A List of Pointers for Sparring Taller Opponents, Discussion

[bushido_man96]

This is a list of pointers I saw on FB titled:  Defeating Bigger Opponents (TKDCoachAcademy).  I believe this list is mainly taking the approach of sparring a taller/longer opponent, and that’s what I’ll be addressing unless I note it in the comments.

 

1.       Size = Your Advantage

2.       Stay Off Edges (Space = Control)

3.       Use Speed to Disrupt Rhythm

4.       Counter or Preempt, Don’t Rush

5.       Control Distance Always

6.       Avoid End of Their Reach

7.       Stay Outside or Close In Smart

8.       Use Feints -> Create Hesitation

9.       Strong Side Kick -> Push Back

10.  Be First and Be Gone

My thoughts:

Size = Your Advantage

I’m thinking this is more of a mindset to take than an actuality.  It’s a good one to take, because you can’t really do anything about a height disparity; you can’t train yourself to get taller.  The sooner you can get over the fact that you’re short and will likely continue to be so, the sooner you can move on with actually training to get better at it.

Otherwise, I’m trying to think of other ways that being shorter can be to my advantage.  I believe my advantage comes into play once I do get inside.  I’ll stand in and bang without a problem.  I don’t mind trading punches in class, especially when no points are being called.  In a point-sparring scenario, this can be an issue, especially if it’s a game of tag.  First point gets called usually.  And a flurry of exchanges can muddy things up to the point that refs might not call a point until they see something “clean.”  Keeping the opponent’s hands busy blocking and then finishing with either a high kick or a kick to the body that makes some space at the same time are strategies that have worked for me here.

Stay Off Edges (Space = Control)

I believed this to mean staying off the edges of the ring.  I confirmed this with the author of the post that this is the case.  The author also commented that “the more space behind your back the more options.”  I agree.  Pressing the advantage is always preferrable to retreating, unless you are baiting someone with the retreat and have a plan.

Ring control is important in any competition fight.  The shorter fighter already has to deal with the range of the taller fighter.  Controlling the ring is paramount in nullifying the height advantage.  I try to do this by cutting angles and using good footwork, but I’ll be the first to admit that my footwork needs work.

I do believe another aspect of ring control is through the use of techniques.  It isn’t uncommon to refer to the side kick as the jab of Taekwondo.  Good use of the side kick to keep a taller opponent at bay, coupled with footwork (before or after the kick) can help one to obtain control of the sparring area.  Front kicks can help to an extent here, as well, but I feel the side kick has more reach and doesn’t square your body up as much.

The sparring we do in our dojang doesn’t typically allow hand techniques to the head, but due to some emerging circumstances in seeking out more tournament opportunities, we have been experimenting with it here and there in order to prepare our students for tournaments with different rule sets.  I can see how the jab or a quick backfist to the head would be a boon to helping control distance in ITF sparring.  Although, in the sparring clips I’ve seen from the ITF, I don’t see a lot of traditional jabbing like it is done in boxing.  It’s more of a flurry of straight punches to the head in an attempt to overwhelm an opponent.

Use Speed to Disrupt Rhythm

I like the premise of this, but I think it is easier said than done, and not applicable for everyone.  Speed is based on explosiveness, and the level of explosiveness that someone can achieve is highly affected by their genetics.  I think everyone can do work to get closer to their genetic potential, but not everyone’s potential is going to be the same.  I also believe there are more aspects to consider here than just raw speed.  Movement speed is one aspect, but recognition and reaction are also areas that can affect how fast we perceive someone to be.  Learning to read and recognize the techniques an opponent is going to attack with can lead to intercepting and countering quicker, even if the fighter is naturally slower in general.  Each of these criteria should be trained in order to make this premise really work to your advantage.

Counter or Preempt, Don’t Rush

I like the premise here as well, yet it kind of comes with the same caveats I mentioned above.  A shorter fighter needs to learn to read an opponent and learn their tendencies early on in order to set up an advantage later in the match.  We might be talking minutes here, or rounds; it just depends on the timetable.  Learning an opponent’s tendencies has two parts: learning their tendencies when they are initiating and learning their tendencies when reacting to what you do.

