The problems with grappling and ground-fighting

There's several problems with grappling and ground-fighting for self defense. The problem is you can't grapple and defend or strike at the same time. At least not with the techniques in many grappling arts. It's either because the rules protect you from striking or your opponent is trying to grapple anyway. Things change in a no rules environment.

I sparred with my partner in a no rules sparring session. He knew he couldn't beat me in striking and kicking so he took me to the ground with primitive grappling skills via. takedown. He got in a top mount position as i struck him several times. Eventually, he pinned my arms and held me down. His face got too close to mine so i headbutted him in the nose. Luckily, it was no contact or he would've been knocked out or at least dazed to where i'd be able to escape. I gave up from exhaustion. Whether or not ground-fighting worked in this case is not the point. The fact that he took some blows before finally submitting shows it's not effective for self defense. Effective self defense is supposed to minimize damage taken and maximize damage done to your attacker.

In another case, ground-fighting didn't work well. We took it to the ground. I grabbed a practice katana, drew it, and ran it through his stomach. He didn't see it coming because we were staring at each other face to face.

It's why self defense instructors advise not to go to the ground.

 

So your friend has very primitive grappling, he still won but it doesn't work? So what if he was a very good grappler? Maybe he'd get hit even less and win even easier. Also, how likely do you think you are to face a katana in everyday life? Probably less likely than a general fist fight I would think.

You have a very limited view on what does and doesn't work.

 

The 80s called it wants it arguement back

 

The problem with grappling and ground fighting is that they can (and do) happen even if you don't want them to.
You can have two fighters where neither one wants to be on the floor but once two bodies collide and get entangled then over they go because now neither is fully in control of their own weight and balance.
Through the late 20th century we developed the notion that striking and grappling are somehow separate because multiple arts developed rulesets that prohibited one or the other.
But actually when real violence goes down or rules become more permissive both "types" of fighting happen frequently and flow from one to the other.
Older iterations of many arts show this basic fact because before the splintering and stylification of styles in the 20th century with differing agendas (often at the whim of a charismatic individual or forcing a style "brand") arts where more complete and diverse. Grappling styles had strikes, striking styles had grappling. They were shades of the same approach.

 

I didn't have knowledge of how to counter a grappler at the time, but now i do. You're missing the point when it comes to the katana being used. The point is weapons can render someone's grappling useless in an attack.

 

Only if you're better with the knife than I am with my hands.

 

No contact sparring and you were still exhausted and gave up.


Sounds like someone has been working on their excuses.......


So no rules sparring, talking about bokken as a katana, and an over focus on the deadly street.

You wouldn't happen to train in the bujinkan do you?

 

If only we had more details on the original event......

Oh wait we do......

 

Haha this is soooo bad, it's like he's taking a low level marketing course, and run with it!

Everything Self Defense: Self defense against Somali pirates

 

I was wrong, he's a wing chun guy who watches master Wong dvds,

Everything Self Defense: My way to Jeet Kune Do

 

Come on man, he put a video up on the internet. You don't need to rip him apart for it.

@Isaiah90 It's pretty evident you've never sparred with anyone who really knows what they're doing. You can't extrapolate a whole theory based on one sparring session with one person who is not a grappler in the first place. To form a real opinion I recommend finding the best MMA gym available to you and start training/forming your opinion there. See how hard it is to hold someone down and how easily it can be done to you in return.

 

I'm ripping on him for publishing dross like self defence Vs pirates..... (Step one threat awareness, know where they arrrrgh!), it's all done so he can make money off his ebook scam.

If it's in the public domain, and especially as it's done for profit, a factual evaluation and parody is completely fair game!

 

I can write an article explaining why MMA doesn't work for street self defense. In fact, i already did several times. For this post, i'd like to share several cases of MMA fighters sparring other martial artists in no rules settings.

I sparred no contact with my bud who was an MMA fighter. He trained in Muay Thai, wrestling, BJJ, etc. It was no rules. I landed a side kick to his balls then hook punched him in the temple. He saw the kick coming and was surprised, but didn't know the right technique to block it. He moved his rear leg back to try to block it with his front leg, but still got hit. He would've been knocked out or down if i went full contact. Boxing punches generate around 1,000 pounds of force.

My friend is a Wing Chun instructor. He was teaching a seminar on Wing Chun and had one MMA fighter who said "i'd like to see him try that against an MMA fighter." My friend challenged him to spar. MMA fighter went for a takedown. My friend kicked him in the knee and the guy buckled over. My friend quickly grabbed by the neck and figuratively snapped it.

They sparred again. This time, my friend let him do a takedown successfully. As the MMA fighter was going for a top mount position, my friend showed him a knife. He said "you see this? What are you going to do when i start cutting you with this on the ground?" MMA fighter said he hated knives.

Another time, my other friend met an MMA fighter who boasted he could resist a bite. My friend trained in Muay Thai and other arts, but modified them to suit a no rules environment. He said "let's test it out" and the MMA fighter agreed. MMA fighter put him in an armbar. My friend gently bit him in the leg and the MMA fighter jolted, letting go of his arm.

The point of all this? When i see MMA fighters talk about MMA working in self defense, they usually indulge in egotistical fantasies lol. "If he tries biting me, i'm snapping his neck" they say as if they can resist illegal blows. They don't want admit that honestly, most people can't resist attacks to the most vulnerable parts of the body. That's what makes them so effective for self defense. They also claim they can easily fight dirty without rules. Well unless you actually train that way, it's just talk. Actions speak louder than words.

 

I am beginning to believe that my standard response to your posts should simply be.....

 

Lol. What a throwback to the 90's.

 

At 4.45 you say you pinned your buddy to the bed and broke his arm...... Etc etc

Are these self defence lessons being run by you, in your bedroom?