Closing distance to be able to throw punches in muay thai.

[InZain]

This is a loaded question.

In business strategy, one of the things that's done during the planning phase for changing a business's strategic direction in an existing market is something called a "swot" analysis. It's where a company analyzes its strengths, weakenesses, opportunities, and threats. As a fighter, creating a strategy should be no different. You need to know all those same factors in order to create a successful plan of action.

Strengths:

What I can gather from your post is that you have a inclination towards punches. I assume by that you mean that you have a set of mechanically sound punches. What are your other strengths? Are you good at blocking/covering? Do you have KO power? Are you exceptionally fast?

Weaknesses:



Being good at punching/boxing/fighting with your hands, means you'd have the footwork to go along with it and that translates to being able to control the space and positioning as well as the timing to know when to punch. Your quoted statement above implies otherwise. So I would say that might just be your set of weaknesses.

Opportunities:

You have several opportunities in your strategic direction. You can increase your knowledge of Muay Thai to learn how to take advantage of the typical nak muay's plan of attack and learn about holes in their defense. You can increase your fighting attributes to become stronger, faster, more reactive, or more resilient to punishment. You can learn to kick better so that you're stronger in that range of fighting. Lot's of options...

Threats

In the context of fighting...fighting a muay thai fighter is complicated. You have 8 limbs to deal with, and so many different varieties and combinations of attacks that it would be impossible to know them all. The gatekeeper for a nak muay are their kicks, as you have experienced. Those come at all elevations, but typically from ground up angle if it's their version of the round kick, or they may come straight forward from roughly waist level. They might come from a high angle downwards, or from a spinning maneuver at your side.

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Based on this rough SWOT analysis, I would say that your best plan of action would be to learn more about Muay Thai's general offensive strategy and counter attacking methods. Make note of how a typical nak muay would move, and then create some tactics to circumvent those standard reactions to allow a higher probability for your attacks to land. Combine that with learning better footwork and timing, and you likely will have a good recipe for success.

But, that's just my assumed analysis. You know yourself better than any of us do. Using this format of thought process...what answers would you come up with?

I guess it's fitting that the end of the world is today and I saw someone incorporate SWOT into a sherdog post lol. Cheers

 

[SAAMAG]

Yep...end of the world obviously. This SWOT analysis is merely a method of organizing one's attributes and comparing it to that of the opponent...or in the business realm the attributes of the company relative to it's opponents in the market. Isn't neat how people can find parallel ways to explain things?

 

[sourdiesel209]

Lol I hate doing SWOT analysis in class

 

[KarateStylist]

LOL. trying to block a good kicker and move in is a hard move to pull off. try to block this shit.



and some of the best hands in the game are still the Thais. But scoring is different then K1 , so they dont punch often.

^^^ WOW.... He's just like the Fierce Red-Belt [in my 1st belt-rank test], only REAAAALLLLY FIERCE....

>>>> MORE TO COME:

in kickboxing, there are 3 ranges.

1.kicking range
2.punching range
3.clinch/elbows range

/ * quote-chop * /

^^^ Chopped out the verbiage....

^^^ Traditional karate implicitly trains these striking ranges or lineal zones....

^^^ After some elemental kumite practice, these were intuitively clear to me.... ***

1. You can step back, lean back, step out, step in, step out and in, intercept with your own kick, intercept with your own punch, block and counter, catch and counter, use limb destruction techniques (elbow to the thigh), you can kick the bottom leg out...the possibilities are quite varied. But the question for the OP is...which is best for him?

2. If he's a tank and can take shots, a possible strategy is to just walk into the kicks with his punches. Since we already know though that's not true given his current method of standing and checking, perhaps a better way would again be footwork.

3. Stepping out and in and counter punch with a 3-2-5 (hook-cross-uppercut) Is an option. But as stated...you know yourself...I'm just trying to have you think that just give an answer OP.

^^^ 1. Laundry list a la SAAMAG....

^^^ 2. Although you can train for this in karate, the basic traditional principle of karate defense speaks otherwise.... YOU NEVER STAND THERE & ACT LIKE A PUNCHING BAG.... which is pretty much what these 'expert' MT fighters are doing against MR. SUPER KICKER.... OUCH, OWLWEE, OOHHH.... :icon_lol:

^^^ 3. Contrary to the pan by the 1st QUOTER,,,, You can stand & block a strong kick with karate.... SAAMAG's suggestion is far better, and strangely enough,,,, illustrates the fundamental principle of 1-step karate....

>>> The Muay Thai guys in these vids, essentially could take a lesson from that 'awfu' Japanese karate-->> Shotokan's Philosophy .... Defense Only [Defense First] [sic].

---- The 1st opponent had good, conventional checking skills, but they failed.... WHY??? [Hint: there's more than one reason.]

KarateStylist

Note: *** then again, I'm mentally disciplined.... :wink:

 

[KarateStylist]

* QC * FROM NUKELANDMINE'S EVOLUTION T, POST #1012:
So here we go: * QC* //
* IMAGE CHOP * // *QC *

- So how do I actually feel about hand placement?

1. What I've said numerous times, but almost never gets acknowledged (especially when Nuke says it), is that I do not advocate the hands being up for the purpose of primary defense.

2. Defense, as I teach it, is first maintained by controlling distance, which Nuke currently does poorly. However, no more poorly than anyone with the same level of experience.

3. Second principal of defense is POSITIONING.

4. Hands are a last resort, to be used when the first two fail.

• NO. 1. See NO. 4.The powers that be here @ the 'hunger games" do not believe in hands as primary means of defense--so I'll skip to NO. 2.....
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• NO. 2. I'm not assuredly sure what this means, being a karateka....so I'll skip to NO. # 3....
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• NO. 3. On the OP, what I do is reposition. If the opponent throws a strong kick, I use "Ringosher's 3 Ranges." Sinister's #2 Line of Defense is huge for me..., probably My #1, is to be in position....
  
  A. I can move out so the kick misses or has less impact since the kick is extended....
  
  B. I can move in so the kick contacts inside robbing power, or is thwarted....
  
  The reason these work even if a strong kick is thrown by like Mr. Super Kicker above,,, arises from traditional karate stances....
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• NO. 4. The way sport-fighters act, by-in-large I agree....

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EDIT: AH, after I reposition, I'm ready with hands.... always.... in fact, never not ready....

KarateStylist

 

[gauzyhanz]

Yep, I had some real issues with this when I first started off. This was because in real time sparring I was'nt good enough at kicking to connect or do enough damage, so I pretty much used my punches primarily. What I found helped a lot was a good kick defence. Before you get into punching range you have to get past kicking range, a good way to do this is to stay calm and sturdy and block the kicks, there is no need to step back to block kicks, unless they kick so hard they are literally pushing you away. So just practice blocking kicks.