I was wondering if anyone had any tips on putting a muay thai style of clinching into mma. Yes I have a wrestling backround but have been studying muay thai for a few years now also. Its just whenever I'm mma sparring and get into clinch I immediately start to wrestle not go for the plum or other controls like you would in muay thai. So my question is has anyone ever made the switch to put their mt in mma clinching? And any specific strikes or moves that would work well in mma that people don't do or is /underused? Any help would be appreciated thank you
Personally dont like the full Muay Thai plum in MMA unless I know that the other guy's grappling is terrible or if the other person is in a very defensive mode and if I have the person backed up against the wall. Reason being is that you are more open to throws or a double leg as both your hands are occupied. A counter/neutraliser is going hip to hip...essentially giving your opponent double underhooks on you. I would say use it for maybe a strike or two but while they are off balance and you are in general control. But since you re wrestling I personally would work off that more with strikes (vague I know but do apologise for that)
Your opponent's arms has too much freedom. If you can disable one of his arm, you have just eliminated a lot of counters that he can apply to you.
Plam is much more than 2 hands on a opponents neck which is actually called Jap Kor,we have underhooks(which can Lead to single and double leg attempts in MMA) and over hooks,bicep control,elbow controls,knee picks,off balances and of course knee and elbow strikes as well as many counters to all the positions/locks and strikes,so I think Wrestling and the Muay Thai clinch game if learnt fully and done correctly could be great for MMA Not all clinch but you can see some good throws from the clinch on this clip [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=spFk4smmT5s"]Saenchai Sor Kingstar Clinching with Tony and Brock - YouTube[/ame]
I have used the full Thai grip to decent effect against people, though never against a high level grappler. Keep the grip tight around the neck, dig your elbows in hard on the chest and yank the head down. If the other guy can keep his head up, its not so effective. If you can pull his head right down, and even yank it around to keep him off balance, you can land a good few knees and such as well as open up for various takedowns/trips. I do think you'll need to adapt other clinch positions too though, the Thai ones can work fine, but there are many other techniques that are perhaps easier to adapt.
this first time i watched a visiting thai fighter here in the uk i thought i was watching a free style wrestler who was also using strikes! underhooks, bicep control, duck unders, whiZ6ers etc all were used Best way to drill clinch for MMA is to learn control positions, learn to hit the opponent when he is off balance or unable to hit you back, if you have a wrestling and thai background you are half way there, id suggest working the clinch at 50% pace to give you enough time to think and work without reverting to your wrestling instinct when you get in trouble Some of my favourite conrol positions are 1) underhook (using the head on the same side as the underhook for control and to limit strikes from the opponent) and far bicep or wrist control, great place to launch knees to the body and legs from, as well as stamps to the feet, also great way to set the front headlock up with a quick snap down 2) single collar tie to control the opponent and either punch with the other hand or control his wrist with it, snap him down and around to set up knees or your takedown (you have to snap and rag him around as he has a free hand to hit you if you dont make him worry about his base) 3)underhook and head control: good control position to hit knees off 4) Plum (double collar tie) good position to hit knees but since its MMA you have to remember to keep your elbows very tight (they are your first line of defence against a double or swing single leg attack) and to keep moving your opponent, snapping him down, pulling and ragging on him so he is always on the defensive and not trying to take you down
I think because of my wrestling I became more of a "dirty boxer" (saying that after my knee Im more counter/defensive). Once again in MT I did less 2 hands holding head. And more K1 style, single hand behind head and pull down. Usually they try to counter and i just switch it up. Making sure Im neutralising something as Im doing it. My trainers and sparring buddies still talk about how my clinching game got a lot stronger after I started wrestling. I like how training different arts change your game up...for the better.
