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Takedown Defense

1K views 4 replies 5 participants last post by  Zemelya 
#1 ·
I love to be a standing fighter and everybody around me wants to take everybody to the ground and grapple. This is because none of them can stand up and fight effectively and they are all good wrestlers. I can grapple and know quite a few submissions but i am nowhere near them in the ground game. I can strike better then all of them though. I am just having trouble with the takedown defense.. i just need some more ideas with the whole take down defense ordeal. i wanna be able to stand up with somebody for a whole fight and go toe to toe but nobody will. I also was reading the confrontation thread and i am having the same problem.. the last two fights i have been in were both tko's one by a superman punch then i got on top and then the other was just a 1 2 punch that the guy had dropped his guard for... i will call somebody out and be fine but when they call me out it's a different story..
 
#3 ·
I covered this a bit in the "Back to Basics" thread. Since I know people are lazy, I'll copy and paste what I posted there. This is an intro on how to defend a shot...

All leg dives and shots can be broken down and explained like this: You take your opponent down by restricting the movement of their base while destroying their center of gravity. Restricting the movement of your opponent's base is down by grabbing ahold of the person's leg(s), isolating/controlling it and then bringing it out from under their center of gravity/hips by pushing, pulling or lifting. Sounds a little too simplified, right? It is, but when the concept of the technique is understood the principles of defending it become clear.

First rule of defending a shot: Control distance and range. Just like any punch or kick, it doesn't do any good to shoot from too far away. So how do you know when you are in shooting range? The general rule of thumb is if you can touch your opponent, you can shoot on them. This is the reason why you see grapplers tap their opponent's on the head, chest or shoulder. Not only does it distract the person, it also acts as a range finder. In MMA, you would use the jab. Once you can connect solidly, you can shoot effectively. The flip side of that is that they can shoot on you too. By controlling distance and range with footwork and mobility, you afford yourself that extra 100th of a second to setup or defend a shot.

Second rule of defending a shot: Keep on the same level (or lower) than your opponent. Just as a good shooter will drop their level before they shoot, you should drop your level to match their's to defend the shot. Remember, in order to destroy your center of gravity they have get underneath it. Dropping your level to match theirs will put your body in a solid position right in front of theirs. This is also the reason why a lot of guys miss sinking in underhooks when someone shoots on them. Their upperbody is still completely upright while their opponent is knee-level diving for their legs.

Third rule or defending a shot: Do not fight their force head on, redirect it. Just like you don't want to back up straight in a striking contest, you don't want to end up in a test of strength during a takedown if you can avoid it. When you are in a crash position, head-to-head, chest-to-chest with an opponent driving into you, realize that trying to muscle through them is a waste of energy (even if you are stronger than them). It is best to redirect their energy and turn them to the side of you or straight down while you move away from their path. In fact, when you sprawl you are using your body and gravity to direct their shot and force directly into the ground underneath you.

Keep those in mind when you looking to shoot, or looking to defend a shot and picking up on specific techniques to implement during that time (like the sprawl) becomes an easier task.
If you want a step-by-step on the sprawl itself, I can post that up if requested.
 
#4 ·
sprawl to avoid shots, putting your wieght ontop of them, controling thier head.

if caught in like the single whizzer. my caught foot would kick to the outside of their thigh and hook to prevent them from cutting an angle on me and push me over my opposing foot. with my far hand pushing their head down and away. with the same side leg caught i shoot my hand in setting an underhook and cupping my thigh as deep as i can. in an explosive twisting motion i twist my hips turning my back to them and kick my caught foot back, this motion forces to release the grip.
 
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