A Brief Note on the Clock Choke

The clock choke was made famous in 1998 when Wallid Ismael used the "new move" to catch Royce Gracie by surprise and put him to sleep. The move, of course, was hardly a new move and had been found in judo and for decades. And, by the way, I had learned it in a BJJ class a full 18 months prior to the Royce-Wallid match. Oh, and you could learn in on the Joe Moreira Blue Belt Panther VHS tapes which were released 2 years prior to the Royce-Wallid match. So, all those folks 9 years ago who raved about the new move were, well, johnny come latelies. Ok, I am complaining about the way things were discussed 9 years ago. But, I didnt have a blog 9 years ago so you have to bear with me folks. Anyway, the clock choke remains one of the cooler and SIMPLER moves that can be used on an opponent who turtles up.

Strangely, it would seem that the clock choke has been dropped down a black hole once again. That is, it is not taught as ofetn as you would think such an innovative move should be taught. In fairness, most people attack the back and go for the hooks (4 points) in a Gi match so this makes sense. However, as a secondary attack to be utilized when taking the back fails, the Clock Choke should be emphasized a great deal more.