Muay thai in mma?!

Big Jack

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Hi, first thread I made on the forums so here goes...

huge UFC fan, watch a lot of MMA, including WEC etc, but i can't help wonder why every fighters striking is so one dimensional? anyone else see this or am i just being a critic? Its just like, jab cross jab cross hook leg kick,head kick, knee etc.... but I do muay thai with a lot of great guys and the amount of fakes/different combinations/unexpected strikes i see often is huge, so why dont MMA fighters fight this way?

not having a bash, just wondered if there was any reason for this?

Cheers guys! :)
 
In MMA the takedown severly hampers a fighter's ability to freely throw his hands and kicks. I'd agree that the fakes are not used nearly enough and just adding that one extra element I think it would open up many more opportunities and keep the opposing fighter off balance.
 
yeah i appreciate possibly being slammed etc but ive seen fights where both fighters make some sort of mutual agreement to stand and bang, but both just throw the amateur 1, 2's and a few hooks e.g clay guida and diego sanchez or the recent joey beltram and matt mitrione. and im just like shoutin through the telly "MIX IT UP DUDE" :icon_conf
 
yeah, i wish i could see a fighter reaching for leg only to get head kicked.
 
"Single leg takedown" is the first thing wrestlers think when a kick is thrown.

The reason you see so much Boxing is to guarantee the fight remains standing.
It's unfortunate but takedowns and top control play a huge role in judges eyes.
 
"Single leg takedown" is the first thing wrestlers think when a kick is thrown.

The reason you see so much Boxing is to guarantee the fight remains standing.
It's unfortunate but takedowns and top control play a huge role in judges eyes.

do wrestlers fall for a fake kick?
 
yeah,lay and pray fricken sucks. i believe it should be fighter agression & damage done that scores big :(
 
do wrestlers fall for a fake kick?

Son I am confuse

I'm referring to kicks that landed....the wrestlers grab the leg on impact and start the takedown. It's a huge reason why kicks are used less and less these days.
 
Son I am confuse

I'm referring to kicks that landed....the wrestlers grab the leg on impact and start the takedown. It's a huge reason why kicks are used less and less these days.

Unless you're the guy in your avatar. Then those rules don't apply :icon_chee
 
Unless you're the guy in your avatar. Then those rules don't apply :icon_chee

lol that's why Aldo IS my avatar.

I have mad respect for a fighter who still uses Muay Thai to perfection in MMA.
Even against stud wrestlers.
 
muay thai aside...one fighter i do love to watch fight is overeem, his striking is second to none
 
some really kool looking moves are really slow so they will miss, and you can get taken down.
 
The thing about combos is that no matter what you're throwing, you always have to be planted on the ground to throw your combo. The problem with this is, when you're stationary, you might as well have a bullseye for wrestlers.

If you've ever seen Alves/ GSP, you'll know exactly what i'm talking about. Every time Thiago starts to get comfortable and tries to open up with combos/ kicks/ whatever, GSP hits a level change and takes him down. And Alves is a guy with sophisticated takedown defense. But Georges is a guy with sophisticated takedowns, and the ability to chain several different takedowns together. If you stuff his double, he turns it into a single. If you stuff that, then he gets you with a knee tap. But I digress.

The way you describe MMA striking as "predictable and robotic" is because since the element of grappling is introduced, even high level strikers have to be much more deliberate about establishing the basics- mainly your jab, cross, hook, leg kick from range, and your knees from the clinch. Especially in a striker vs. grappler kind of fight, it's paramount the the striker establishes their jab to keep range, and starts to take away the opposing grappler's legs & body with kicks/ knees.

Like you said, you throw combos ALL THE TIME in Muay Thai, well the big difference there is that MT is almost straight striking (some trips/ throws from the clinch), so takedowns don't really influence your striking (especially at range). But realistically, it's not like you see any crazy moves in a kickboxing match until both guys have felt eachother out. You often see alot of circling and pecking away with jabs/ lead leg kicks in the 1'st minute or so of a K-1 match. When the fighters have gotten into a groove, then they open up with combos and the like.

But yeah, unless your opponents is turtled up against the fence and hurt badly, throwing combos can leave you open to takedowns in MMA.

Edit- Blue belt! For the 4'th time...
 
lol that's why Aldo IS my avatar.

I have mad respect for a fighter who still uses Muay Thai to perfection in MMA.
Even against stud wrestlers.

I think Aldo has the best MT in MMA right now. He uses all 8 points to perfection- kicks & knees to low/ mid/ high ranges, very tight hands & elbows. His wrestling & jits allow him to throw with committment, and his strikes to the legs & body complement his grappling by wearing down his opponent.

I think the only 2 kinds of guys that can threaten him at FW right now would be like a Joe Warren, a guy with world class wrestling with only 1 thing in mind- the takedown. The second would be a guy like Grispi, who has that wildcard of just being able to sink that choke at any time; explosive submission ability like that is so hard to come across and train for. Grispi is also proficient in the striking department as well, and if he could learn to use his length better then he could potentially frustrate Aldo a bit.
 
I'd like to see leg kicks used more effectively in mma. Not many people shred people's legs with them like Pat Barry, Aldo, and Hardonk used to.
 
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