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Triangle Choke BJJ

The sankaku-jime (triangle choke) is a guard submission that uses your legs to compress both carotid arteries and choke the opponent unconscious. It is one of the most reliable finishing techniques in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and is effective from white belt to black belt level.

Reviewed by CNX BJJ
Last updated: June 2026
Safety disclaimer: Practise these techniques under the supervision of a qualified instructor. Apply submissions slowly and with control. Tap early and tap often.

What Is the Triangle Choke?

The triangle choke, known in Japanese as sankaku-jime (literally "triangular stranglehold"), is a blood choke applied with the legs. You lock one of the opponent's arms and their neck inside a triangular shape formed by crossing your own legs, which compresses both carotid arteries simultaneously. Unlike an air choke that blocks the windpipe, the sankaku-jime cuts blood flow to the brain, causing a tap or unconsciousness in seconds when applied correctly.

The technique originates in judo and was adopted early in the development of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, where it became one of the signature weapons of guard play. Under IBJJF rules it is legal at every belt level and in every adult division. ADCC rules also permit it without restriction, and the triangle choke appears regularly at the highest levels of professional submission grappling.

The triangle choke is sometimes confused with the triangle arm lock (sankaku-gatame), which hyperextends the shoulder using the same leg position. Both use the same initial lock, but the arm lock targets the joint rather than the blood supply. This page covers the standard blood choke version. For shoulder lock submissions, see the submissions overview.

Setup and Prerequisites

The fundamental requirement for the triangle choke is the ability to isolate one of the opponent's arms and move it to the wrong side of your body. You need one arm inside your leg lock and one arm outside. If both arms are inside or both are outside, the choke will not close properly.

Starting from closed guard is recommended for beginners because the closed guard gives you constant hip control and limits the opponent's posture options. However, the triangle is also entered from open guard, spider guard, and de la riva guard, all of which provide the leg elevation needed to shoot the choking leg over the opponent's shoulder.

Before attempting the triangle, you should be comfortable with basic closed guard retention, breaking the opponent's posture, and the concept of controlling the opponent's sleeve or wrist. Good hip mobility helps considerably when adjusting the angle after the initial lock. Flexibility in the hips and hamstrings also allows you to lock the triangle tighter, but the choke does not require exceptional flexibility to work at a basic level.

Step-by-Step Execution (From Closed Guard)

  1. Break the opponent's posture. From closed guard, grip the opponent's collar or head and pull them forward and down. A posturing opponent with an upright back has the leverage to pull out of your guard and defend the attack. You need them flat and close.
  2. Isolate one arm and push it across. Choose one of the opponent's arms and push it across your centreline so it ends up on the opposite side of your body. Control the sleeve or wrist of the other arm to prevent them from framing or posting. The isolated arm should be in front of your chest, not to the side.
  3. Open your guard and angle your hips. Release your guard and angle your hips sharply toward the side of the trapped arm. This is the most critical movement in the setup. The angle creates the space to place your leg correctly and is what separates a tight triangle from a loose one.
  4. Shoot your leg over the shoulder. Using your legs and hips to generate the movement, swing the leg on the far side up and over the opponent's shoulder on the side of the trapped arm. Your leg should land behind the opponent's neck, not on top of their shoulder.
  5. Lock the triangle. Cross your ankle over the back of your opposite knee to create the triangular leg lock. Flex both legs to pull the opponent's neck and trapped arm into the lock. At this point you should have one of their arms inside the triangle and one arm outside.
  6. Adjust to 45 degrees and pull the arm across. Walk your hips to a 45-degree angle away from the trapped arm side. Simultaneously pull the trapped arm fully across your body. This adjustment is what closes the choke: your inner thigh presses one carotid artery and the opponent's own shoulder presses the other.
  7. Finish the choke. Pull the opponent's head down toward your chest with both hands. Squeeze your knees toward each other and flex your hamstrings. Maintain the lock until the tap. Release immediately.

