Taking down big guys

[Maxximus]

I was thinking that perhaps the best chance a small guy like me would have to beat a big attacker would be to ground and pound him. The problem is I'm not the best at takedowns...so I think i should work on that. i was wondering if anyone had any good tips for taking down bigger opponents? What would be the best type of takedown to use on a big guy? Any thoughts?

[Lacrymosa]

Typically, I close the distance and dive low for the legs. Keeping my back straight and my head up, I generally squeeze his knees together and push him over.

Occasionally, he manages to slip a leg away from my grip, but I still find success by leaning my shoulder into his knee while pulling his ankle up.....illegal in wrestling (and any other grappling art for that matter), but in a street situation, I wouldn't personally hesitate using this tactic.

If he's wearing something with sleeves, it's Uchi Mata/Tai Otoshi Time!

[Smokey_D]

Single leg takedowns are probably your best bet. Wrestling has the best techniques for this. Speed is crucial for success at this move. It can leave you vunerable if you f*ck it up, but if you are good at it you limit your trouble significantly. Practice.

Bottom line, I think that you should try to stay on top. The guard is a good equalizer, but a good side mount that you can control the opponent is best for real fighting.

[david a]

1. Single leg takedown's against heavy opponents
2. Get his back and take him down(see Royce vs. pardo UFC 2)
either by tripping him forward or backwards.
3. Also a variation of the second takedown I listed is what Sperry shows in his tape series. Get his back while standing drop down grab one of his ankles and pull while driving him forward with your shoulder and head.

all these work great for me. The last two are great because I already assume a rear mount and have a good advantage. I would agree with the last post though that you have to be careful with you single leg takedowns.

[Edited by david a on 12-12-2000 at 02:38 PM]

[keiths]

Ive clinched with a big guy in a streetfight before, he was about 6'3 220 and im 5'10 165, anyways i clinched his back and he had me in a headlock, tripped him up he went down face first and i got his back and put him to sleep. Woulda been hard as hell if he had ANY kinda training whatsoever, he was just a big pussy. Anyways I think singles work best as mentioned above.

[Mr. Miyagi]

If you're small and shorter than most guys then I think that you should learn some variations of the double underhook. Get your arms around your opponents upper body but underneath his arms and you can lift him, swing him, throw him, etc. Practice using a swim move to make sure you get the position underneath his arms. Have a knowledgable person coach you on this.
The problem with some of these single leg and double leg techniques is that you never know how good your opponent is at sprawling and turning this position into your disfavor.
This is all assuming that you don't have much experience with takedowns. If you do have a wrestling background then everything you know will work against a bjj guy.

[Smokey_D]

Originally posted by Mr. Miyagi
The problem with some of these single leg and double leg techniques is that you never know how good your opponent is at sprawling and turning this position into your disfavor.
[/B]

I agree with Mr. Miyagi, but what I should have mentioned earlier is that you should never just go into the move. You must try to setup the single with a punch or something. And watch out if the opponent is falling against a wall--it's much harder to put him/her down.

Another advantage to throwing some punch/kick for a setup is that it will allow you to see and feel if the person has any real fighting knowledge or technique. You will never know what your opponent possesses, but if you try to determine it to your best possible ability PLUS you are good at the setup and execution of a single, it will put you in tremendous shape for winning the fight.

[The Colonie Crusher]

The best technique for taking down a bigger guy...punch him right in the mother ****ing jaw. Out of the 5-6 guys I've DROPPED outside of the ring, 4 of them were MUCH bigger than me. It didn't matter when the little birdies were swirling around their head. You can be Mark Kerr for all I care, if someone hits you dead ass right on the tip of your chin...IT'S OVER!!!!!!!!!

P.S.

Seriously, just make sure you don't hit them in the temple or you're gonna be doing 25 to life.

[GuardMaster]

Forum:

So far the responses I've seen are basically fight the way one would do in vale tudo class. But let me open your eyes to advantage by reminding you that a streetfight has no rules.

And by no rules, I don't necessarily mean resort to dirty tactics like biting. I'm referring to having a gameplan for the street.

For example in a value tudo fight both parties are ready and the fight begins standing up. So you have the traditional takedown, ground submission grappling war.

On the street if a guy is mouthing off at you why not be prepared to walk away or get behind him.. or better yet do BOTH.. first walk away then be prepared to attack. Surprise is your friend and his enemy. Who says you have to go through the complete vale tudo fight sequence.

There's all kinds of ideas on how to get the advantage before the fight even starts. I'd like to hear some responses to this strategy.

GuardMaster

[Lacrymosa]

Hey! My eyes ARE open!

[judo guy]

Throws like O Soto Gari, Koshi Guruma and O goshi are simple and efficient.

[gungfuhero]

At 5'7" and 130lbs., everyone I fight(with a few excpetions) is bigger than me. I like the double leg tackle, but it is also one of the most commonly countered takedowns/throws so I like to have a contingincy(sp?) plan. I like tani otoshi if I'm going for the throw because you're almost guaranteed a dominant top position (ie mount or cross-body). Whenever possible I set my grappling up with strikes because they are infinitely simpler. Imagine trying to get someone'e arm free to do a chicken wing, struggling with their grip on their pants. Now imagine pounding their ribs with hooks and knuckle shots until they give you that arm. It's a differnet game.

my $0.02

[Maxximus]

I don't know all these Japanese judo words! You guys care to elaborate on them?

[gungfuhero]

Tani Otoshi is basically tripping your opponent from behind and falling with him. Think of having someone in a rear bearhug, placing the inside portion of your foot on his heel, dropping and pulling him over your leg. I think that Freestyle wrestling calls it a heel trip but I could be wrong.

[NHB Spice]

I'm not a grappler, but Wouldn't a big guy easily throw a small guy off when he sits up to start pounding? Why not lie down and go with small headbutts ala Shamrock/Royce?

Just my thoughts.