Footwork in Mixed Martial Arts
Mixed martial artist may sometimes neglect the importance of footwork. The advantage of good footwork is useful in boxing, Muay Thai, MMA or street fighting. Great fighters can attest to the value of good footwork in their game. Some of these great fighters are Jack Dempsey, Sugar Ray Leonard, Prince Nassim and the legend himself, Mohammed Ali. They all used the wonders of good footwork to attack their opponents.
Early kickboxing fighters mostly came from karate discipline and this became a challenge. Karate discipline does not emphasize footwork and maneuverability. It is focused more on flat-footed stand your ground approach. Early kick boxers with karate background, combined their karate kicks and deadly punching tactics from boxing but were not speedy enough for the fast moving footwork in boxing.
If a mixed martial artist has a background in boxing, they will see the changes in their game from adapting the boxing footwork they learned. Muay Thai competitors also use this type of footwork in their game. It helps them to get in range for striking their opponents, and out of range to avoid punches, kicks, elbows and knees from their opponents.
The MMA game was drastically changed by Maurice Smith when he showed how good footwork could nulify a grappler’s game to keep the fight on the feet. This put striking experts back on the map and changed the face of mixed martial arts. Another fighter who stands out with his hit and run skills is Lyoto Machida. This has been a great strategy against grapplers and made MMA bouts more dynamic as a whole.
And like Lyoto Machida, the hit and run strategy will take you into another level of fighting. Hit and run is when you move in to execute a lethal strike and move out again. Moving away is a good strategy because it does not finish the job and opponent shields up.
Both offensive and defensive footwork are important for you to train. Some of the great fighters throughout history were made great because of their impressive and quick foot movement. Therefore, footwork training and development is an important training aspect for all mixed martial artists. Adding good footowork to your striking techniques and takedowns will only improve these techniques.
If you’re interested in MMA or other martial arts training and live in the Spring area, then check out Team Tooke Mixed Martial Arts in Spring for 30 Days Free in all of our programs. We offer classes in Mixed Martial Arts, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Kickboxing and Childrens martial arts.
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