Common Mistakes

  • Not angling the hips. The most frequent error at beginner level is failing to angle the hips before locking the triangle. Without the angle, the leg lands on the shoulder rather than behind the neck and the choke cannot close. Hip the hips out first, every time.
  • Leaving both arms on the same side. A triangle only chokes when one arm is inside and one is outside. If you trap the wrong arm, or if the opponent manages to pull their arm out during the lock, the choke is ineffective. Verify arm placement before squeezing.
  • Locking the knee behind the ankle rather than the ankle behind the knee. The correct position is ankle over the back of the knee, with the leg behind the opponent's neck pulling into the crook of your knee. Reversing this puts stress on your own knee and weakens the lock.
  • Not pulling the trapped arm across. Even a correctly placed triangle will feel loose if the opponent's arm is not pulled to the far side. Grip the arm at the wrist or sleeve and pull it firmly across before squeezing.
  • Staying square to the opponent. Failing to adjust to the 45-degree angle after locking is a continuation of the hip angle mistake. Make the angle adjustment a reflex after every triangle lock.
  • Squeezing with the calves instead of the hamstrings. The finishing squeeze should come from the hamstrings pulling the leg down and the knees moving toward each other. Squeezing with the calves alone is inefficient and tiring.
  • Letting the opponent stack without responding. Stacking, where the opponent stands and drives their weight forward to flatten you out and reduce the choke angle, is the primary defence. If the opponent begins to stack, angle your hips further and pull their head down to prevent them lifting you.

Variations and Follow-Ups

The triangle position is a productive control point as well as a submission. If the opponent defends the choke, several follow-up attacks become available.

Triangle to armbar: If the opponent straightens their trapped arm to relieve the choke pressure, the arm is already isolated across your body in the ideal position for an armbar. Release the triangle lock, secure the arm, and pivot to the armbar. This transition is one of the most drilled combinations in guard play.

Triangle to omoplata: If the opponent pulls their trapped arm out of the triangle to defend, their arm is now in position for an omoplata (shoulder lock). Swing the same leg that was behind their neck over their arm and sit up to apply the shoulder rotation. The omoplata can be used as a submission or to sweep to top position.

Mounted triangle (sankaku-jime from mount): When you are in top mount, lower your body over the opponent's neck and apply the same triangular leg lock from above. The mounted triangle is harder to escape because the opponent cannot stack you and your body weight assists the finish.

Back triangle: When you have back control and the opponent turns to face you, the triangle can be locked from behind. One leg crosses in front of the opponent's neck while the other crosses behind. This variation is common in submission grappling.

Arm triangle from the triangle position: If the opponent's posture breaks significantly during the triangle attempt, you may find their neck and shoulder exposed for an arm triangle (brabo choke) by transitioning to a top or side control finish.

Competition Context

Under IBJJF rules, the triangle choke is permitted at all belt levels in both gi and no-gi competition. A successful choke submission wins the match immediately regardless of the score. If a triangle attempt results in a sweep from guard bottom to top, the sweep scores 2 points even if the choke is not completed. Points are not awarded for the submission attempt itself, only for completing the sweep or achieving the finish.

Under ADCC rules, no points are scored in the first half of the match, making submission attempts like the triangle choke particularly valuable as an immediate winning move. In the second half of an ADCC match, passing the guard (3 points) and taking the back (3 points) score, both of which can be initiated from a failed triangle attempt, making the technique doubly useful as a scoring tool even when the submission is defended.

At high-level IBJJF events, the triangle is one of the most commonly attempted submissions from guard, reflecting its efficiency from the bottom position. ADCC champions including multiple world-class competitors have closed major matches with the sankaku-jime at the elite level, confirming that the technique scales from beginners to the top of the sport.

Drilling Suggestions

Begin each triangle drilling session with solo hip movement drills: lie on your back, lift your hips, and practice swinging your legs from a closed guard position to the angled triangle position without a partner. This builds the muscle memory for the critical hip angle before adding the complexity of a real opponent.

When working with a partner, drill the full sequence in sets of 10 repetitions per side at a controlled pace. Have the partner sit inside your guard with minimal resistance initially. Call out each step before performing it to reinforce the sequence: posture break, arm isolation, hip angle, leg shoot, lock, angle adjustment, pull, squeeze. This verbal narration accelerates learning at the early stage.

Progress to a cooperative flow drill where the partner gently postures up to give you realistic resistance without actively defending. Add the triangle-to-armbar transition once the triangle itself is consistent. Drilling both attacks together teaches your body to read the opponent's reaction and respond with the correct follow-up.