As a shorter fighter, learning a taller fighter’s initiation tendencies helps to recognize the preparation or setup for the attacks, therefore helping speed up the shorter fighter through reading and recognition, and therefore setting up a good interception or counter technique.

It may be more difficult for a shorter fighter to initiate offensive techniques against the taller fighter due to the reach disparity, but that doesn’t mean a shorter fighter can’t use some dummy techniques to figure out how the taller fighter reacts to them and then start using them to bait the taller fighter.  Years ago, we had a Greek student that was in our college Taekwondo class who had come from an Olympic sparring school.  He liked to stomp his front foot all the time, usually getting a reaction out of the person he was sparring.  Sometimes they’d freeze and “hunker down,” expecting a technique, and he could catch them flat-footed and go.  Other times, a student would throw a lead leg side kick in response to the stomp, fearing he was closing and attacking.  He could wait for the side kick and counter accordingly.  Some of the more experienced sparrers wouldn’t really react to it at all.  Either way, he learned something from his opponent by stomping, using this technique as bait.  He knew if he could draw the fighter into a reaction that he wanted he could set up his next technique accordingly and go on the offensive.  A shorter fighter can use some early techniques, like front leg side kicks or round kicks, that may not necessarily be thrown with the intent to score but rather with the intent to see the opponent’s reaction and use that information to bait the opponent later on.

If the shorter fighter has a natural speed advantage over the taller fighter, the shorter fighter can use his speed to preempt the taller fighter, getting inside and gaining the advantage.  If the shorter fighter is not naturally faster, using baiting tactics can help overcome the lack of speed and preempting the taller fighter through the setups.

Lastly, I think not rushing is an important consideration to this premise as well.  Getting in a hurry and rushing the game plan can lead to just getting poked and kept at the taller fighter’s range, giving them the advantage.  Be patient, learn some tendencies, and try to set things up.

Control Distance Always

Controlling the distance as mentioned here, in my mind, is in regard to controlling your distance in regard to the taller fighter.  The shorter fighter either needs to be outside their range, or inside their range and controlling the pace there.

Controlling the range from outside should be done by cutting angles while backing up/retreating as little as possible.  Throwing techniques that you know can’t hit the taller fighter is a good way to get tired sooner, and using footwork to create angles helps to cut the distance into their range just a bit so they have to respect the techniques and be ready to defend.  That same footwork needs to be combined with defenses against the taller fighter’s attacks, as opposed to backing up and blocking.  I think we all realize that people going forward tend to move faster than people going backward, and that’s what the taller fighter wants out of this exchange.  We shorter fighters can’t give it to them.  We have to live just outside the danger zone and use footwork to get inside that danger zone to initiate our offense.

Once inside and initiating offense, the shorter fighter needs to control the distance here, too.  If the shorter fighter can continue to press the attack from inside the taller fighter’s range, this is to the shorter fighter’s advantage.  The shorter fighter has to keep pressing the attack, but in such a way as to not get so carried away that we leave ourselves open to a counterattack that puts us back at their range.  Once inside, if I feel it’s time to regain some distance, I like to use a clearing technique, like a side kick or front kick that pushes the taller fighter away, or a series of punches that they just want to back away from.  One thing is for sure, though; once the shorter fighter gets inside, controlling that space for as long as possible is advantageous.  The short fighter needs to bring his go-to moves to bear on the taller fighter, ensuring a scoring finish.

Avoid End of Their Reach

This is a pretty obvious point.  Either be inside their range, or just outside it.  Staying outside the range can be fairly easily done with good footwork and movement around the ring.  However, it is not advantageous to be way outside their range, for several reasons.  For one, if I want to close from way outside, the taller fighter can usually see it coming and start poking me from their range as I close.  Another reason is because I think this just plays into the taller fighter’s advantage, because if they want to initiate, they can just start pressing, especially if you give them room to run.  By rule, the taller fighter will probably close quicker, unless they are just really slow or have bad setups or telegraphing footwork.  I find I just have to find that “happy place” where I’m just outside their range, but not so far away that it puts me at a disadvantage.  From there, it’s a matter of learning tendencies and baiting attacks to block and maneuver around to get inside.

