"Respecting" techniques in sparring

[TigerDude]

If it is a standard at your schools that there is a momentary pause, then you should confront those who do not do so. Hitting someone harder just to prove a point they may not get anyway seems childish.

As for expecting an acknowledgement, why? You know you scored a good technique. It doesn't seem realistic to me to expect a real opponent to stop after you hit him or her. Even coming from someone with no teeth, a counterpunch can still hurt.

[ElbowTKO]

Hit him, if it hurts them too much stop for a second to let him breath and get himself back. Then starting hiting him again.

To hit someone and then stop is insane... no one who really fights you will do that.

[parkerlineage]

I have done this before, but it usually leads to reprimands froms the instructor

Doesn't matter when you are the instructor.

[elbows_and_knees]

A well placed kick or punch in a controlled environment, i.e., class or testing will almost always get recognition by me-usually in the form of a short bow. I don't expect the same from my sparring partners but I usually see it. When ego takes over a match however, the small courtesies often disappear and I have witnessed many get out of hand. Physical control of your techniques requires mental control also...a lot is revealed about a student when you watch them spar.

IMO, it's not about ego so much as it is reality. In a real fight, if a blow almost lands, I'm not gonna acknowledge it because it MIGHT have KOed me. I'm gonne keep fighting. In sparring, I do the same. Actually, I think there is more of an ego issue involved from those who expect to have the technique respected. Why are they expecting acknowledgement?

[Sohan]

A well placed kick or punch in a controlled environment, i.e., class or testing will almost always get recognition by me-usually in the form of a short bow. I don't expect the same from my sparring partners but I usually see it. When ego takes over a match however, the small courtesies often disappear and I have witnessed many get out of hand. Physical control of your techniques requires mental control also...a lot is revealed about a student when you watch them spar.

IMO, it's not about ego so much as it is reality. In a real fight, if a blow almost lands, I'm not gonna acknowledge it because it MIGHT have KOed me. I'm gonne keep fighting. In sparring, I do the same. Actually, I think there is more of an ego issue involved from those who expect to have the technique respected. Why are they expecting acknowledgement?

I don't think it's about ego, as much as it is about the fact that many blows that would likely be finishing blows (or at least heavily damaging) in a sparring bout are often ignored by the receiver, who continues fighting as if they had never been touched. Since we pull punches and kicks somewhat to avoid injuring our partner, this sometimes leads to overconfidence, where the receiver gradually learns not to protect themselves adequately because there is no sense of risk. By stopping to acknowledge the blow, one is recognizing that their defense has failed, and they realize they must improve next time to avoid being injured.

This is because sparring is not about winning, it's about learning.

With respect,

Sohan

[bushido_man96]

If it is a standard at your schools that there is a momentary pause, then you should confront those who do not do so. Hitting someone harder just to prove a point they may not get anyway seems childish.

As for expecting an acknowledgement, why? You know you scored a good technique. It doesn't seem realistic to me to expect a real opponent to stop after you hit him or her. Even coming from someone with no teeth, a counterpunch can still hurt.

Our instructor is very good about informing the new sparrers about the idea of respecting controlled techniques.

As for your second comment, I don't expect an acknowledgment. What happens is that I throw a very controlled technique, like a spinning hook kick, as a counter to a round kick. In order not to take off their head, I slow the kick before reaching their head, where it would have landed if going full tilt. Then, as I am putting my controlled technique to the floor, which is going a little slower, they procede to throw some kick or punch or flurry of blows, taking advantage of my position because I controlled the technique out of courtesy.

[bushido_man96]

A well placed kick or punch in a controlled environment, i.e., class or testing will almost always get recognition by me-usually in the form of a short bow. I don't expect the same from my sparring partners but I usually see it. When ego takes over a match however, the small courtesies often disappear and I have witnessed many get out of hand. Physical control of your techniques requires mental control also...a lot is revealed about a student when you watch them spar.

IMO, it's not about ego so much as it is reality. In a real fight, if a blow almost lands, I'm not gonna acknowledge it because it MIGHT have KOed me. I'm gonne keep fighting. In sparring, I do the same. Actually, I think there is more of an ego issue involved from those who expect to have the technique respected. Why are they expecting acknowledgement?

I don't think it's about ego, as much as it is about the fact that many blows that would likely be finishing blows (or at least heavily damaging) in a sparring bout are often ignored by the receiver, who continues fighting as if they had never been touched. Since we pull punches and kicks somewhat to avoid injuring our partner, this sometimes leads to overconfidence, where the receiver gradually learns not to protect themselves adequately because there is no sense of risk. By stopping to acknowledge the blow, one is recognizing that their defense has failed, and they realize they must improve next time to avoid being injured.

This is because sparring is not about winning, it's about learning.

With respect,

Sohan

This is the difference between training in full contact, and training in the controlled environment of most MA schools.

[elbows_and_knees]

I don't think it's about ego, as much as it is about the fact that many blows that would likely be finishing blows (or at least heavily damaging) in a sparring bout are often ignored by the receiver, who continues fighting as if they had never been touched. Since we pull punches and kicks somewhat to avoid injuring our partner, this sometimes leads to overconfidence, where the receiver gradually learns not to protect themselves adequately because there is no sense of risk. By stopping to acknowledge the blow, one is recognizing that their defense has failed, and they realize they must improve next time to avoid being injured.

This is because sparring is not about winning, it's about learning.

With respect,

Sohan

And that's just it... your hit may not have even phased the guy. Assuming it would have can lead to overconfidence on the attacker's part as well. Then, we he actually fights, he's totally surprised because his strikes didn't drop his opponent. I think both schools of thought are valid, but lean more toward this one, as it eliminates guesswork.

[Sohan]

I don't think it's about ego, as much as it is about the fact that many blows that would likely be finishing blows (or at least heavily damaging) in a sparring bout are often ignored by the receiver, who continues fighting as if they had never been touched. Since we pull punches and kicks somewhat to avoid injuring our partner, this sometimes leads to overconfidence, where the receiver gradually learns not to protect themselves adequately because there is no sense of risk. By stopping to acknowledge the blow, one is recognizing that their defense has failed, and they realize they must improve next time to avoid being injured.

This is because sparring is not about winning, it's about learning.

With respect,

Sohan

And that's just it... your hit may not have even phased the guy. Assuming it would have can lead to overconfidence on the attacker's part as well. Then, we he actually fights, he's totally surprised because his strikes didn't drop his opponent. I think both schools of thought are valid, but lean more toward this one, as it eliminates guesswork.

But what are you recommending, full contact all the time? Impractical. The idea of sparring is to practice techniques in close quarters without seriously injuring your opponent. It's been practiced this way for many years across many styles, and I would argue that it has created quite a few successful martial fighters.

With respect,

Sohan

[aefibird]

It has to be remembered as well that people train for different reasons. There are plenty of people out there who do not train for self defence or who only train for sports fighting, not for a "real encounter". Going full contact all the time is inapporpriate for those people.

Training is different in different dojo's and if in one place there is a rule (unwritten or not) that people acknowledge a good hit then fighters in that dojo should follow that code. Perhaps those who do not acknowledge a hit do not know the 'rules' of sparring? Hitting them harder will not drive home the "acknowledge that I've hit you" message - it will just encourage them to hit back harder still.