlock occurs when the opponent's arm is pinned to the ground and bent at the elbow, with the opponent's palm upwards. The wrist is grabbed with the opposite hand, and the arm on the same side is put under the opponents arm, gripping the fighter’s own wrist. While the opponent's hand is pinned to the ground, the fighter slides the opponent’s pinned arm down and parallel to his thigh while cranking their elbow upwards. This applies pressure on the elbow and/or shoulder.

American Top Team (ATT) – is a mixed martial arts academy located in Coconut Creek, Florida and is one of the top teams in MMA. Coaches and instructors include BJJ specialist Ricardo Liborio and Olympic gold medalist Howard Davis, Jr. ATT’s fighters have competed in the UFC, PRIDE, K-1 and other organizations.

Anaconda Choke - an arm triangle from the front headlock position. The fighter on top threads his arm under the opponent’s neck and through the armpit, and grasps his own biceps. The fighter then attempts to pin his opponent onto the trapped shoulder to better interrupt the flow of blood, while applying pressure with the grasped biceps.

Ankle lock (or shin lock) – is a leglock applied to the ankle joints, usually causing hyperextension of the ankle joints and a compression lock to the achilles tendon or calf muscle.

Armbar – this armlock is most often performed by trapping an opponent’s arm between the legs and extending the hips upward to straighten the arm and hyperextend the elbow.

Armlock - a single or double joint lock that hyperextends, hyperflexes or hyperrotates the elbow or shoulder joint.

Arm triangle choke – submission move that occurs when an opponent is strangled in between his own shoulder and his arm.

Butterfly Guard - an open guard position where the instep of the feet are hooked on the inside of the fighter's legs.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) - is a martial art and combat sport that focuses on grappling and ground fighting with the goals of gaining a dominant position using submissions. Based on the early 20th century Kodokan Judo, based on many schools of Japanese Jujutsu. BJJ (or Gracie Jiu-Jitsu) was created by brothers Helio and Carlos Gracie Sr. and promotes the idea that the use of leverage and proper technique can lead a smaller, weaker fighter to successfully defend against a larger, stronger opponent.

Clinch – a standup grappling position, resulting from one or more fighters applying a clinch hold (i.e. bear hug, double underhooks, etc.). To advance position from a clinch hold, a fighter must pummel his opponent or break position and attempt to advance by striking or taking down his opponent.

D’arce Choke – similar to the Anaconda choke, with the choking arm thread under the near arm in front of an opponent’s neck, and on to of the far arm. Named after Joe D’arce (even though he did not invent the choke), a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu blackbelt under Renzo Gracie, who performed this move often with great success.

Dirty Boxing – boxing in close proximity to your opponent from the clenched position. MMA fighters are allowed to fight from the clench, but traditional boxers are not.

DREAM – is a mixed martial arts organization promoted by Fighting and Entertainment Group and is co-produced with former PRIDE executives from Dream Stage Entertainment. Its sister promotion is K-1 kickboxing. In America, DREAM is aired on Mark Cuban’s HDNet. In May 2008, DREAM announced its partnership with EliteXC and the two promotions will share fighters and eventually co-promote shows.

Double Leg Takedown - A takedown similar to a football tackle, a fighter lowers his head and hooks both legs with his arms and applies pressure to the defender's body, which drives the fighter to the ground.

Elite Xtreme Combat (EliteXC) - is a United States-based mixed martial arts organization and is the second largest of its kind (the first being the UFC). It was founded in 2006 as a partnership between Showtime Networks Inc. and ProElite, Inc. Its inaugural event took place on Feb. 10, 2007, featuring Frank Shamrock and Renzo Gracie. EliteXC aired the first prime time MMA program on American network television on CBS.

Fish Hooking – inserting fingers into the mouth, nostrils or other orifices of a person with the intention of pulling and tearing the surrounding tissue. Forceful fish-hooking involves a high risk of permanent damage to the face or orifices. Not allowed in MMA.

Full Guard – The fighter is on the bottom position on his back with his opponent between his legs at waist level. The bottom fighter must work to control his opponent by holding onto his opponent’s wrists, back of the neck or by bear hugging him in order to prevent him from improving his position. Commonly referred to as a “closed guard.”

Full Mount – occurs when the fighter in the top position is sitting on his opponent’s chest with his knees on both sides of his chest, which prevents him from being able to buck him off and increases the likelihood of damaging ground-and-pound or submissions from the top.

