tips on adapting my striking for mixed martial arts

Been training textbook Muay Thai and Boxing (seperately) for years now, had a number of amateur bouts in boxing, and a few MT smokers.

I don't think either sports will get me paid much if i went pro. The talent pool in boxing is so deep, and kickboxing never took off to begin with here in the U.S. So that leaves me with MMA.

I joined a grappling and wrestling class. I just need some advice about changing my striking style to fit the rules of MMA. Like i said, i'm training both arts in their purest forms (Muay thai to a lesser extent, because of U.S. regulations), so base your advice off of that .

I'm just looking for stuff like:

How my stance should be

Maybe some techniques that might not work in MMA

Some techniques that might work better in MMA.

How the "baby gloves" would affect my defense and offense in terms of MMA.

etc. and if any of you guys have transitioned from a pure striking art to MMA, please tell me about all your experiences. I would love to hear them.

K thanks.

 

develop your jab, the one thing that transitions into mma w/out fail is the jab; 95% of the guys in mma, even the GOOD strikers can't deal w/a stiff hard sharp continuous jab.

it works off, keeping your opp on his heels, breaking him down and setting up the right hand; defensively if used correctly will keep opp from closing in to clinch 4 knees, or for stepping in to land strikes, an will keep them out of range to attempt tieups or shots.

the defensive footwork, 95% of guys in mma can't cut off the cage, nine times out of ten they just follow their opp UNTIL their opp gets to tired or doesn't stick and move, instead just planting and firing shots. The angles, controlling of dist will make it hard for someone to close to clinch/tie up; it will also handff them in attempts to setup shots or open up offensively, cus of the constant change in dist and them having to readjust position cus ur gliding all over the cage. Also boxing footwork teaches u how to move backwards intelligently, so even when clinched or tied up you can spin out and catch them out of position or keep from getting mashed up against the fence.

body shots, u can't just commit and open up, but if u have good footwork; u can get someone out of position esp when they punch or even when u miss punches and can land single, but HEAVY shots to the body.


examples of all these -penn v gsp-couture v liddel I - varner v mccullough - silva v leben- any marcus davis fight

 

He offered great tips.

You will have to learn how to block and parry punches all over again but other then that everything should transition nicely, most notably mma fighters don't really use a boxing stance at all.

Don't leave your lead leg too far out there if you think the guy might try a takedown unless you're gsp fast

this might be a good question to put in the "ask the fighters" thread actually

 

I'd say work on takedown defense because alot of guys will be grappling based and you'll outstrike them easy.

 

Your stance is going to have to change slightly. Mostly due to the threat of getting taken down. So your hands should drop just a little to avoid the TD.

 

Crazy monkey! (search this forum) hehehe. I signed up for info, talked to some of the instructors and almost attended a Crazy Monkey defense seminar but really, I like boxing a lot so I think I'm just going to go down the path of traditional athleticism-based boxing defense, and pick up CM later on down the line for fun.

 

My Opinion:

Stance: I would probably lean more towards a boxing stance VS. Muay Thai, better base for defending takedowns. However, the weight distribution in your stance should be closer to MT, for me at least. I tend to get heavier on my front foot when boxing, specifically when moving back/out......

Techniques I dont think work so well in MMA: Less parry more slip, tame down your bob & weave to be less drastic than more traditional boxing (still use it), in clinch shorten up your knees (dont draw them as far back as you would in MT), anything flying/jumping/spinning should be approached with extreme caution.

"Baby Gloves": Parry is more difficult, slip is easier. When defending just remember to cheat your gloves up a little higher (instead of thumbs on jaw, try thumbs on bottom of earlobes). Depending on how you defend the uppercut , you may need to make some adjustments since those smaller gloves get through your guard a little easier. Your forearms straight forward with traditional boxing gloves do a decent job of reducing the damage of the Uppercut, with the smaller gloves I had to add a little more turn to deflect them. Last thing, learn to adjust your range a little bit with your hands. Strangley enough, this was the most difficult thing for me to do...... I found myself a half step short of my power on a lot of my straight punches...... mainly jab!

