I saw a street fight many years ago, back in the day when I was inclined to hang out in places where such things happened and with people who they happened to, and I have recounted this fight several times to many of my martial arts students and other likewise interested persons.
Now, I have seen a number of street fights, bar fights, etc. (and have even been in a couple or three myself) but this was different: one of the fighters had true skill and a dynamite jab.
Jab master!
After the prerequisite shouting and pushing, one of the antagonists, a heavier, solid-built guy, charged the other, obviously going for a take down (he had been a state-level high school champ wrestler). The other man, tall and lanky and a few weight divisions smaller, stepped away and threw a picture-perfect, solid jab to the nose. Bam! Instant blood.
Stick and move
This went on for a bit--the big guy charging, trying to grab his opponent for a takedown or sometimes throwing wild, swinging punches, the skinnier guy jabbing accurately and moving away--until the bigger man began to stagger with each blow. Finally, the skinny guy followed the left jab with a hard right cross. This resulted in a spray of blood that splattered my shirt, and I was several feet away from the action. It only took a couple of these to lay the big man out, his face a mask of blood. As he struggled back to his feet, which took awhile, since his legs had been transformed into rubber, the skinny guy gave me a nod and took off (it was my job to keep the big guys friends from jumping him from behind).
Lesson learned.
So here was a huge lesson learned--not by the big guy, he didn't learn a thing, I saw him get in another fight a couple of weeks later, broken nose and all. But I learned how effective the jab could be. It became a foundation of my arsenal from that day on.
I also learned a bit about "fighting backwards." The bigger guy was, by any account, the more aggressive of the two combatants, always moving forward, always attacking. The other man backed away, sidestepped, and moved aside, even as he was landing ever-more-punishing blows. In spite of the aggression of the bigger man, there was absolutely no doubt as to who won that fight. I laugh at amateur fight-watchers when they say "but he was more aggressive, he should have won." Aggression without effectiveness means nothing. "Fighting backwards" is a combat skill that is difficult to master, but perhaps one of the most effective.
In future posts I will be talking more about the jab--how you use footwork
to make it more effective, how you use it to set up other strikes, how to adapt it to self defense.
The jab is a near-perfect weapon. Every martial artist should work to perfect it.
Mixed Martial Arts resulted in a cover of blood that splattered my shirt, and I was several feet away from the action. . It is good for anyone who may have low self-esteem because it gives you self-confidence in yourself.
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