Gogoplata – usually executed from the guard or rubber guard, when the legs are held high against the opponent’s upper back. One foot is placed in front of the opponent’s head under the chin and the hands are placed behind the opponent’s head and the opponent is choked by pressing the shin or foot against the trachea.

Greg Jackson – formed the Jackson fight system, one of the most successful in mixed martial arts and self defense, with 10 world champions and was ranked number 1 by Sherdog.com with the highest win percentage. Jackson is constantly looking for ways to improve his training techniques, which makes his fight team one of the most well-known and well-respected. Jackson’s Mixed Martial Arts is located in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Ground and Pound - occurs when one fighter takes his opponent to the ground and strikes them until they are knocked out, tap out, can be submitted or the match is stopped. First utilized by grapplers with limited submission abilities, it is now an effective technique of MMA fighters of all skill levels.

Guard – a semi-defensive position in which a fighter on his back keeps his opponent between his legs.

Guillotine Choke – a chokehold applied in a reverse headlock position where the forearm is used in an upward manner to apply pressure to the fighter's neck. One of the most popular submissions in MMA and the most common blood choke.

Half Guard – a guard position in which only one of the opponent's legs are held between the grounded fighter's legs.

Heel Hook - a leg lock affecting multiple joints, is applied by twisting the foot, which applies force on the ankle and knee. The heel hook can cause severe injury, especially to the knee ligaments. The heel hook is often performed by placing the legs around a leg of an opponent, and holding the opponent's foot in the armpit on the same side to apply force Jeet Kune Do – is a mixed martial arts system and combat philosophy developed in 1967 by martial artist and actor Bruce Lee. The literal translation from Chinese means, “way of the intercepting fist.”

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John Hackleman – owner and operator of The Pit. He grew up in Honolulu Hawaii, where he began training in judo, boxing and kickboxing from an early age. After serving in the Army, he moved to California where he opened The Pit.

Judo – is a modern Japanese martial art and combat sport which means, “gentle way.” It originated in the late 19th century with its competitive element its most prominent feature. Objectives include throwing an opponent to the ground and immobilizing him with grappling techniques, submissions, foot and hand strikes.

Karate – is a martial art system developed in the Ryukyu Islands from indigenous fighting methods and Chinese kempo. Karate is generally a striking art using punching, kicking, knee and elbow strikes and open-handed techniques.

Keylock - an armlock applied by the fighter on top where the bottom fighter's arm is bent at a 90° angle, the wrist is held while the other arm wraps underneath and is lifted to apply pressure to the shoulder.

Kimura – a keylock variation named after the Japanese fighter Masahiko Kimura in his infamous match against Helio Gracie, the Kimura is an armbar (an arm lock position) where a fighter bends his opponent’s arm behind him which can often lead to an arm break or shoulder dislocation if the opponent does not tap. (Gracie didn’t tap).

Kneebar – Once the guard is broken the fighter on top steps through his opponent’s guard, turns his back to his opponent and grabs a leg. He then falls back with the leg in both hands and applies pressure by pulling on the toes and isolating his opponent’s other leg to add leverage. This creates a hyperextension of the knee joints and attempts to force a submission.

Krav Maga – is a military hand-to-hand combat system developed in Israel, and translated from Hebrew means “contact combat.” It was adopted by select Israeli Security Forces and focuses on threat neutralization in a “real life” context.

Lay and Pray – a strategy sometimes performed when a fighter purposely stalls from the bottom position in the hopes of the top opponent failing to improve his positioning, which may cause a referee standing the two fighters up to a striking or start position, or in the hopes of the round ending by the bell.

Miletich Fighting Systems – Founded in Bettendorf, Iowa in 1997 by former UFC lightweight champion and IFL coach Pat Miletich, it is one of the earliest MMA training schools and has a number of affiliate schools.

Mount- a control position in which a fighter is on top of his opponent.

Muay Thai - is a form of hard martial arts practiced in several Southeast Asian countries, including Thailand, where it has a long history and is considered the country’s national sport. Referred to as "The Art of the Eight Limbs", practitioners of Muay Thai use the hands, shins, elbows and knees, and are able to execute strikes from eight points of contact as compared to two points in Western boxing (fists) and four points in Western types of martial arts (fists, feet).

Neck Crank - is a spinal lock submission technique applied by pulling, bending, twisting or elongating the neck beyond its normal ranges of rotation, and causes hyperextension, hyperflexion, hyperrotation or extension-distraction of the cervical spine.

