After 10 years of being in the same gym it comes with sad yet exciting news that TapOut Academy is moving to new premisis.

The move became inevitable and nessesary as the TapOut students outgrew what the premisis could manage.

The school is moving to a more spacious premisis under Steve Spar on Beyers Naude Drive.

The new gym will be open as of the 30th of April.

Heres to TapOut Academy growing and flourishing in the years to come.

Origins of Muay Thai Boxing

Muay Thai history is deeply entwined with the history of Thailand itself. Because of perpetual invasions from neighbouring countries when Thailand was in the process of forming, Thai people depended on their ability to defend themselves. In these early times only short-range weapons such as spears, pikes and clubs would have been available for use in battle. During this kind of hand-to-hand combat, fighting methods can quickly change and the body’s natural weapons such as the head, fists, elbows and feet would necessarily also have been utilised. Undoubtedly, it is the systemised use of these natural weapons, developed as a practical fighting skill for the battlefield that came to be Muay Thai boxing.

The arm bar is one of the joint locks used in mixed martial arts competition and submission wrestling tournaments.

This joint lock is performed by placing your legs across the opponent’s chest, with one of his arms between your thighs and with the elbow joint against your hips. From that position the opponent’s arm is grabbed with your arms and his forearm is placed on your chest. To lock the arm, you will simply lean back and arch your hips at the same time.This creates intense pressure in the elbow joint and forces the tap. If the man does not tap out, he risks torn ligaments and tendons in the elbow joint. In some cases the arm bar may result in a broken bone if the opponent does not submit.

Although it is typically applied in the way described above, it should be noted that there are many, many variations of this technique.

Just as there are numerous ways to perform this technique, there are many ways to set it up. The most common of which is from the guard or from the mount.

Let's make it simple by starting in a standing position and perform the regular guillotine choke. You have to first pull your opponent's head down by placing your hand on his neck or by pulling down on his GI so he is facing the ground.
Now put your arm around his neck into a position similar to a headlock. Slide your forearm down under his chin and around his neck making sure that the blade of your forearm is against his neck.
Then grasp the wrist of your choking arm with your free hand. Keep this grip on his neck tightly so that his head is wedged under your arm.
Place one leg slightly forward, stand up straight and twist your hips in the direction of your forward leg whichever you are using to execute this choke.
A more complicated version is the spine locking guillotine choke. Here, you start by bringing your opponent's head down and wrap your arms around his head which is similar to the regular guillotine choke.
Using your forearm, turn your opponent's head towards the hand of your choking arm so can put pressure on his spine.
Put your free hand on your opponent's back on the same side of his head as your free hand. Then grasp the wrist of your planted hand with the hand of your choking arm and lean back.
If executed properly, your opponent has no choice but to surrender. If they don't, they will become unconscious in the next few seconds.
This move is not only used in competition but also in the street so you just have to practice how to do it.
Aside from the guillotine choke, there are other moves in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu you can learn and apply in and outside the ring.
After all, this can only be used when you are in front of the opponent. There are ways to subdue them when you are able to go behind them or on their side. You just have to listen to your instructor and watch how these are done so you can spar with someone in order to do it correctly.

EFC AFRICA Middleweight Championship GARRETH MCLELLAN vs. JEREMY SMITH Plus WESLEY HAWKEY vs. DENZIL WAIT DINO BAGATTIN vs. MICHIEL OPPERMAN SEAN ROBINSON vs. RAYMOND AHANA DONAVIN HAWKEY vs. DANIE VAN HEERDEN PETE MOTAUNG vs. JP KRUGER PAUL KIETZMANN vs. RICKY MISHOLAS DONALD NZIRAWA vs. BOYD ALLEN RYAN VAN NIEKERK vs. MARKUS TALJAARD WADE HENDERSON vs. JOSH MULLER KOBA IAKOBIDZE vs. GARETH BUIRSKI FRANCOIS GROENEWALD vs. DINO BERTOLIS.

TapOut Academy has many fighters on the card for this one!

Johannesburg (South Africa) – For the first time ever, the mixed martial arts promotion that has taken Africa by storm, EFC AFRICA comes to Cape Town. EFC AFRICA 13 on 13 April promises the same bone-jarring submission holds and lights-out knockouts in a new venue, the GrandWest Arena. Tickets on sale now at Computicket www.computicket.com. The main event of the evening pits reigning welterweight champion Dallas Jakobi against Jadyson Costa, a fearsome Brazilian export now fighting out of the Cape of Storms. Jakobi’s earth-shaking ground ‘n pound has allowed him to smash his way to the top of the EFC AFRICA ranks, but Costa’s slick submissions promise EFC AFRICA’s most exciting match-up yet.Also on the card, heavyweight wrecking machines Bernardo Mikixi vs Calven Robinson, and dangerous lightweight strikers Leon Mynardt vs Don Madge.

The rear naked choke is a submission hold used in mixed martial arts that cuts off the flow of blood to the brain. If applied correctly, it will force the opponent to submit. If they do not submit, they will pass out within a matter of seconds.The name “Rear Naked Choke” most likely comes from the name used in Judo for the technique, “Hadakajime” or in English “Naked Strangle”.It is called that in Judo because the choke does not make use of the uniform (gi), as other chokes do.To apply the technique, the back mount, also known as the rear mount, must be achieved. From that position of back control, which can be secured even more by hooking the insteps of the feet into the inside of the opponents thighs, the choke can be effectively applied.

The technique involves wrapping one arm around the opponents neck so that the inside of your elbow is placed against his throat. This will naturally place your bicep against one side of his neck and your forearm against the other side. From there you have two options for sinking in the choke and applying the pressure needed for the tap. You can place the hand of the arm you have wrapped around the neck on the bicep of the other arm and the hand of the other arm on the back of the opponents head. From there you hug your arms together and push out with your chest. The other option is to use what is called the Gable Grip. Where you take the hands of both your choking arm and your free arm and place them together with the palms facing. From that position you can squeeze the choking arm tight against the neck and get the tap out

Grappling superstar Liam Cleland made his much anticipated return to the cage at EFC 7 on 3 February 2011 . His return bout was against a game Armand De Bruyn from Durban. Cleland’s opponent came out firing leg kicks and executed a well timed hiptoss on him landing in side control. A cool headed Cleland maintained composure and reversed position and even effortlessy defended and an armbar attempt. He then took De Bruyn’s back and choked out his opposer. His transitioning of position was beautiful to say the least. De Bruyn showed off a gutsy performance and was apparently tearnig through the amateur scene previously.

It should be noted that Cleland is best known for his submission victory over popular mma superstar Jeremy Pitbull Smith. He has always been one of those competitors that flys under the radar but is a titan in competition. The EFC middleweight division has just gotten alot deeper with the inclusion of Cleland. Well done Liam you have made us very proud.

On another note, Tapout head coach Wiekus Swart is currently reffing bouts at the EFC