I'm watching the Berlin prelims right now, and Ogle is on the dudes back with his feet crossed for like two straight minutes now. His ankles are below the dudes waist. Does no one teach to bring a leg up over them, figure four and crank down and get an ankle lock off that by crushing it? I learned "Don't cross you legs on someone's back!" like day two in jiu jitsu. I got a technical sub in a tournament by pushing down like that as the guys ankle made a crack sound and he cried out so I know it works. I've seen this happen a few times in the UFC and no one tries for it.
By practice, you shouldn't cross your ankles, but in the same way that ankle locks have become nearly irrelavant in the UFC (except when applied by a few specialists), no one is ever going to get the ankle lock from that position in the UFC.
Exactly. Happens to you once and then you remember and don't do it again. I see fighters doing it all the time tho. Are you saying your ankles can survive that straight ankle lock variation? I think it's better for here. Grappling forum you definitely go for the lock, I'm wondering why UFC fighters don't ever go for it
You have to have your feet crossed really high up so that the pressure is on top of the ankles, if not it just pulls on the foot which is painful but won't cause a break or submission.
Not watching the fights at the moment, but that submission IS fairly easy to lock up if they have those feet committed. But, on the other hand a lot of times I just threaten with it to get them to unlock their feet, so I can start working escapes, it doesn't always work unless they they're locked up in the right place.
Crossing the feet in back mount isn't the worst thing to do. BJ Penn did it all the time. Aside from the leglock though, I feel like it doesn't give you the same control as having your heels dug into the thighs, or ideally the body triangle. If you watch BJ Penn vs Jon Fitch, you see that when BJ crosses his feet, that's when Fitch is able to escape.
This kinda reminds of me when people say, "doesn't Rousey know you're not supposed to cross your feet when you do an armbar?????!!!" lol