Also called Double underhooks, Pummelling
An underhook slides your arm under the opponent's armpit and around their back. It lifts their shoulder, turns their body and gives you the inside position in the clinch, which sets up takedowns, trips, strikes against the cage and back takes. Fighting for underhooks, called pummelling, is the heart of clinch wrestling.
Satori's coaches are filming every technique, full speed and slow motion from two angles. Until it's up, the diagram shows the movement step by step.
How to do it
- 1Step your same-side foot in so your hips are close to the opponent's.
- 2Swim your arm inside theirs and dig it under the armpit, hand on the shoulder blade.
- 3Lift the elbow to raise their shoulder and turn them slightly away.
- 4Keep your head tight against theirs so they cannot square up.
- 5Use the underhook to drive them back, turn them to the fence or step behind them.
- Reaching with the arm while your hips stay back, so the opponent overhooks and throws you.
- Letting the elbow drop, which gives the underhook away.
- Standing square with the chin up, so they can push your head away.
Safety: Keep pummelling upright and controlled, and agree before you add takedowns so nobody is thrown by surprise.
Drills
Pummelling: stand chest to chest with one underhook each and swim for the inside position in turn, slowly at first, then with pressure in 30-second bursts.
Legends known for it
We teach it in Wrestling & Grappling. A coach will fix the details you can't see yourself. Join now and book your first class for $20, paid online.
Related techniques
The arm drag pulls the opponent's arm across their body while you step to the side, so they stumble forward past you and you end up on their side…
The snap down pulls the opponent's head sharply toward the mat from a tie-up, so they fall forward onto their hands and knees. From there you hold…
