Roberto Jimenez scored an unbelievable come-from-behind choke on Roosevelt Sousa to earn Submission of the Yr honors.
There was no scarcity of highlight-reel submissions in 2023. From ADCC champions being tapped to flying armbars and smother faucets, jiu-jitsu followers had been handled to all kinds of dramatic and crowd pleasing submissions final yr.
Amongst these submissions, one stands out above the remainder as probably the most spectacular, dramatic, and unforgettable.
Roberto Jimenez’s one-armed rear-naked choke end towards Roosevelt Sousa within the ultimate of absolutely the division on the IBJJF No-Gi Worlds is Grappling Insider’s 2023 Submission of the Yr.
Roberto Jimenez submits Roosevelt Sousa
The 23-year-old Ecuadorian got here into absolutely the ultimate using a wave of momentum, submitting 4 consecutive opponents – together with a heavyweight ADCC veteran, an ADCC silver medalist, and a 2023 no-gi Pans champion.
Towards the hulking Sousa, Jimenez would surrender a major measurement benefit.
The match performed out as a few of the most thrilling two-and-a-half minutes of grappling seen all yr.
Jimenez began in his typical, torrid style, making use of fixed stress and side-to-side motion as he regarded to move Sousa’s guard. Early on, Sousa countered a guard move try with a good looking back-take. From there, he attacked an armbar that absolutely locked in.
Miraculously, Jimenez escaped the armbar. He instantly put his foot on the gasoline pedal to pressure Sousa on the defensive. In a matter of seconds, Jimenez used a stack move to take his foe’s again, entice an arm, and sink within the match-ending choke with one hand.
The submission was distinctive for a number of causes. First, there was a David-versus-Goliath dynamic at play, as Sousa the considerably bigger athlete. Additionally, the match itself delivered tons of drama, with a large swing in momentum in simply moments.
What’s extra, the submission was a stunning show of elite approach, from the back-take to the arm entice to the end itself – all of which capped Jimenez’s epic run by absolutely the division.
Jimenez not too long ago spoke to Grappling Insider about his match with Sousa.
2023 Submission of the Yr honorable mentions
Nicholas Meregali submits Kaynan Duarte with an arm triangle at WNO: In maybe his greatest win of a powerful yr, Meregali took out the multiple-time ADCC champion with an arm triangle to determine himself as the game’s prime heavyweight grappler.
Elisabeth Clay submits Ffion Davies with a toehold at Polaris: Clay shocked the reigning ADCC champion within the second spherical of the Polaris grand prix, utilizing a false reap entry to safe a spectacular toehold.
Mica Galvao submits PJ Barch with a flying armbar at WNO: The Brazilian phenom captured the vacant WNO welterweight title with an explosive, high-flying armbar on the harmful tenth Planet veteran.
Jasmine Rocha submits Amanda Bruse with a smother WNO: Whereas smother faucets (AKA “mom’s milk”) had been standard in 2023, they had been hardly ever seen within the lighter weight lessons. Rocha proved the flyweights could possibly be simply as harmful with this transfer, as she secured the faucet within the ultimate seconds of a 15-minute warfare with Bruse.
Tainan Dalpra submits Andy Murasaki with a triangle choke at IBJJF: The Crown: The Artwork of Jiu-Jitsu product turned a near-guard move into a good looking triangle choke within the ultimate of the IBJJF’s first installment of The Crown.
Rafael Lovato Jr submits Elder Cruz with a rear-naked choke at WNO: The Oklahoma native turned again father time to safe a dramatic end in entrance of his hometown crowd.