North South Choke – a chokehold applied by the fighter on top in a north-south position, cuts off the flow of blood to the neck of the opponent with the top fighter’s bicep. It is thought to be a slow working submission, which gives the fighter’s opponent more time to escape it.

Omoplata – a common shoulder lock used in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, it is similar to a Kimura lock, but it is applied using the leg. It can be applied from the guard by placing one leg under the opponent’s armpit and turning 180 degrees toward the leg so the leg moves over the opponent’s back and traps the opponent’s arm. By pushing the arm away from the opponent’s back, pressure is placed on the shoulder.

Overhooks - An overhook is a clinch hold that is used to control the opponent. An overhook is performed from any direction by putting an arm over the opponent's arm, and encircling the opponents arm or upper body. Having one overhook is known as a single overhook, while overhooks with both arms is known as double overhooks.

Over-under position – occurs in the standup grappling position where both fighters have one overhook and one underhook. It is the most common standup grappling position in mixed martial arts. A fighter can advance from the over-under position by locking the hands behind the opponents back (known as a pinch grip tie).

Pat Miletich – is a former UFC lightweight champion and founder of Miletich Fighting Systems in Bettendorf, Iowa and was the coach for MFS in the IFL. He is one of the most well-respected figures in MMA coaching and training, having trained some of the most recognizable names in MMA, including champions Matt Hughes, Tim Sylvia, Jens Pulver and Robbie Lawler.

Pankration – is a martial arts sport dating back to 648 B.C. where it was introduced at the Greek Olympic games. It incorporated elements of boxing and wrestling and in Greek translates loosely to “all powers” or “all powerful.” Some believe pankration was the first all-encompassing fighting system in human history.

Peruvian Necktie - Sometimes utilized when an opponent shoots in on a fighter’s legs for a single or double-leg takedown. As the fighter and his opponent face each other, the fighter performing the maneuver will slip his left hand under his opponent’s neck and under the left underarm of his opponent. The fighter holds his own left wrist with his right wrist. The fighter will place his head on the back of his opponent and sprawl his leg outward so the opponent’s arms will come straight out in front of his opponent. The fighter then come up to his knees and up to a standing position while pulling tightly on his own clasped hands. With the fighter’s left foot over his opponent’s right arm, the fighter sits back on his rear at an angle and puts his right leg over his opponent’s left shoulder, applying further pressure to force the tap.

Pull Guard – occurs when a fighter grabs onto his opponent and pulls him down into his full guard so he can fight from the bottom position.

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Rear Naked Choke - a chokehold applied from an opponent’s back. There are two variations: one in which the fighter encircles his own arm around the neck of the opponent and grabs holds his own bicep to apply pressure, and one in which the fighter clasps his hands to apply pressure after encircling the neck of his opponent.

Rubber Guard – this guard is performed when the bottom fighter brings one leg up high on the top fighter’s back and hooks the leg under their own arm. This controls the top fighter and frees up one arm for the bottom fighter to attack.

Sambo - is a martial art and combat sport and self-defense system developed in the Soviet Union and recognized as an official sport by the USSR All-Union Sports Committee. Fedor Emelianenko, Andre Arlovski and Aleksander Emelianenko have all held Sambo championship titles.

Sengoku - was the inaugural mixed martial arts event promoted by the World Victory Road and took place on March 5, 2008 in Tokyo, Japan.

Side Mount - occurs when one fighter is on top of another and their heads are at 90° from each other, and is also known as a side control.

Single Leg Takedown - Similar to a double leg takedown except only one leg is hooked.

Sprawl – is a takedown defense move where a fighter spreads (or sprawls) his legs away from the attacking fighter and applies his weight to the fighter’s back to deny access to his legs, which will deny the attacking fighter a dominant position.

Sprawl and Brawl – Usually fighters who have more striking experience who prefer standing and striking with an opponent rather than taking the fight to the ground prefer this type of fighting. To avoid and defend takedowns that result in the fighters moving the fight to the ground, sprawl-and-brawl involves short combinations of three strikes or less, usually power shots, as well as takedown counterstrikes.

Strikeforce - (or Strikeforce Fighting Championship) is an American professional kickboxing and mixed martial arts promotion based in San Jose, California. It is promoted by American K-1 promoter Scott Coker and Silicon Valley Sports and Entertainment, operators of the HP Pavilion and the San Jose Sharks NHL hockey club. Fighters in this promotion include: Frank Shamrock, Daniel Puder, Cung Le and Renato Sobrol.

