Succesfully fighting two attackers: myth or reality?

[Skyline22]

It's not a myth, in fact you can fight more than two depending your knowledge of multiple attacker situations. I'm not saying you can stand in the middle of a crowd and dispatch them Bruce Lee or Matrix style..but you CAN keep mobile, use your surroundings to limit their options, use natural weapons in the area, tie your opponents up, and begin taking some of them out of the equation. I come from a combative background with the military, and I've engaged in several hand to hand scenarios..YES, you can handle several attackers, if you use what's available to you and understand what you see around you.

 

[8253]

%-} Definatly can be done. If your viscious enough. %-}

 

[Tony]

I think it also depends on the skill of your opponents, and if they have had any Martial Arts or fight experience. But if your will to survive is so strong I believe you can defend yourself against more than one attacker. But only if you are prepared to be ungentlemanly and use some nasty tricks!
I remember my instructor saying that once one opponent is down on the floor and hurt his friends will have no interest in fighting you! It kind of makes sense if you can really hurt one so bad that he needs immediate help from his friends, which means that fighting you is not an option. However whats to say that won't enrage them and make them more eager to hurt you even more!?

 

[Kembudo-Kai Kempoka]

have done it many a time bouncing some bonehead out of a club, then having his friend come to his aid. Can be done, definitely. Meanness counts. And I personally prefer it if they know some MA...seems to lock people into a familiar pattern of combat predictabilities. (i.e., hand a guy a bat, and you can guess within a small margin of error what he's likely to do with it).

It's never Matrix or Bruce Lee pretty, which is why I advocate for training in MA, but fighting like a savage brute. Viking berserker-ryu, with some honed basics.

 

[Kevin Walker]

Since I have successfully defended myself against two attackers on more than one occasion, it is not a myth, but a brutal necessity and, what was once called, a factual actual.

 

[shrek]

Not running away, fighting!

-Bushido

Yep. But I definitely notice a change in my style and tactics depending on how many people are involved. 1-1 I tend to be nice if possible...the old "Show the attacker what a fool he is for attacking". Aikido is my style of choice for this purpose.

With two or more it goes to niceness is OUT and ten second fight rule is in. "If a fight lasts for more than ten seconds you've already lost". Krav Maga is most useful for this stage.

Four or more and/or weapons involved it goes straight to kill/disable strikes. In that case I ran like heck to get them separated, found a nice spot for a stand then ambushed the first guy with time to spare before the second could arrive. Corners are your friend! Tactical running I find quite acceptable

 

[Munkyjitsudo]

As someone who has grown up in the ghetto and ont he streets, I can say I have taken on 6 people at once, but this is why. I was always told by my older uncles that when your getting mugged you usually have only one person who is really gung ho and all about fighting and mugging and the rest are followers and fools who would never stand toe to toe with someone. So as long as you keep your head held high and dont show any fear take out the first guy to come lunging at you and then you most likely are left with a bunch of people who want no part of you. As in what happened with my case, we were getting mugged in front the high school, we ran and all got away except my one friend who got cornered in some gates, 6 of the 7 people who were in the car came out, I saw the first guy go up to my friend and try to put my his hand in my friends pocket and they were all focusing on my friend, also to mention thee guys were all in there twenties and thirties, I ran up and blind sided him with a running flying ghetto superman punch to the jaw and knocked him clear out and continued with the rain of punches to show a message in all the chaos my shoe fell off and I grabbed and continued to beat o another guy and then they just turned and high tailed it, cops were called and the guys were actually caught, haha.

 

[KenpoTex]

It's never Matrix or Bruce Lee pretty, which is why I advocate for training in MA, but fighting like a savage brute. Viking berserker-ryu, with some honed basics.

Well put...

With two or more it goes to niceness is OUT and ten second fight rule is in. "If a fight lasts for more than ten seconds you've already lost". Krav Maga is most useful for this stage.

Four or more and/or weapons involved it goes straight to kill/disable strikes. In that case I ran like heck to get them separated, found a nice spot for a stand then ambushed the first guy with time to spare before the second could arrive. Corners are your friend! Tactical running I find quite acceptable.

I'm not going to waste time even if there are "only" two...
IMO, multiple attackers, armed or not, are a justification for deadly force from the outset of the engagement due to the disparity of force that exists.
If you're willing to take a chance on using a lesser degree of force to handle groups of less than 4, good luck to you...I'm not going to be that charitable.

 

[evenflow1121]

It's never Matrix or Bruce Lee pretty, which is why I advocate for training in MA, but fighting like a savage brute. Viking berserker-ryu, with some honed basics.

I totally agree, and piggy backing this, I would say few know how to teach this than the majority that claims they can teach you to fend off multiple attackers.