What is the primary goal of the New York to Invisible Collar transition?

The primary goal is to advance from the foundational New York control to the more dominant Invisible Collar position, which adds head control to your existing arm control. This dual control creates immediate choking threats and opens pathways to gogoplata, omoplata, and triangle attacks while preventing the opponent from restoring posture or escaping.

What must your overhook arm do during the entire transition sequence?

The overhook arm must maintain constant pressure throughout the transition, actually increasing grip tightness during the hand swim rather than relaxing. This arm serves as your primary anchor - if it loosens, the opponent can extract their arm and escape. The overhook should feel tighter during transition to compensate for releasing the shin grip.

Your opponent blocks your hand swim with their free hand - what adjustment do you make?

If they block early, abort the Invisible Collar attempt and transition to triangle setup since their blocking hand is now positioned inside your guard. If they block late (hand is already past their shoulder), use your forearm to lever their blocking hand away while completing the collar grip. Never force through early blocks as this wastes energy and compromises position.

What is the correct path for your hand when swimming to the collar position?

The hand threads between the opponent's shoulder and your own thigh, traveling in a circular arc behind their ear and around to cup the back of their skull. The path is behind the head, not in front of the face. Palm faces inward toward their skull throughout the movement, with fingers eventually wrapping toward the opposite ear.

How do you maintain leg position across the opponent's back after releasing your shin grip?

Active hip flexor engagement must replace the hand grip. Before releasing the shin grip, consciously engage the hip flexors and hamstring to hold the leg in position. The leg should stay wrapped high across their back through muscular control. This requires dedicated flexibility and strength training - practitioners with insufficient hip strength will lose the rubber guard structure.

When should you NOT attempt the New York to Invisible Collar transition?

Do not attempt when the opponent has strong posture and stable base, when your overhook is shallow and they're close to extracting their arm, when you're fatigued and cannot maintain hip flexor engagement, or when the opponent is actively and effectively hand fighting. The transition requires the opponent's posture to be broken and their weight loaded forward.

New York to Invisible Collar Attacker | BJJ Technique Guide

The New York to Invisible Collar transition represents a critical advancement within the 10th Planet Rubber Guard system, moving from the foundational New York control into one of the most dangerous attacking positions in no-gi grappling. This transition involves releasing the shin grip while maintaining the overhook, then swimming the free hand behind the opponent’s head to establish deep collar-style control on the neck without requiring a gi collar.

Strategically, this transition capitalizes on moments when the opponent focuses on defending the overhook or attempting to restore posture. The hand swim to the back of the head must be explosive yet controlled, threading between the opponent’s shoulder and your own leg while maintaining constant pressure through the overhook. The resulting Invisible Collar position creates immediate choking threats and opens pathways to gogoplata, omoplata, and triangle attacks.

The biomechanics of this transition exploit a fundamental weakness in the opponent’s defensive structure. When trapped in New York, opponents typically focus their defensive attention on the overhook and the shin across their back. The hand controlling the shin appears to be a critical anchor, so when it releases and immediately attacks the neck, opponents often react too slowly to prevent the collar grip establishment. This misdirection is central to the technique’s high success rate at advanced levels.

From Position: New York (Bottom)

Key Attacking Principles

What are the key principles for executing New York to Invisible Collar?

Maintain overhook pressure throughout the transition - never release the arm control
The hand swim must be explosive and direct - hesitation allows defensive hand fighting
Pull the head down immediately upon grip establishment to load their weight forward
Hip angle adjustment follows the hand swim to maximize control leverage
Timing the release of shin grip when opponent is focused elsewhere increases success by 40%
The collar grip should cup the back of the skull, not simply grab the neck
Core engagement must increase as the shin releases to prevent opponent driving forward

Prerequisites

What do you need before attempting New York to Invisible Collar?

Established New York position with deep overhook controlling opponent’s tricep area
Opponent’s posture fully broken with head and shoulders pulled down toward your chest
Shin positioned high across opponent’s back with active grip near ankle
Hip flexibility sufficient to maintain leg position even after releasing shin grip
Free hand (non-overhook side) positioned to thread past opponent’s shoulder
Core engaged to prevent opponent from driving forward during transition

Execution Steps

How do you execute New York to Invisible Collar step by step?

Secure overhook: Ensure your overhook is deep around the opponent’s tricep with your shoulder tight against their armpit. This grip must remain locked throughout the entire transition and serves as your primary anchor.
Load opponent forward: Use your shin grip and overhook to pull the opponent’s weight forward and down toward your chest. Their head should be below shoulder level, and they should have minimal posting ability on their trapped arm side.
Release shin grip: Release your grip on your own shin while maintaining leg position through hip flexor engagement. Your leg should stay wrapped high across their back through active muscular control rather than the hand grip.
Swim hand to neck: Immediately swim your free hand between the opponent’s shoulder and your own thigh, threading it behind their head. The hand travels in a circular arc, palm facing inward toward their skull.
Establish collar grip: Cup the back of the opponent’s skull with your palm, fingers wrapping around toward the ear on the opposite side. Pull their head down toward your chest while your wrist applies pressure to the back of their neck.
Consolidate Invisible Collar: Adjust your hip angle toward the overhook side while pulling the head down with the collar grip. Both arms now control the opponent’s posture - overhook on arm, collar grip on head. Your leg maintains position across their back.
Begin attack selection: From Invisible Collar, assess opponent’s reactions. If they drive forward, progress to gogoplata setup. If they try to posture, threaten arm attacks. If they remain passive, advance to Zombie or Chill Dog for finishing sequences.