Sweep – is a technique used when the bottom fighter switches positions with the top fighter, and generally occurs as a result of a failed submission attempt, strike or scramble.

Turtle - The turtle mount is also known as rear mount or the back mount from the top position in which the fighter’s opponent is on all fours and the fighter on top mounts the back and hooks his legs around his opponent’s hips so he is less likely to shake him off. This is an excellent position of dominance and a fighter can easily apply chokes from the turtle position.

Takedown - featured mainly in standup grappling sports and wrestling, a takedown involves taking an opponent to the ground by quickly advancing and “shooting for a takedown” or grabbing an opponent’s leg or otherwise getting him off balance to bring him to the ground, preferably with the fighter who performed the takedown landing on top of his opponent in a dominant position.

Team Quest – is an MMA training camp with two facilities, one in Gresham, Oregon and one in Murrieta, California. Most fighters at Team Quest have a background in wrestling. Team Quest is thought to have a tightly-knit group of fighters, despite several high-profile names (Randy Couture, Evan Tanner, Nate Quarry and Chris Leben) having ended their association with the gym. Team Quest was one of the IFL teams (formerly the Portland Wolfpack), coached by Matt “The Law” Lindland, and turned out IFL champions Matt Horwich at middleweight and Ryan Schulz at lightweight).

The Pit – was founded in 1986 by John Hackleman, and is located in Arroyo Grande, California. It began as a training gym in the art of KaJuKenBo, also known as Hawaiian Kempo. It’s most famous member is former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Chuck Liddell.

Throw – there are many types of throws, the most common being the hip toss (similar to a trip). You hold onto your opponent and step into him, partially putting your back to him while twisting. As you do so you pull your opponent over your outstretched hip, sending him spiraling over your midsection and onto the ground on the other side of your leg.

Toe hold – is applied using the hands to hyperextend and/or hyperrotate the ankle, usually by grabbing the foot near the toes and twisting or pushing the foot to apply pressure on the ankle while controlling the opponent’s leg.

Triangle Choke – is a chokehold performed using the legs. can be applied with either the legs or the arms. Using the legs, the fighter places his opponent’s neck in the crux of his knee while the other leg comes up under the defender's opposite arm. The foot is hooked under the crux of the other knee (creating a “triangle) and the hips are raised while the defender's head is pulled down to create pressure.

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) – is a U.S.-based mixed martial arts promotion and is widely recognized as the largest MMA promotion in the world. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, LLC out of Las Vegas, Nevada. The UFC has grown from a single-even tournament based on Brazilian vale tudo fighting and referred to by Senator John McCain as “human cockfighting,” to a re-vamped, regulated combat sport that is the fastest-growing sport in America. It is aired on Spike TV and holds regular pay-per-view events in the U.S., Canada and 34 other countries.

Underhooks – is a clinch hold used to control the opponent and is performed from any direction by putting an arm under the opponent’s arm, and holding the opponent’s midsection or upper body. Having an underhook with one arm is known as a single underhook, while having two underhooks is known as double underhooks.

Vale Tudo – is translated in Portuguese as “anything goes.” Vale tudo competitions are with unarmed combatants with minimal rules.

World Victory Road (WVR) - is a Japanese MMA promotion formed after Zuffa, the owners of the UFC, purchased PRIDE FC. WVR held its first show in March 2008 in conjunction with the also newly-formed Japanese Mixed Martial Arts Foundation (JMM). It has signed big names like Takanori Gomi and former UFC heavyweight champion Josh Barnett.

Xtreme Couture - is a mixed martial arts training organization headed by UFC Champion and former co-founder of Team Quest, Randy Couture, with several locations, including Las Vegas, Nevada; San Diego, California; Centereach, New York; Vancouver, Washington; Independence, Missouri.; and Wellington, Florida.

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Zuffa – is an Italian word, meaning “brawl” or to “fight with no rules".

Zuffa, LLC – was founded in 2001 by Station Casinos executives Frank Fertitta III and Lorenzo Fertitta when they purchased the Ultimate Fighting Championship from Semaphore Entertainment Group. Headed by the Fertittas and UFC President Dana White, they are credited with growing the UFC and mixed martial arts into the fastest growing sport in the country.