Fighting styles!

In class recently we have been talking about the different fighting styles we have been working on in the intermediate class this week. Have a read through and see if it helps you understand more about your martial arts. Like any aspect of martial arts, there are good examples and bad examples. Below I've written a little about each of the 5 main fighting styles and what a bad and good example of them looks like. The bad example may not be just from bad habits, but could also be what we see from students when they are first learning their styles and haven’t had the experience to develop them properly yet. For those of you who know your own styles, have a read through and make sure you can identify with the good example and not the bad one!

Killer Bad example: Someone who wades in using nothing but power shots or finishing techniques, hoping to do more damage to their opponent than they receive themselves. This approach will usually lead to the Killer receiving serious injury over time and leaves them prone to being picked off shot after shot by a capable fighter.

Good example: Killers are the ultimate risk assessors – they analyse each situation and will make a move based on benefit versus loss. In other words, they will always seek to do the best move available in any situation that will put them into a stronger position. This may be a power move, it may be a retreat, it may be a high risk move, but it was the best choice to take at the time. This means the Killer steadily hunts down their opponent building up a better and better position, until the best moves available are high power, high yield attacks that can devastate their opponent.

Killer style is good for: fighters who can see all the possibilities and can make on the spot judgements about the best options.

Ambusher Bad example: Poor Ambushers rely on their physical attributes to try to counter and outfight opponents. They will often let themselves be attacked, hoping their speed will be fast enough to block and counter. They have no real idea what their opponent will do – they just hope they can out react them.

Good example: The Ambusher ultimately looks to control their opponent at all times. They do this by limiting their opponent’s options through positioning and setting traps. They understand what options are available to their opponent and are ready for them. By predicting what moves their opponent can make, they are prepared with solid and high percentage counters. This allows them to set up some of the most effective attacks available in a fight.

Ambusher style is good for: calm and patient fighters who have good timing and spatial awareness.

Flash Bad example: The Flash fighter interprets unorthodox moves as anything non-standard within their martial art, but really this is just a desperate attempt to try and catch their opponent with something odd when the Flash is already losing. Simply relying on unorthodox moves makes the Flash waste energy, or, even worse, leaves them vulnerable.

Good example: The Flash is the master of confusion. Everything they do is designed to give a false impression of their actual intentions. They aim to confuse their opponents by adopting unusual tactics and by reacting in ways that contradict normal conventions. They look to make their opponent doubt themselves and break their rhythm so that they can use that pause to attack. This may mean they utilise high risk moves, but they mitigate this risk by understanding when their opponent is unsettled enough to let the attack land.

Flash style is good for: fighters who feel standard tactics don’t always work for them and who can spot how their opponent is feeling.

Thief Bad example: The Thief constantly keeps distance, almost running away from their opponent. When they do decide to attack it is with a one hit lunge that they hope will somehow cause maximum damage. This will usually be followed by immediate retreat, regardless of the success of the attack. This approach actually tends to give confidence to their opponent and the Thief will often run out of room to retreat and then panics.

Good example: The Thief constantly seeks to gain a superior position through angles and controlling distance. Whenever they feel they have a dominant position, they will attack and continue to attack, only retreating when they feel they are losing positional advantage. This allows them to gradually wear down their opponent whilst taking little damage themselves and allowing them to control the pace of the fight through constantly resetting their position if they begin to lose it.

Thief style is good for: fighters going up against opponents with physical advantages, such as stronger, larger or tougher opponents.

Raider Bad example: Someone who constantly attacks with lots of energy and a flurry of shots, hoping that their intensity will mean at least some shots will land. The poor Raider does nothing but attack and has no real understanding of tactics, leaving them vulnerable to calmer, smarter fighters.

Good example: The Raider seeks to keep their opponent under pressure so that they can never utilise their own tactics. Raiders are experts at making their opponent play the Raider's game rather than their own. The Raider achieves this by identifying what makes their opponent uncomfortable and applying a tactic that maximises that discomfort. This is often done through identifying weaknesses in what their opponents are doing and then attacking those weaknesses. A good Raider will never let their opponent rest, but will endeavour to not burn off too much energy themselves.

Raider style is good for: physically fit and fast fighters who can remain calm under pressure and fight with confidence.