Lastly, use your jab! So underutilized in mma. Also, those "baby gloves" make using feints far more effective (in my opinion), another tactic underutilized in MMA!

 

Thanks for the advice guys, as for the stances i use i will elaborate(note: i tried to find pictures that were as close as possible)

For boxing:
I use a 60%(frontleg)40%(backleg) stance, knees bent significantly, with my back leg on the ball of the foot. My stance is a little wider (as viewed from the front) than the normal stance, a little hunched over.

I notice some boxers like to almost walk the "tightrope" with their stance because it gives your opponent the smallest target possible, but i feel in doing that you compromise your balance and lateral movement. To each his own i guess.

I can throw just about any punch easily from this stance, and it also aides my head movement and footwork. Pretty much the basic boxing stance, just slightly square.

kind of like this guy, except more relaxed and less goofy looking. and more side-on.

http://www.realcontactfighter.com/images/tecwriteups/BoxingRCF.pdf

or Dudley from street fighter


For Muay Thai:
I use two main stances for muay thai.

The balanced stance- Legs slightly bent, front leg facing 12 o'clock, back leg facing 2-3 o'clock. Hands held up to temple level, elbows still in. Body more upright, shoulders shrugged instead of hunched over.

I can throw all my strikes from this stance, punches are a bit weaker so i may overcompensate with extra shoulder whip for snap. Great for overall movement and kicking. My weight quickly shifts to the front leg when i throw punches.

i swear all i can think of are video game characters, lol.



Defensive stance-Same foot and hand position, but 90% of weight on back leg with front leg "bobbing" off ground, for the lack of a better word.

I use this stance for aggressive guys, i often switch to it just to mix things up. I can throw my left switch kick and push kick with ease from this stance. I can also quickly check leg-kicks aimed at the front leg. Punching power goes out the window, but i can still pop off a stiff jab or off-balance my opponent with a pushing block from this stance.

Like this except my foot is touching the ground, this is more like an endless leg check that only Adon from street fighter can do.


I even get down low into my boxing stance during punch exchanges in sparring since things are more kickboxing than Muay Thai here in the U.S.

Why so many stances? I don't know, i flow through them back and forth without even noticing it anyway, it's not a conscious thing,it's 2nd nature, it was harder typing out these stances than doing them.

 

Sounds like you got it pretty well put together. Only advice I would offer would be to try and find a median between your boxing and balanced MT stance. Specifically; wider stance as you mentioned for boxing, but using the shrugged shoulders and weight distribution of your MT stance (60/40, 70/30) Should keep you a little more upright, which i prefer (to each his own). Also, I like to bring my hands a little farther forward (elbows not so tight to body), more so on my jab hand, for me it helps with takedown defense. When closing the gap the hands obviously get higher and elbows tighter. I am tall and lanky so this works for me, not to mention I hate being on the ground!...... Obviously, you know you can adapt the stance (as you mentioned doing) as necessary for different opponents/situations...... Good luck bro, Im sure you will do well!

 

Those animations are awesome!

 

Thanks for the advice man, ignore my apparent geekiness. I really am a banger. haha.

 

abandon what you learned and just throw looping punches and lots of overhand bombs.

 

DISCLAIMER!!!!: I have only fought 1 MMA bout....... Got my ass kicked! However, this was the advice I would have given myself prior to my ass whipping! I fought a wrestler who laid on me the entire time, never really hurt me, just held me down the whole damn time....... As much as I would like to talk shit, he still got a W vs my L....... Either way, I have started working alot harder on my wrestling/BJJ, maybe another mma bout is in the future?

 

Wider stance, more careful with your defence. Leaving yourself open for a counter with 4oz gloves can be fatal, even against a guy who doesnt necessarily hit really hard.

 

see this is what i was thinking at first. But everytime i spar like this a part of me dies inside. My heart cries, my sensibilities shatter.

 

this man speaks the truth.

 

Which SF did you play?

Either way i'd pwn u with my Chun-li.

muahahhahahahhahahah

 

LOL!!!! But the pure enjoyment makes up for the lack of sense!