what should we prefer more in a karate. groin strike with knee or kick to take opponent down (only blackbelt answer)
Answers
Answer:
A certain style becomes popular due to media coverage - celebrities training with Bruce Lee was an early example - and of course all martial arts have certain philosophies about ‘what works best’ in a confrontation.
Today a lot of people, foolishly in my opinion, will try to take a fight to the ground because that is what they see in BJJ, thus exposing their head and spine to the opponent’s friends or even a random passerby.
Knife hand strikes (‘karate chops’) are dismissed nowadays but a knife hand to the side of the neck is just as effective in 2019 as 1919 when used by both the police and the people they were trying to arrest on the mean streets of Shanghai.
Human physiology doesn’t change, though awareness of certain moves does. 50 years ago very few opponents in the West would expect to be kicked in a standup fight but thanks to Hollywood that’s changed.
Some styles ignore groin strikes. Krav Maga supports them because they do work, in certain circumstances.
Fighting, as distinct from sparring in a gym or dojo, is a nasty business. Streetbawls are mayhem. Plans go out the window.
Combatives experts like Kelly McCann advocate headbutts, upward chin jabs, and groin strikes. Just like limb locks they do work (which is why some are banned in MMA where promoters balance fighting with putting on a show for a paying audience who expect several rounds - you should always aim to end a streetfight instantly) but only if the shot is open to you and the threat warrants them.
Deciding ‘I’m going to kick this guy in the balls’ or ‘He will grab me, and I will then take him to the ground with a wristlock’ seldom works out.
While we all know it can be devastating, from distance the chances of your kick to the testicles missing and harmlessly catching the opponent in the thigh instead are high. Clothing can also offer protection.
Play the percentages. Get in close in and use a knee, or elbow/forearm to his family jewels if you are attacked from behind, and strike a few times to make sure you land one or two good ones. Then run.
Distance (perferably several kilometres) is the best way to protect yourself from someone intent on hurting you with his fists or his legal team hurting you with a later lawsuit.
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