When referring to the “battlefield” segment in the MMA arena, many viewers imagined that “locking” with “battlefield” was just a locking technique of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ). Or worse, the comments “Martial artists just need to practice more bjj, they can play the battlefield”, or “cuddling with each other, fighting to stand beautifully”.
Grappling sector is much more complicated than that. With material techniques, crumbling – Takdown (Takedown); MMA boxers can learn skills from traditional objects, Wrestling, Greco-Roman Wrestling, Judo. With tight locks and rival control techniques on the floor, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Wrestling, Catch Wrestling and Sambo will be martial arts.
Takedown also needs tactics
Takedown – Anti -Takedown technique plays an extremely important role in the Set set of any MMA boxer. If the opponent is good at fighting, use Takedown to pull them to the floor. If the opponent is good at grappling, do not give them the opportunity to pull themselves, forcing them to fight.
Simply a fighter capable of takingdown – against Takedown better than the opponent, will take the initiative to decide whether the match will take place in a state of standing or battle. This is also the reason that many MMA boxers came from Wrestlers to become very successful in the UFC arena in the early 2000s.
That does not mean that the wrestlers can calf the specifications into the MMA.
Pay attention to the distance between me and the opponent will be the first problem for Wrestler.
The wrestlers often find, cheat the opportunity for takedown, by capturing, pulling the arms, holding the opponent (Collar Tie), … at close range. The problem is that, the distance is almost also a very comfortable scope for the fighters to stand. If Wrestlers keep moving around the opponent, then even defense, it is likely that they will eat and punch, eat a pillow before taking the opportunity for takedown.
But too far away, how to deceive, drag the opponent down?
To solve this problem, some boxers will find a way to improve the attack skills by standing. Better stood better, equivalent to increasing the chance to pull close to the opponent. Good standing also creates beneficial situations, for example, when the opponent has to raise his hand to cover the head, they will not have their hands to defend a takedown phase.
Georges St-Pierre is one of these fighters. He often has a punching screen (including a blow and real blow) into the opponent's head. After that, as long as the opponent stepped back or in the defense to support the blow, St-Pierre would rush down to catch his feet, collapse the opponent to the ground.
Another development direction is to enhance defensive – counterattack techniques. The ability to blow with flexible head movement will be extremely important for the boxer to dodge, approach the opponent without eating too much heavy blow, before lightening the opportunity for takedown.
The simple example is that when the opponent throws hook punch (Hook), they will have to rotate the same direction as the punch – that's how the hook punch has the necessary force and trajectory. The rotation of the body at that time made their bodies no longer stable, and a takedown at the right time would not need much force to fly the opponent to the stage.
The final development direction, also requires the most “brain hack”, is “sliding”, “trap” the opponent moves in accordance with the distance they want. Move around the opponent, go backward so they follow, approach them to see threatening, stretching the distance.
In fact, the highest boxers of this gap are not necessarily wrestling, but karate fighters, such as Stephen Thompson. Thompson made the opponents extremely uncomfortable when they kept moving close to, the blow, and then again out of their reach, forcing the opponent to chase.
The wrestlers can apply the same running strategy, but will apply it in a different way. For example, if the opponent bites and chases while I move backwards, then I can suddenly lower the focus, catch and let the inertia leaning the opponent help me complete the Takedown phase.
For boxers from Judo or Sambo, in addition to the above issues, there will be another issue they need to adjust – that is the ability to grasp (Grip) to throw the opponent, when the opponents in front of them no longer wear the familiar martial arts.
There are many takedown techniques of Judo / Sambo based on the grasp. So, when playing MMA, the boxers will need to forget them, put more efforts for underhook techniques (one hand placed under the opponent's armpits, one hand controls upper body) and overhook (arms placed above the opponent's arm, the forearm of the hand and body on the opponent) to throw or hug the clinch lock.
Grappling MMA style
If the Judo / Sambo boxers “have difficulty” about the issue, the boxers with Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) too. Lock in BJJ has many neck lock techniques, joint locks need help from the GI.
Fortunately, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu has another branch, No-Gi, that is, BJJ technique in tight clothes. Bjj No-Gi's locking techniques such as Armbar, Rear-Naked Choke, Triangle Choke, Arm Triangle, Kneieee, Ankle Lock, Guillotine Choke, can almost calf into the MMA base without any big problem.
However, while playing Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, the boxers did not worry about being punched, kicked, and pillows; And in MMA, yes. Therefore, the way boxers handled the basic Guard position – a boxer lying below, a fighter trying to control from above; There is a huge difference between MMA and BJJ.
In BJJ, sometimes the boxer lying below is the one who occupies many advantages. There are more finishing blowes by closing the submission from the lower position rather than the upper sitting position. The techniques of “sweeping”, changing lying – sitting (Sweeps and Reversals) also performed from the boxer below.
Meanwhile, in the MMA arena, the boxer took control of the above. The above can pound the Ground and Pound blow, which can go out; At the same time, the advantage is scored compared to the opponent on the transcript of the assessment.
In addition, punches and nipples can also pave the way for a victory with a submission lock.
For example, when an attacker could not lock the strangling after the Rear-Naked Choke, the opponent's side was likely to make the opponent loose, enough for the martial artist to attack the lock.
Another example, when the attacker was punching Ground and Pound rice, the boxer lying down to raise his face, the boxer above could hook the opponent's arm, pulling it out to perform the Armbar arm.
Conclude
With rapid growth rate, the concept of “general martial arts – MMA” is gradually changing.
If before, “MMA” only represents a competition formula that is enough to stand and lock; Now MMA is gradually developing into a system with a series of specific techniques. Whether in terms of striking or grappling, current MMA techniques have included very different characteristics compared to previous martial arts such as boxing, muay Thai, object, Jiu Jitsu, …
Over the past half of the past decade, MMA boxers with a separate “style”, typical for a certain martial art, such as “Karate Style”, “Capoeira Style”, “Muay Thai Style”, … has increasingly appeared in big arenas such as UFC or One Championship. Instead of them, the appearance of fighters with a more balanced skill set, less disadvantages, covering all Striking – Wrestling – Grappling elements.
Perhaps some viewers will think that this reduces the special features of MMA competition in general. However, this is like a selective trend of course, “wise to live dead”, eliminating inappropriate factors, so that MMA can form an effective antagonistic system.
Following that trend, of course, MMA in the future will not only be hit by a tight lock. Even when fighting, MMA boxers will have the ability to switch the match to the floor, and even when the forte is hit, the boxer will also have the ability to deal with Striking. That is probably the direction of MMA technical development in the coming years.