If you’ve ever trained BJJ, then you will have probably heard at some point that the can opener is an illegal move. Although used in MMA, the move is banned in IBJJF rulesets due to being a spinal crank. This is often applied from the top player whilst being in the closed guard position. By grabbing the back of the guard players’ head with both hands and pulling the head forwards, the can opener is applied. With enough pressure, it will make the opponent tap, or risk doing their neck long-term damage.
Step backward to 2004 at the Arnold Gracie competition. At this time, the Arnold Gracie competition was held in high regard and was affiliated with the Arnold Schwarzenegger Fitness Expo which took place alongside the grappling event.
The event rules stated that the can opener could be used to open the closed guard. However, it wasn’t legal to be applied as a submission. With this in mind, the can opener was a grey area. On the one hand, it was illegal in some circumstances, but in other positions it was fine.
During the event, Jeff Monson was in Marcio Pe de Pano’s closed guard. You can guess what happened next. Monson applied the Can Opener and Pe de Pano tapped. Jeff Monson celebrated whilst Pe de Pano complained adamantly and rubbed his neck in pain. The incident caused mass confusion at the time with a lot of yelling in Portuguese.
After 20 minutes or so, the referee decided to DQ Monson. This was either for applying the Can Opener as a submission or because Monson started pushing him and trying to attack him. Either way, Monson was disqualified and not happy. This resulted in a brawl and bought the competition to a temporary standstill whilst chaos ensued.
Years after the event there is not really much doubt in my mind that Pe de Pano had pretty much planned this. He knew after a few minutes of grappling that he probably wasn’t going to beat Monson and that Monson would continue to neck crank him. Believing he could game the system, Pe de Pano waited until the next can opener attempt, loosely opened his guard and instantly tapped.
Because of this, they both got banned from the next year’s event. Pe de Pano was not happy and told Gracie Mag “He (Jeff Monson) started the incident, fought and everything, but nothing happened to him. But they want to say it was I that did it all! They told me the sponsors don’t want me this year, so I told them that I won’t fight there again until 2029, then I’ll return…It’s not I that need their event..”
Having said this, Monson was also disallowed from competing at the next Arnold Gracie event and eventually returned two years later. This gives an insight into the attitude of Pe de Pano at the time who had an air of arrogance about him.
Who was right?
This is a tricky question to answer and it opens up a larger debate about wider competition rules and how they are interpreted. It could be argued that both competitors are correct in their thinking. On the one hand, it does state that Can Openers can be used to open the closed guard.
On the other hand, they aren’t allowed to submit the opponent. So, where does the line get drawn? As seen in the video, Monson does successfully open the closed guard with the Can Opener. However, whilst the legs are opened Pe de Pano taps. It’s not surprising that either competitor was both confused and feeling they got it right.
One thing which did come from this is the tarnished reputation of Pe de Pano. At the time he was a World Champion who also fought in UFC. He was one of the brightest stars in BJJ and his accolades should still be respected today. However, the fallout is that he was seen as a moaner who was overly dramatic. Since then, Brazilians have had something of a reputation for trying tricks whilst competing which is a shame because it’s mostly just a cliche. However, the behavior of Pe de Pano did nothing to help this stereotype whilst tarnishing his legacy.
Strangely, Monson’s career turned out even weirder – with the MMA veteran being best known for denouncing capitalism and gaining Russian citizenship. By all accounts, Monson is meant to be a great guy – but his life choices are not typical of your average grappler and he seems to have really embraced his Communist beliefs. These days he can be found living in Russia where he openly supports the Communist party.
Whatever your thoughts, the long-term outcome was actually a positive one. The IBJJF acted quickly and made sure can openers were made illegal in all future competitions. Because of this they took away any potential grey area and made it quite clear that the move is not allowed in any circumstances.
An excellent break-down of the incident can be seen in the video below. Here Youtuber Riccardo Ammendolia summarises the day’s events and how it unfolded.