For positional sparring, start in closed guard with one partner committed to attacking the triangle and the other permitted to use any escape. Rotate roles every 3 to 5 minutes. This format builds both the attack sequence and the defensive awareness needed to recognise and escape the lock early, which benefits both practitioners.

Frequently Asked Questions

The triangle choke, known in Japanese as sankaku-jime, is a blood choke applied with the legs from guard. You lock one of the opponent's arms and their neck inside a triangular lock formed by your legs, compressing both carotid arteries to restrict blood flow to the brain. It is one of the most effective guard submissions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and is legal at all belt levels under IBJJF and ADCC rules.
The triangle choke is primarily a blood choke. It compresses the carotid arteries on both sides of the neck, cutting blood supply to the brain rather than blocking the airway. A well-applied sankaku-jime causes unconsciousness in a matter of seconds. Because of this, it is important to release immediately when your training partner taps.
Yes. The triangle choke is a choke submission and is legal at all belt levels under IBJJF rules, including white belt. IBJJF rules prohibit certain joint locks at lower belt levels, but chokes are generally permitted across all divisions. Always confirm the current ruleset with the specific tournament you plan to enter, as rules can be updated.
A loose triangle is almost always caused by one of four things: the opponent's arm is not pulled across your centreline, you have not angled your hips at roughly 45 degrees, your knees are not squeezing together, or the opponent has managed to stack you and straighten your legs. Focus on pulling the trapped arm across your body and walking your hips to the correct angle before squeezing. Posture matters too: pulling the opponent's head down into your body tightens the lock considerably.
The mechanics of the lock are the same in both positions. The guard triangle is applied from your back with the opponent on top. The mounted triangle is applied when you are on top in mount, lowering your body over the opponent's neck and locking your legs in the same triangular position. The mounted triangle is generally harder to escape because the opponent cannot stack you. Both are legal at all belt levels under IBJJF rules.
Stacking is the most common triangle defence. To prevent it, angle your hips to 45 degrees as early as possible, pull the opponent's trapped arm across your body, and keep their head pulled down. If they begin to stand or stack, use your free leg to push on their hip and redirect the pressure. Developing a quick angle adjustment immediately after locking the triangle will make stacking much harder.
Yes. The triangle and armbar form one of the most productive attack chains in guard. If the opponent extends their trapped arm to posture out of the triangle, you can transition directly to an armbar on that arm. Conversely, if you fail an armbar attempt, you often end up with the opponent's arm across your body, which is an ideal triangle entry point. Drilling the triangle-to-armbar and armbar-to-triangle transitions is highly recommended. See the armbar technique guide for the full execution sequence.
Yes. The triangle choke is equally effective in no-gi BJJ and submission grappling. The core mechanics do not change. Without a gi, grip adjustments are necessary: instead of sleeve and collar grips, you use wrist control and head control to isolate the arm. The triangle is frequently seen at ADCC, the highest level of no-gi submission grappling, confirming its effectiveness without the gi.
The triangle choke is most commonly entered from closed guard, but it can be set up from open guard, half guard, mount, back control, and even while standing. Spider guard and de la riva guard are particularly effective launching pads for the triangle because they offer good elevation and leg angle. The mounted triangle is applied from top mount. The back triangle can be applied when you have back control and the opponent turns to face you.
A useful starting point is 10 to 20 repetitions per side per session, working at controlled speed with a cooperative partner. Focus on clean mechanics rather than speed: correct posture break, clean arm isolation, sharp hip angle, and controlled finish. Once the movement is consistent at slow speed, add light resistance at around 30 to 50 percent effort. Positional sparring rounds of 3 to 5 minutes starting from closed guard are an excellent complement to solo drilling.
Three signs indicate a tight triangle: your knee is behind the opponent's neck rather than on their shoulder, the opponent's trapped arm is pulled fully across the centreline of your body, and you can feel the back of your knee and your inner thigh pressing on opposite sides of their neck. If all three conditions are met and you squeeze your knees and flex your hamstrings, the choke should be tight. In training, ask your partner for feedback so you can develop the feel for the correct position before relying on it in sparring.