Bloody Elbow Judo Chop: Shane Del Rosario Gets a Rare Omaplata Submission Over Brandon Cash at Strikeforce Challengers

hose of us who watched Strikeforce Challengers on November 6th, were treated to a very rare treat -- a truly quality heavyweight bout between two undefeated prospects who were both in great shape and both brought serious skill sets to the fight. The cherry on top was the fight became only the 12th in MMA history (thanks Leland Roling for the research on that!) to end with an Omaplata submission.

MMA Junkie reported on the fight:

In the evening's co-feature, heavyweight slugger Brandon Cash (5-1) appeared well on his way to an overwhelming win after a crushing right hand dropped Shane del Rosario (9-0) to his back. Cash continued to slug away with punches from the sky, but del Rosario somehow maintained composure from the bottom.

The courage paid off.

Cash's attacks slowed as the round progressed, and while he maintained top position, it was del Rosario who went on the attack. The three-time M-1 Challenge veteran looked for triangle chokes, arm bars, and anything he could grab from his back. Cash resisted, but it was a rare omo plata that proved the difference maker.

Often utilized as a simple sweep, del Rosario maintained the hold as he rolled up to his knees and on Cash's side. Cash did little to escape, and when the pressure to his shoulder increased, he was forced to issue a meager tap.

From wikipedia:

The omoplata (sometimes referred to as ude-garami or sankaku-garami, 三角緘, "triangular entanglement" or ashi-garami, "leg entanglement" in Judo) is a commonly featured shoulder lock in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. The locking mechanism is similar to the kimura lock, but instead of using a figure-four, it is applied using a leg. The omoplata can be applied from the guard, by placing one leg under the opponents armpit and turning 180 degrees in the direction of that leg, so that the leg moves over the back of the opponent and entangles the opponents arm. By controlling the opponent's body and pushing the arm perpendicularly away from the opponents back, pressure can be put on the opponent's shoulder. It is also possible to put pressure on the elbow joint by bending the leg entangling the arm, and twisting it in a specific manner. Though an effective lock, it is more difficult than other armlocks to successfully apply.

Let's look at some gifs in the full entry.

On the left we see Del Rosario in full guard with his left foot on Cash's hip. This is key as it gives him leverage to turn to his right. He also uses his right hand to push off Cash's head. By the end of the gif, Del Rosario's upper body has attained an almost 90 degree angle on Cashs'. This allows him to start moving his right leg up Cash's back. Note that after he moves his right leg up, he adjusts the positioning of his left foot so it's now pushing off of Cash's leg right above the knee rather than high up on the hip. Del Rosario's goal is to do a full 180 degree turn so that he's once again parallel to Cash, but facing the opposite direction.

On the right we see Del Rosario completing the spin by freeing his left leg, using his left thigh to push off Cash's head and scooting his hips so he's now completed the turn. Note that he then hooks his right ankle with his left knee to close a figure four and trap Cash's shoulder. If you can see it, Cash's left arm is now trapped in the "chicken wing" position familiar to anyone who's ever seen a kimura applied. He then sits up to apply pressure to Cash's shoulder.

Note that Cash's left wrist is pinned between Del Rosario's right thigh and hip and that he swings his right arm over Cash's back, preventing him from getting separation with his thighs. This is called a "seatbelt" and prevents Cash from rolling in either direction. When Del Rosario sits up that lifts the wrist, combined with the downward pressure his right leg is putting on Cash's shoulder, you have a limb being twisted in a direction it's not designed to go and a joint in considerable distress. At the end of the gif you can see Del Rosario's right ankle sliding out of the figure four and down towards his left ankle, this actually increases the pressure on the hold.

You can see from this why the omaplata is more commonly used as a sweep as its allowed Del Rosario to get out from under Cash without exposing himself to blows from the man on top. It's rare to see a tap in MMA from an omaplata but in this case, either Del Rosario had the lock especially tight or Cash didn't know how to counter the hold. Regardless, it was a spectacular comeback for Del Rosario who was favored in the fight and survived a scare from a very tough Brandon Cash.

Below is a video of Frank Mir demonstrating the hold on the MMA Girl.

Gifs by Chris Nelson