Possible Outcomes

Result	Position	Probability
Success	Invisible Collar	65%
Failure	New York	25%
Counter	Closed Guard	10%

Opponent Counters

How might your opponent counter New York to Invisible Collar?

Hand fighting to prevent collar grip establishment by blocking the swimming hand (Effectiveness: High) - Your Response: If they block early, abort to triangle setup as their hand is now inside your guard. If they block late, use your forearm to lever their blocking hand away while completing the grip. → Leads to New York
Explosive posture recovery attempt as shin grip releases (Effectiveness: Medium) - Your Response: Tighten overhook immediately and use their upward momentum to elevate your hips and threaten armbar. Their posture attempt opens the arm if you maintain overhook control. → Leads to Closed Guard
Driving forward aggressively to flatten you before collar establishes (Effectiveness: Medium) - Your Response: Accept the forward pressure and thread your leg for Chill Dog or gogoplata setup. Their drive actually assists these transitions by bringing their head closer. → Leads to New York
Stripping the overhook by pulling elbow back toward hip during transition (Effectiveness: Low) - Your Response: The extraction attempt during your hand swim creates perfect triangle timing. Shoot your leg over their extracting arm’s shoulder for immediate triangle control. → Leads to Closed Guard

Common Attacking Mistakes

What mistakes should you avoid when executing New York to Invisible Collar?

1. Releasing overhook tension while swimming hand to collar position

Consequence: Opponent immediately extracts arm and postures up, escaping both New York and preventing Invisible Collar establishment
Correction: Actively tighten overhook pressure during the hand swim. The overhook should feel tighter during transition, not looser.

2. Swimming hand in front of opponent’s face instead of behind their head

Consequence: Hand gets trapped against opponent’s shoulder or face, unable to reach collar position while creating space for opponent to posture
Correction: Thread hand between opponent’s shoulder and your own thigh, keeping the path behind their ear and around the back of their skull

3. Losing leg position when shin grip releases due to insufficient hip flexibility

Consequence: Leg slides down opponent’s back, losing the rubber guard structure and returning to basic closed guard
Correction: Engage hip flexors actively before releasing shin grip. Practice holding leg position without hand assistance to develop necessary hip strength.

4. Grabbing the neck instead of cupping the back of the skull

Consequence: Grip is weaker and easier to strip, plus provides less control over opponent’s posture
Correction: Palm cups the back of the skull with fingers wrapping toward the opposite ear. Wrist pressure on neck, palm controls skull.

5. Attempting transition when opponent has strong posture and base

Consequence: Opponent strips grip attempt easily and may pass guard during your failed transition attempt
Correction: Only initiate when opponent’s posture is fully broken and they’re loaded forward. Never force the transition against strong structure.

6. Hesitating between releasing shin grip and swimming hand to collar

Consequence: Opponent recognizes the transition and establishes defensive hand position before you can complete the grip
Correction: The release and swim must be one fluid motion with no pause. Practice until the sequence becomes automatic muscle memory.

Training Progressions

How do you train New York to Invisible Collar (Attacker)?

Week 1-2 - Hand swim mechanics Practice the hand swim motion from New York without resistance. Focus on the correct path - behind the shoulder, around the ear, cupping the skull. Partner remains still while you develop muscle memory for the threading motion. Complete 50 repetitions per session.

Week 3-4 - Timing and coordination Add light resistance with partner attempting to block the hand swim. Focus on explosive timing - release shin grip and swim simultaneously. Partner gives 50% resistance, allowing successful completion while building reaction speed.

Week 5-6 - Counter integration Partner randomly chooses between allowing the transition, hand fighting, or attempting posture recovery. Practice appropriate responses to each scenario. Begin chaining failed transitions into alternative attacks like triangle or armbar.

Week 7+ - Live sparring application Implement transition in live rolling starting from New York position. Track success rate and identify patterns in failures. Adjust timing and setup based on training partner body types and defensive tendencies. Target 50%+ success rate before considering technique reliable.

Safety Considerations

What are the safety concerns for New York to Invisible Collar?

The New York to Invisible Collar transition is generally low-risk for both practitioners when executed properly. The primary safety concern involves neck strain on the bottom player if they attempt the transition with insufficient hip flexibility, potentially hyperextending the lower back or straining hip flexors. Always warm up thoroughly before practicing rubber guard techniques. For the top player, the sudden head control can create neck compression - tap immediately if the collar grip creates breathing difficulty or neck pain. Training partners should communicate clearly about pressure levels and release grips immediately upon tap. Avoid explosive movements that could cause whiplash-type injuries to either person’s neck.

New York to Invisible Collar Attacker

Outcomes