Breakdown of the Helicopter Armbar & a bonus Helicopter Triangle.
Ryron and Rener Gracie breakdown the helicopter armbar to celebrate the first? application of this technique in a televised MMA fight.
How to do the helicopter armbar
A lot needs to happen to get a helicopter armbar. First up your opponent needs to be standing over you with their feet close to your hips and you controlling at least one wrist and a lapel or preferably two wrists. From here with feet on hips either pull them forward or scoot under their hips and lift with your feet. It’s critical for this that you are under their hips or you feet will just push them away. Lift like you are doing a front sweep but instead of bringing them over your head spin them 90 degrees. Then drop them buy removing your foot from their far hip. As they fall take that free leg over their head knee bent ready to pull them in to your hips as you apply the armbar.
Once you’ve done the helicopter armbar in rolling eventually your training partners will learn to suck their elbows in and escape. This is where the helicopter triangle comes in useful.
How to do the helicopter triangle
From guard with a standing opponent and control of at least both arms. Open your guard and get both feet on their hips. Then shift your hips under theirs and use your feet to lift them off the ground. From this position you should be able to easily hold their weight. Keeping your left foot on their hip, extend your right arm so that their weight is equally between your left foot and right arm (this takes a lot of practice). Now you can remove your right foot from the hip. Shoot it up over their shoulder and lock up the triangle as you allow them to drop to their feet.
To avoid being picked up and slammed (you are now triangling a standing opponent), turn 90 degrees to your right and secure their left leg, reaching through and grape vining back around the leg. This prevents them picking you up while you squeeze and finish the triangle.