Who Needs A TKO When You Have Andy Hung's KTO
Andy Hung is a 3rd degree black belt and senior instructor at Portland Judo. Andy is also the owner of the only brick and mortar retail store geared towards judokas in the Pacific Northwest, Dojo Outfitters. In 2008, Andy Hung was an Olympic team alternate and has medaled at the US and Senior Nationals.
Andy Hung has already joined forces with Judo Fanatics to share instructionals on a few of his specialties, Judo Strangles, The Osoto Gari, and Tai Otoshi. With his latest release, The KTO Blueprint, he is about to change your approaches to judo submissions and pinning with one simple grip change.
The KTO or Kimura Tie Off involves securing a standard kimura grip with and overhand controlling the opponent's wrist and a threading arm that goes through the space in their bent arm reaching to and connecting to your own wrist.
This position exerts major control on the opponent's shoulder and eliminates the use of that arm when controlled properly. Where the tie off comes into play is when the tori reaches with the hand that is controlling the uke's wrist to grab the belt or the bottom of the gi skirt. The belt or gi skirt is then pulled up and over the wrist of the uke and passed to the threaded arm.
This tie off position maintains the same control of the original kimura grip, while freeing up one of the tori's arm to set up other submission or osaekomi options. In the video below from Dojo Outfitter's Perfect the Craft series, Andy Hung gives a number of creative uses of the KTO position, some more brutally beautiful than others. Each of them will open up new pathways in your judo game that you will love and your opponents will hate.
In this quick appetizer style video, Andy Hung sets up the powerful KTO position and moves through a number of options. In the first option, Andy takes his partners back. In that process he shows a number of different options within that one back take. By capitalizing on the immobilization that the KTO grip allows, Andy is able to use his free hand to base and step back behind the opponent and push him forward to attack the back.
In the next examples, Andy Hung shows a brutal throat choke that will have the toughest guys on the mat quivering in their gis and tapping with their feet. By using his hamstring on the face of the opponent he can also grab a thumb in grip on the lapel and set up an extremely powerful paper cutter choke.
In the final example, he punches through with the arm that's controlling the KTO and sets up a brutal Ezekiel choke while the opponent is on his side and then shows a even more devastating version which involves taking the back of the opponent and utilizes your legs and hips to tighten the choke even more. Don't be surprised if your uke's call it a day after that round of randori once you catch them in this choke.
In the next two excerpts from his Judo Fanatics release The KTO Blueprint available now--Andy breaks down two different uses of the KTO position. In the first video, he uses it to set up osaekomi options to control and score on his opponents by pinning them. In the second video, he shows a devastating shoulder lock which creates a dilemma for the opponent. They are put in a position where they will either be submitted or most likely caught in a powerful pin.
Check out these two videos and then head over to JudoFanatics.com and get your copy of the KTO Blueprint today.
Using the KTO to Osaekomi by Andy Hung
Using the KTO to Shoulder Lock by Andy Hung
Now that you've witnessed, firsthand, the power of the Kimura Tie Off (KTO) position, you will want to check out the complete KTO Blueprint from JudoFanatics.com. In this series, Andy Hung will explore all of the pinning options he has honed over his years of Olympic level judo training. In addition, you will learn how Andy uses the KTO to set up strangles, juji gatames and other submissions, making you more dangerous and victorious on the mats. Get your copy here or at the Buy Now Link below!
