(Video) “Dude went WWE on him” – Everyone is talking about THIS ‘flying submission’ from Karate Combat

Daniel Sathler goes viral with his WWE-style triangle armbar gimmick on Matheus Costa at Karate Combat 50 this week.

(Video) “Dude went WWE on him” – Everyone is talking about THIS ‘flying submission’ from Karate Combat

Daniel Sathler goes viral with his WWE-esque triangle armbar submission of Matheus Costa (Source: X)

This is it — the code to jazzy showing and prime performance. No matter how much intelligent grappling someone has, it’s always flashy finisher KOs that get the vote. Most models of combat sports scoring also veer towards it. However, Daniel Sathler took on a new challenge from Matheus Costa at the grappling arm of Karate Combat this Friday. The two cracked it and engaged in a flying WWE-esque pit submission that was a pure head-turner!

With doors opening at 4:30 P.M. MDT, Karate Combat KC50 marked its 50th event in the pit. While matches are required to start standing in the pit for the ‘Submission Series‘, Daniel Sathler took advantage of the apron. He jumped a flying maneuver and got the better of Matheus Costa. Sathler (Catchweight) defeated Matheus Costa via submission (triangle armbar) at the 2:27 mark of R1.

YouTube video

Pit fighting has its advantages of taking cues from positions, even against industry veterans, and it showed. Ex-UFC Luke Rockhold recently found himself at a similar disadvantage against the apron at CJI Submissions Grappling Day 1, after dapping it up with Demetrious Johnson. Kind of reminiscent of Johnson’s infamous flying armbar (Mighty Wiz Bar), Sathler’s Triangle Armbar was a move for the ages. Except it was a more linear, front move.

Full facelock/inverted headlock and body drive are more frequent to sell moves like DDT or a body bomb in pro wrestling like WWE. However, such flashy moves do sometimes make their foray into other areas of combat sports. Now, so has Sathler and his jump-ey submission gimmick. As such, the matter has gone quite viral.

Fight fans react to Flying front triangle armbar at Pit Submission Series

Pit Submission Series 8 took place on October 11th, 2024, and the promotion booked an increased array of matches than usual. Karate Combat KC50 main card at 7 pm ET/ 4 pm PT, UFC Fight Pass/ YouTube saw many prime attractions. UFC face Alex Pereira’s sister Aline Pereira scored a familial monster KO to win her debut. There were other such scraps as well.

Fans react to the Karate Combat fight result
Fans react to the Karate Combat fight result (Source: X/fightmag.com)

With how MMA scoring stitches towards flashy stuff, Pereira (3-4 combat sports, Karate Combat debut) and her highlight against Dee Begley are obviously the biggest takeaways. The feature main event heavyweight contest between Artur Alibulatov and Markus Perez was also something else. However, Daniel Sathler and his gimmicky WWE-like move on Matheus Costa will also be talked about a lot.

Subsequently, a prime reaction (@MacMallyMMA) stated: “Dude went WWE on him,” which is not wrong in itself. Here are a few reactions to it:

With UFC Fight Pass Invitational 8 (UFC FPI 8) in the books on Friday as well, fans have voiced how the PIT is instead an endgame! Some have accordingly quipped quicker Brazilian brawlers or UFC Lightweight Dustin Poirier would have all the chance to jump the gilly in such a combat space. Alongside, the triangle armbar itself has also garnered much attention.

Honestly, flying limb locks and drop-downs is something the likes of ONE FC fighters/ ‘Mighty’ Johnson, or even WWE star Oscar Gutierrez Rubio aka Rey Mysterio have made infamous. This is exactly why the pit is such a sweet spot for going the extra mile on tactile grappling. All in all, this is quite a win for the otherwise strike-first combat sports culture.