The 5 Best Submissions From 2019's First Quarter

ONE Championship hosted six flagship events in 2019’s first quarter that showcased dozens of the world’s leading martial artists, including a slew of submission specialists.

Events across Asia saw memorable victories from specialists in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, judo, and wrestling, who had their opponents tapping to some highlight-reel techniques.

Here, in no particular order, are the five best submission finishes of the year to date.

#1 Wakamatsu Falls Into The ‘Mighty Mouse’ Trap 

Yuya “Little Piranha” Wakamatsu welcomed the most dominant flyweight in mixed martial arts history to Asia by giving him a ton of trouble in front of his countrymen in Tokyo, Japan at ONE: A NEW ERA.

However, the top-level experience of Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson came into play in the second round. Wakamatsu flurried with punches, but the American secured a double leg takedown. “Little Piranha” tried to work back up to his feet, but “Mighty Mouse” climbed to his back to attack.

Johnson was not able to finish with a rear-naked choke, but he kept up the pressure when Wakamatsu escaped. Working from side control, he allowed his rival to work to his knees while he attacked an arm, and then quickly jumped on to a guillotine choke.

“Mighty Mouse” punched his left arm all the way through underneath “Little Piranha’s” neck and locked up a grip with his right hand. He got his right elbow high to put on a tight squeeze, and then drove his hips in to crush  Wakamatsu against the fence and force him to tap.

#2 De Ridder’s Debut D’Arce

Reinier De Ridder extended his perfect record to 10-0 when he debuted in The Home Of Martial Arts at ONE: HERO’S ASCENT with a swift submission over “King Kong Warrior” Fan Rong.

The Dutchman took Fan to the mat with a single-leg takedown in the opening seconds, and offered no escape from there. He patiently passed the Chinese athlete’s guard and set to work from side control.

De Ridder first tried to isolate his opponent’s arm for a kimura, but when his opponent pulled his arm free, he set the trap for a D’Arce choke, and Fan took the bait.

By placing his right arm in an overhook position, he allowed “King Kong Warrior” to get to his knees, but that meant he moved straight into the choke.

The 28-year-old slid his arm under the armpit, all the way through to the right side of Fan’s neck, and grabbed his own bicep. He then fell to his right side to force his chest against his rival’s head and walked his hips forward to apply pressure that left Fan no option but to tap.

#3 Aoki’s Unstoppable Arm-Triangle

The stage could not have been more perfect for Shinya “Tobikan Judan” Aoki to reclaim the ONE Lightweight World Title.

He topped the ONE: A NEW ERA bill against Eduard “Landslide” Folayang – the man who took the belt from him in 2016 – in the promotion’s first event in his homeland, and he got redemption when he secured a first-round submission victory.

Aoki forced “Landslide” to the fence and used a body lock to drag him to the mat. Folayang tried to frame off the Japanese man’s face from inside the half-guard, but that allowed ‘Tobikan Judan” to bury his head into his rival’s left armpit to set up an arm-triangle choke.

“Tobikan Judan” knew he was close to victory as he passed his leg through to mount, and then switched off to the left side of Folayang’s body.

Aoki put the squeeze on, but the cage prevented him from applying maximum pressure, so he expertly kicked off the fence to get his body to the mat. Folayang tried desperately to survive, but the squeeze was too tight, and he was put to sleep. 

#4 Miura’s Judo Tangles Balin

Third-degree judo black belt Ayaka Miura brought her lifetime of practice in “the gentle way” to bear against Laura “La Gladiadora” Balin in their bout at ONE: CALL TO GREATNESS.

The Tribe Tokyo representative’s set-up for her finish was spectacular, as she launched her rival with a beautiful hip throw and landed straight in her favored scarf-hold position. From there, she pinned and punched the Argentinian until the could set up a submission.

Miura forced Balin’s left arm underneath her left thigh, and then triangled her legs to secure it. She quickly turned her hips forward to torque her opponent’s shoulder, and a rushed tap came from underneath. It was and the Japanese athlete’s third scarf-hold armlock victory of her career.

The contest lasted just 73 seconds, which was remarkable given Balin had survived five rounds with ONE Women’s Strawweight World Champion “The Panda” Xiong Jing Nan in her previous match.

#5 A Vintage Imanari Heel Hook

“Pretty Boy” Kwon Won Il got off to a flying start in the world’s largest martial arts organization, but he was stopped in his tracks by the veteran Masakazu “Ashikan Judan” Imanari at ONE: CALL TO GREATNESS.

The leg lock specialist tried his famous “Imanari roll” a few times before he managed to catch his rival’s foot, and when he did, it was a downward spiral for the South Korean.

“Ashikan Judan” was too low on Kwon’s legs to attack with the heel hook, but he scooted his hips above the knee and threw both of his legs to the outside of his opponent’s right leg to control him.

From there, Imanari turned to isolate the heel, grasped it with his right hand, and torqued it to get a trademark finish.