You may prevent your opponent from doing single leg or double legs on you, but you may just expose your head to him. If your opponent wants to - bend his arm, you help him to bend a bit more. - straight his arm, you help him to straight a bit more. If your opponent puts both hands behind your neck, presses both elbows against your chest, all you need to do is to use your hands to press down on top of his arms above his elbow joints, his arms will be tied to your chest. You just have a perfect control on his arms. This will also pull his head closer to you (because his arms are bending to the maximum). Since you can release your hands control anytime you want to, this will give you a perfect chance to apply head lock on him.
What do you think of this guys,IF Muay Thai is the best art for clinch WITH strikes,and you add in singles and doubles knee picks etc from said clinch then go to ground and pound where a striker (Muay Thai especially) can use his elbows and knees,then why do more people not use Muay Thai as a base for MMA?. If you dont think Muay Thai is the best art out there for clinch with strikes then which art do you think is better?
I thought most MMA guys did use Thai as there striking base If not Thai then maybe sanda/shanshou…but the few fighters that have made the leap from Sandaat Berry cung lee haven’t really set the MMA world alight OR shown clinch skills that make you sit up and say wow
I've always been partial to the single collar tie myself. It leaves my other hand free to strike or grapple and I find when people try to shake it off it makes for a good opportunity for a knee or transition to a takedown.
You may eat a knee, you may not. When your opponent knee strikes at you, he has only one standing leg. If you are a grappler, that one leg standing will be your chance for a perfect take down. A knee strike at the inside of his upper leg (to deflect his knee strike), followed by a hook (or sweep) on his standing leg with a push (or pull) on his neck should be able to do the job. From a - "striker" point of view, your single collar tie still give your opponent 2 free hands when you only have 1 free hand left. It's not a good trade. - "grappler" point of view, the single collar tie won't affect your opponent's balance that much. It may be better to use one arm to wrap your opponent's arm (major hand), and use one arm to control his neck (minor hand). This will give him only 1 free arm. If he wants to punch you with his free hand, you can raise your elbow (still control your hand on his neck) to deflect it. Since you can change your neck control (single collar tie) into either "head lock" or "over hook", you'll have a lot of options.
Actually one of their hands isn't really free. My striking hand can easily block the hand on the same side. And I can affect their balance with the single collar tie. By sinking the elbow I gain pretty good control. It'll never be the same as with both but them's the brakes. I sacrifice a little control for the ability to strike and block with a free hand. And like I said if they try to escape it's open season on grappling or striking.
You will eat a fair few knees not just one Out of interest if you have both hands pressing on top of his arms, with I assume downward pressure since you are moving his head close to you, how do you then manage to shift your balance to sweep him and reach around his head with a free hand? How many limbs do you have And a single collar tie doesn’t affect people’s balance much……. Have you watched much free style? Single collar tie is usually used with wrist or elbow control I grant you, but it’s a great controlling position
In my personal experience, it's very difficult (if not impossible) to take your opponent down by that single collar tie. This is why in Judo (since most people are more familiar with Judo in this thread), the sleeve hold (major hand) is more important than the upper collar hold (minor hand). With the sleeve hold by itself, if you turn and sacrisfice your body weight, you can drag your opponent down to the ground. Please name 1 single Judo throw that you can throw your opponent with upper collar control (single collar tie) "only" without the sleeve hold (major hand). Your opponent's neck control arm can give you a free contact point. If you use one hand to press on top of his elbow, you can pin that arm on your chest. It's as good as an arm wrapping hand. You can then use the other hand to break his other neck control arm (or you just pin his other arm with your head lock), and give him a head lock or over hook at the same time. If I understand correctly, the "single collar tie" is a hand that you put behind your opponent's neck, at the same time, you press your fore-arm on his chest. In TCMA, it's called "mantis arm". It has nothing to do with wrist or elbow control. Do I miss something here? Everything is "static" in that 1/2 (or 1/4) second. Of course everyting can be changed in lighting speed. For the sake of discussion, we can only talk about a snap shot in time and what may happen after that (but it hasn't happened yet).
