Kickboxing: Short Range Fighting (From Initiation To Knockout)

When you move from the out-fighting zone to the in-fighting zone, you are very close to your opponent and many long range techniques are no longer effective. Once you get past your opponent's long range techniques, you have taken from him many of his weapons. Getting past this barrier and to the "inside" is perhaps the toughest part about short range fighting and requires considerable skill.

Many fighters are one-dimensional; they are headhunters, and naturally so, since kickboxing is a standup type of martial art and the head is nearly at the same level as the hands when the guard is held high, making it an attractive target. Knockouts are also most frequently scored when striking to the head. When working your way in, bear in mind that the easiest way to defeat a strong opponent is to separate his mind and body focus. Try to attack a different target than you initially intended. For example, if you intend to throw a strike to the jaw but your opponent has superior timing, you can divert his focus from his upper body to his lower body by attacking his legs. When he becomes disrupted and starts to focus on this lower body attack, you can go for that knockout punch to the jaw.

Since some of the most vital targets are located on the centerline, and the uppercut is a powerful inside fighting technique, you must be careful to protect your centerline when moving from long to short range. A common error is to square the body. This happens because the fighter attempts to close distance by stepping forward with his rear foot instead of using the shuffle-step and remaining in his stance. Some fighters square only their body while keeping their feet and hands in a good fighting stance. To break this habit, observe yourself in a mirror and make note of any openings along your centerline. Practice staying in a good fighting stance until you can do so by feel.

Since we are kickboxers, we must strive to use our kicks with as much ease as we use our hands. Different kicks have different purposes, and all kicks are not equally effective when moving to short range. A side thrust kick, for example, is used primarily to keep your opponent away or to nail him against the ropes. Since this kick increases the distance to your opponent, it is not your best choice when trying to get from long to short range. Likewise, any kick that turns your back partly toward your opponent (cut kick or spinning back kick, for instance) is difficult to blend with a follow-up hand combination. Keep in mind that a good time to kick is the moment your opponent begins to extend his arm to punch, but before the punch has reached full extension. If he throws multiple jabs in rapid succession, you must have superior timing to get past his jabs and to the inside.

 

 

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