Reverse Arm Throw by Georgi Ivanov
When you think about throwing your opponent across the mat, you might consider something from a double underhook situation. Better yet, you may consider an over-under set-up to a lateral or getting behind your opponent for a suplay (within the confines of the rules, of course). With that much emphasis on staying connected to your opponent, what if you could throw them using only one of their arms?
Now, you can. Here to demonstrate the reverse arm throw is Olympic and World Championship wrestler Georgi Ivanov with his interpretation of a simple yet effective takedown.
The 2-on-1 Tie
Ivanov begins his throw by getting his opponent in the 2-on-1 Russian tie. To do this, you can either initiate contact yourself with an armdrag to pull them in close or peel their arm off if they attempt to collar tie. Regardless of how you get there, your 2-on-1 needs to be off at an angle away from your opponent’s center line with significant pressure on their elbow. Their arm needs to be extended to delay their chances of squaring up. At this point, your opponent may assume that you’re working to the outside rather than inside.
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Reversing the Arm
After getting the 2-on-1, Ivanov’s opponent reaches over to grab the far-side elbow on the arm controlling the wrist. What he’s attempting to do is prevent Ivanov from extending the arm out and cutting the angle. Ivanov can use this to his advantage by reversing his grip on the wrist by going from a palm up grip to a palm down grip on top of the wrist. It may seem like an innocuous detail, but switching the grip will make controlling the arm much easier when he attempts the throw.
Pull and Level Change
This throw will not work without having a pivot point (or fulcrum) for you to balance the load. Ivanov makes his own fulcrum by pulling his opponent in and stepping across to get in front of them. This is where the false assumption the opponent made earlier comes in hand, as they were initially expecting you to stay on the outside and work on a single leg or simply pressure down. Moving to the inside gets them off-balance and readies you to load them onto your shoulders. To do this, Ivanov drops his inside leg down to a knee and drapes his opponent’s arm over his shoulder.
Finishing the Throw
By this point, Ivanov has all of the components he needs to finish the throw. He has his opponent’s weight fixed on his shoulder while keeping a strong posture on his knee. Switching his grip from earlier helps keep his opponent’s arm properly in place down his body, otherwise he would’ve had to maintain a weaker palm-up grip. In addition, Ivanov pinches the arm close to his body using his arms and neck while keeping his head high. The finish is similar to that of a fireman’s carry in that he brings his head down to the mat, drives forward with his back leg, and pulls the load over and off of his shoulder. When his opponent hits the mat, Ivanov still maintains control of the arm for a follow-up move.
Improve your takedowns by adding in more throws into your arsenal. Using a proper 2-on-1 with a switched grip, a strong fulcrum point, and a quick level change, you can throw your opponent across the mat using Georgi Ivanov’s version of a reverse arm throw. The 2-ON-1 Encyclopedia HAS YOU COVERED!