Ezekiel Choke: All You Need to Know About Alexander Volkov’s Submission of Tai Tuivasa at UFC 293

The mostly Australian crowd attending UFC 293 had expected their homeboy, Tai Tuivasa, to achieve a victory with an explosive finish. ‘Bam Bam’s’ 2-fight-losing streak made the triumph even more significant for him. They knew that Tuivasa’s opponent, Alexander Volkov, would present a tough challenge before him. Still, they expected the Sydney native to get the better of him with his crude power. However, the end of the UFC 293 proved that they had probably expected too much from their fighter.

Several fans view Alexander Volkov as one of the strongest rising contenders in the UFC’s Heavyweight division. Many would also agree that he possesses almost equally matched prowess in the striking and ground departments. Unlike his two previous wins via TKOs, ‘Drago’ stood up to the situation in this fight with his ground game. He finished off his local boy opponent, Tuivasa, in the second round of the bout with a rather lesser-known, ‘Ezekiel’ choke in the UFC.

How did Alexander Volkov submit Tai Tuivasa?

Longtime UFC fans have probably witnessed several fights ending with submissions. But there are a number of chokehold positions that have never been witnessed in the history of the UFC. While fans get to see fights ending with a rear-naked choke or a triangle choke quite often, Volkov resorted to an ‘Ezekiel’ choke to achieve his victory over Tuivasa.

With his UFC 263 victory, ‘Drago’ also became only the third UFC fighter to submit his opponent via an ‘Ezekiel’ choke. In an Ezekiel choke, the one applying it puts one arm behind his adversary’s head, and wraps the other one around his sleeve. By tightening the grip, he applies pressure to his opponent’s neck or throat. The submission can be performed from any position, be it top, bottom, or standing.

This method of choking was called ‘Sode guruma jime’ initially. But later it was renamed to the Ezekiel choke in honor of one of its chief propagators, Ezequiel Paraguassu.

Who else in the UFC has used an Ezekiel choke?

There are only two other fighters apart from the 34-year-old Russian who have secured UFC victories via this technique. However, it won’t be wrong to say that this submission has become a feature of the UFC’s Heavyweight division only. UFC Heavyweight veteran, Aleksei Oleinik showcased the first-ever Ezekiel choke in the promotion when he finished off his UFC 217 rival Curtis Blaydes.

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After showcasing this technique for the first time in 2017. Oleinik resorted to the same method to gain a victory over Junior Albini. To date, Remco Pardoel stands as the only non-Russian to have executed this choke successfully. Do you think we will get to see more fighters achieving wind with his technique in the future? And what are your thoughts about this move? Let us know in the comments.

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