I think on the other side of this coin is that it’s important that the shorter fighter doesn’t get caught up just inside the taller fighter’s range, either.  Once I get inside, I need to really be inside, to the point they either have to kick high or I am jamming up their kicks.  If I’m just inside their range, they can usually poke me out of range and I have to start all over.

Stay Outside or Close in Smart

Odd wording, but I’ll speak to how I interpret it.  I covered a bulk of this in the previous point of avoiding the end of their reach.  Either stay outside the range, or close in.  But when I’m in close, I have to be smart about what I’m doing.  Again, some of the keys to getting close are learning tendencies and baiting attacks and good footwork.

While I’m still on the subject of being on the inside, I’ll talk about a tactic I use and teach called “crossing the T.”  When we are sparring, we usually face each other in very bladed stances, in order to keep strong attacking tools in front and close to the opponent, and to keep a smaller profile and provide less target opportunities for each other.  I think most everyone understands what I’m talking about here.  As long as two fighters hold their initial positions, all things being equal, each fighter has 50/50 opportunities.  But being the shorter fighter, I want those scoring opportunities to be more like 70/30 or 80/20, or even better in a perfect world.  It would be like / / for a closed stance and / \ for open stance (but bladed even more).  I want to use some footwork to cut about a 45-degree angle to the inside of an attack, like a side kick or a round kick.  I call it “cutting an angle” (others probably do, too).  If I can cut the angle right, I’ll still have my body in a bladed position while the opponent’s whole body is facing me, like a T.  Once I “cross the T,” I can start unloading a lot of offense that my opponent is going to have to work really hard to block because their body is full facing me.  Their first priority is probably going to be to get side-on again, so I have a small advantage for a short amount of time to press the attack while on the inside in a smart manner.

Use Feints -> Create Hesitation

I’ve already talked about these points above.  Using feints to learn tendencies is helpful for setting up the path to get inside.  I guess I didn’t really mention using aggressive feints to create hesitation in the opponent.  When I think about feints, I usually think in terms of an attack that isn’t fully committed so I don’t overextend.  However, there is an advantage to be gained by having strong, aggressive feinting motions to cause the opponent to hesitate and perhaps freeze just long enough to bridge the gap to get inside.  I have played with throwing hard back leg round kick chambers to see what that causes an opponent to do.  Combining that with strong back leg round kicks is a good way to create hesitation.

Strong Side Kick -> Push Back

I kind of covered this idea previously as well.  A strong side kick can be a good deterrent to an opponent that keeps coming in.  The trick for the short fighter, though, is if I can hit them with my side kick, then they can probably reach me with theirs.  If I’m faster than them, then it’s great.  If they are faster, then I have to use timing and probably stepping to keep them back.  A good front leg side kick can go a long way in sparring.  A good reverse side kick can change things up on the opponent and accomplish the same goals as well.

Be First and Be Gone

This is kind of referred to in other areas above, but bears mentioning.  Being first is vitally important for the shorter fighter against the taller fighter.  Being behind the initiative can make for a long game of catch-up.  Being fast is great, if you’re fast.  If not, though, then it goes back to learning tendencies in order to speed up the perception, which speeds up the perception of how fast you really are (if that makes sense).  Being first is helpful for getting control of the exchange and making the attacks count.

Once the initiative is gone, then it’s time to be gone as well.  Get in, score, get out safely.  Clearing techniques are great for helping to “get gone.”  I talked earlier about using good footwork to get inside and “cross the T,” but good footwork also has to be used to help get out without presenting scoring opportunities to the opponent.

Conclusion

This is not meant to be a definitive set of answers to the above pointers.  These are just my interpretations of them, along with ideas and strategies that I’ve found to be somewhat helpful over the years.  I’ve never really thought of myself as a good sparrer, and I’ve always struggled against the taller opponents.  Finding better ways to train students so they don’t struggle as much as I did is one of my goals when coaching sparring.  I look forward to input from others, even if they are from other styles and rulesets.  I’m very interested in what drills others have to work towards this end.