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I'm short but I can't stop relying on the knee.

1K views 4 replies 2 participants last post by  Project Oni 
#1 ·
It's my favorite limb of my arsenal by far. I'm only 5'7", 170 lbs with a large frame, and I'm having some trouble against my buddies/sparring partners that are about 6' or taller.

I'm worried there's little I can do about it as I'm already freakishly flexible, and I've got decent jump height. The best I can do against an opponent who is for example 6'3" is get into the clinch, QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE pull down while jumping up and pray that a strange angle has helped my knee collide with their face -- this works in my favor maybe only 1 out of 4 times, so it's a gamble. To make matters worse, I have to get out of that MT clinch after I launch the knee ASAP because I'll start taking shots from above, no time to even dig those elbows into their chest during the clinch!

This is horribly annoying, because I'm so used to landing consecutive knees to the faces of opponents up to 4-5 inches taller than me with few striking reprocussions above the clinch. So how do you fellow short MT fighters deal with this?
 
#2 · (Edited)
I'm 5'7" and 190lbs. The way I would work from a situation like that is to clinch only when necessary or when I have set them up for it. Other times I would just work my jab, kicks, and combos and try to stay as light and as evasive as I could until I had them set up for it, then just let my knees go until I couldn't feel my legs lol. I know exactly how it feels, you feel safe when you're clinched up and kneeing, but when he strikes from the top you lose confidence quick, then let go and his reach kicks in. Try to move so much that you are never in the same place twice. Of course this means tons of cardio and endurance, but biegn the greatest doesn't come without a price ;)
 
#3 · (Edited)
Sounds good. I really should dabble more into counter and evasive fighting. I'm an extremely hardheaded and aggressive fighter whether I'm going against someone my height or someone 8 inches taller than me, heh. Generally, against guys over 6', I'm always trying to sneak in and tie their limbs up where I can give a flurry of elbows or get that 'hit-and-release' clinch on my way out of the clinch range. Mixed results there.

Some evasive fighting like you mentioned will probably open up a ton of knee opportunities. I haven't got many set-ups other than looking for sloppy head movement. In one particular sparring session, a friend who is about 5-6 inches taller than me came rushing in -- I planted a good push kick to his solarplexus, he bent over forward a ton and my knee naturally followed up into his chin with ease.

I guess I've really got to focus on the set-up, mixed with evasive and counter fighting.
 
#4 ·
It's like my teacher always told me "Offense is nothing without a strong defense". A few weeks and cuts and bruises later I learned lol. Freakin 50 years old and I had to work my ass off just to get near him.
 
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