An experience question for the more advanced grapplers and Traditional MA practitioners?

Question

...Have you ever been in a situation where somebody was trying to take you down? If so what did you do, and was it effective?

...Have you ever been in a situation and attempted a takedown? If so were you successful or not?

...Remember this is in a real life situation, not a gym and not a dojo, and this is really geared to the more experienced.

This question is posed out of a curiosity. Please do not give minute detail as we don't need to drop pearls of wisdom for little cronies to pick up without proper effort. Please do not be offended by the type of question. I am not denouncing anything or anybody, nor am I stating that something is better.

...So we're on the same page, I do NOT need any lessons thanks just explain your experience.

Answer 1

yes i have been in quite a few situations where someone has tried to take me to the ground.9 out of 10 times when the person is untrained or drunk or both that is what they will do.

obviously its situational as to what you would do to stop this person or persons taking you to the ground.

no i have never attempted to take someone down,i have however on many occasions used redirection techniques,locks and throws etc.

my favourite moves are elbow and shoulder breaks and dislocations which work exceptionally well when someone tries to take you to the ground.

-avoid going to the ground at all costs.

-never assume the other person isn't trained or cant fight,or even drunk for that matter.(i have seen ppl get there asss kicked by someone who they assumed was drunk but was only putting it on)

-never ever(and i mean never ever)assume the person doesn't have a weapon.

Answer 2

A guy heard I could do TKD and was expecting kicks in a street fight.  I faked the kick and let him grab my leg.  Now here is where he got stupid.   He took me down and then stopped, literally talking trash about how he was going to yadda, yadda.  That is when I grabbed HIS leg out from under him and let him fall flat on his back.  Fight over.  

I did not know it then (or should I say I didn't remember), but I had taken some Judo as a toddler.  Therefore, I could always fall and do some rolls and even a tumble to avoid injury.  He thought that because I "fell" I was done.  Nope.

I never have done take-downs in a real fight.  What I have done is Osoto Gari and Uki Goshi.  Diving in for the tackle/double-leg/morote gari is risky against anyone who knows what they are doing or anyone who can box.  Yet, the double leg is still a money-maker technique for most people.

Answer 3

I'm not a 'more experienced grappler,' but...

I've taken some body down once in a real fight. He had overstepped and I swept out his leg. It didn't seem to hurt him all that much.

There was this time when I kicked somebody a bit too high, and though he got the wind knocked out of him, he instinctually hugged my leg. He was probably intending to take me down, but I started punching him in the face, then sunk all of my weight down on that foot.

I've never fought anybody with grappling training/anybody with a good shot. I don't recall anybody attempting a bad shot at my legs, but if they did, I probably hit them enough to disrupt it.

This was all before I had any grappling training, though. The only altercation I've been in since picking up grappling was VERY minor. It wasn't appropriate to beat the c**p out of the guy, and he didnt have any friends around, so I double-legged him, and held him down in an arm triangle.

Answer 4

Once I was at a party, and had a couple beers. An old high school friend who did martial arts with me came up to me and asked me if I was still kickboxing.

Immediately, this guy overhears us and challenges me. He says to me, "You're a kickboxer, huh? Go ahead and kick me."

He was a lot bigger than me, and I looked at his stance, and guessed he was a wrestler. He raked his back foot like a bull about to charge, and did a couple level changes.

I used my footwork, started to circle, and expected for him to attempt a double leg on me. I was ready to sprawl, and counter with either a guillotine or a crossface.

He surprised me and went for the clinch. I countered with uchi-mata, but I wasn't able to throw him. He had such balance, he stayed on his feet, and immediately got double underhooks on me, and picked me up and slammed me on the driveway.

I was going to pull guard, but his ankle was right there for the taking, and I went for an anklelock. I ate a couple punches to the face, and then I cranked pretty hard on his ankle. A bunch of people seperated us.

I got in my car and left.

Answer 5

Yes, I have had someone attempt a takedown on me in a real situation.  I blocked the shot, sunk underhooks, brought him back to his feet and performed a lateral throw.  I have used double leg takedowns as defensive responses to wild punches and used sweeps in more crowded situations.  I only use my knowledge of martial arts for defense so I've never used a takedown as an offensive maneuver, but I've never performed ANY offensive maneuvers in real life situations.   It's just stupid to look for a fight, but to defend yourself can be necessary.

Answer 6

My friend and i took many years of TKD back in the day, and in our bar days he liked to fight.... we are terrible at ground fighting (i am trying to learn now) as far as going against a trained grappler.. of course.. but as far as the average person my buddy was comfortable taking a scrap to the ground... i never saw him lose.. but he never really hurt anyone either fortunately... i dont like to fight, and have only done so once, when i was drunk walking home from a bar... and i was confronted by a guy, who decided to throw a punch that a drunk man could see coming from a mile away, and a simple block and counter gave him a big headache the next day, but when his friends wanted to jump me, i tried to side kick one, it probably would have worked if i was sober, but my drunk *** was laying on my back with three guys kicking me... I was at a good school, and stayed long enough that i actually had training for this (most TKD school are bad i will admit)... and i was able to block and strike from the ground against standing opponents.. i really think that just confused them and as they backed up, i stood up, to fight only to my suprise .. they walked away... good thing for everyone involved... would an armbar or a choke have come in handy if it was in my arsonal... sure,,, but hey i walked away with my wallet and my teeth... and thats the main thing... what ever you choose to learn... train hard, and if you ever need it .. it can save you a trip to the hospitol

Answer 7

lol

Answer 8

Yes to all of the above.  Most of my experience is from stupid scraps outside pubs in my younger days.  

A few times guys have tried to take me down with a rugby tackle.  Usually I was no good at defending against them and wasted them once they were on the ground with me anyway.

The only takedowns I have ever needed are a simple leg hook or a headlock, which I used to pull him onto the ground, pin him and tell him he was a silly boy.

Answer 9

The one and only time my life was on the line was when I was attacked with a knife. After being stabbed I took control of the weapon, stunned him and did a hip toss, unfortunatly his head hit the pavement before anything else.:-)

When i was bouncing I used a few simple take downs followed by restraining holds, but this was in situations where I knew I didn't have to worry about bing blindsided and then there was the legal factor.