Hello Chris and anyone else that wants to reply.
I don't really get into any street fights but out of curiosity....
I have been training in Jui Jitsu, Judo and submission wrestling for a couple of years now. I have injured my knee pretty badly a couple of times when going for a takedown by hitting my knee on the mats on a soft spot.
Now, these injuries have led me to question how effective I would be at using the skills I have trained so much when I could effectively take myself out by hitting my knees on the concrete.
My question is this...Are there any techniques that you use that you would never use in the street because the risk is too high?
As well, how do you protect your knees and elbows when fighting on concrete.
I am curious if you are more aware of your joints when fighting on a hard surface of if you just adrenaline through it and worry about injuries later.
Thanks in advance for your thoughts on the topic.
Darren
Once, when I was grappling a friend of mine on a hardwood floor, I had taken him down and mounted him. He tried to bridge to escape, lifting his hips (along with my knees) high off the ground. I held on to maintain the mount, and as his hips fell back to the floor - CRACK! I came down hard on both my knees. That hurt like nobody's business, and I'm sure it would have been worse on concrete. It wasn't so bad that it made me let go, but it taught me something important. You have to change certain tactics to your delivery system depending on the environment.
A better choice for me in this case would have been to work from sidebody or a North/South position where my knees don't have to be on the ground, and his bridging can be nullified in other ways. So when wrestling on hard surfaces, my tactics change. I am not nearly as willing to give up the takedown and go to my guard. If I do end up on my back, I am even more anxious to get back on top, or regain my feet. While working on top, I utilize positions that put as little stress on my points of contact with the ground as possible. And of course in a "street fight scenario" I would focus more on striking and choking than I would about joint locks and other submissions.
Likewise, the takedowns you would use (if any) should be ones that don't require your knee to hit the ground. I've been hearing a rumor that Renzo Gracie cracked his patella doing a single leg on a guy in the street a little while ago? Don't know if that's true or not, but a possibility for anyone in that scenario, I guess. I think adrenaline will cancel out much of the pain from bumps and scrapes of concrete. But going to the ground would be something I'd avoid if at all possible.
Jeff
I need to learn to punch harder.
Shooting in a street fight isn't very smart unless you shoot a double but don't go to the ground with your knee. You can do a level change and shoot without your knee hitting. You can also clinch fairly easy and just go for a trip. You won't feel your knees and elbows much until after and then it really doesn't matter because you just won.
PS. I don't recomend fighting in the street.
lol...nice disclaimer. Thanks Brennan.