Returning UK lightweight Terry Etim provides tips on how to replicate his lethal 17-second guillotine finish from UFC 138.

It took 18 months and 30 days for Terry Etim to return to the Octagon after his first defeat in two years against Rafael dos Anjos at UFC 112 in Abu Dhabi… It then took all of 17 seconds for him to reignite his UFC career.

Once labeled the biggest talent in UK MMA, the past year-and-a-half has been difficult for the proud Liverpool striker. Dogged by injuries, the Team Kaobon star has had to stand by and watch his teammates shine in the Octagon. Paul Taylor, Paul Sass and Mark Scanlon have all gone on to make headlines of their own in Etim’s absence, while the UK scene had moved on thanks to the form of the likes of Paul Daley, Ross Pearson, Michael Bisping and Brad Pickett.

But Etim signaled his future intentions in fine style at UFC 138, his blink-of-an-eye submission of Edward Faaloloto earning him a fourth UFC career ‘Submission of the Night’ bonus, and projecting him into a mouth-watering showdown with Edson Barboza in Rio on January 14th.

But just how did he manage to choke out former US Navy officer Faaloloto in such blistering fashion?

“By drilling guillotines over and over and over,” reveals the 25-year-old, whose MMA record now stands at 16-5. “I expected him to come out firing from the start and I was ready to meet him in the center of the Octagon. I tagged him with a kick and as he rushed forward, I then connected with a couple of meaty counter punches, and he was hurt. When a guy gets hurt they take chances and he ducked for the double-leg takedown. It was sloppy and desperate and his neck was wide open. It’s something I train for and so as soon as I saw it I took my chance.”

And it really was over that quickly. Etim expertly dug the blade of his right forearm under the chin and across the neck of Faaloloto while generating fierce pressure in the squeeze to ensure that the fight was over before it begun, for the Hawaiian at least.

“I drill that guillotine every day, it’s the only way to truly master something. Every day after training I say to my training partners, ‘Okay, who wants to work guillotines with me?’ And I see their faces drop.

It’s not unusual for me to drill 100 guillotines after a training session.

My sparring partners are sick of it.”

Is there a secret to landing one so tightly and quickly?

“Not really. It’s about good footwork first of all, making sure you stay in range and working the angles. I come from a boxing and Thai boxing background so I’ve got good footwork ingrained in me, but from there it’s about taking the moment and getting that blade across the neck.

Then it’s about having a good squeeze, which I have really developed over the years. 

“It was actually my luta livre coach, Marcelo Brigadeiro, who encouraged me to get this good at guillotines. He said that the finish really fits my size, strength and style of fighting and one day he asked, ‘Do you really want to get good at guillotines?’ And of course I said yes.

His answer was simple, ‘Practice them every day, 100 times a day.’

And right there I learned a valuable lesson. If you wanna get really good at something, anything, you have to work at it every day.

Drill it over and over, and now I don’t even realize I am doing it.

It’s so natural to me, my instincts take over, I don’t force it. Well, not until I have it locked in anyway.” Edward Faaloloto knows exactly what he means.