How to Beat a Muay Thai/BJJ Practitioner in an MMA fight?

sneezy

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I do Krav Maga, but we do training that much more closely reflects kickboxing/karate as opposed to the usual knife/gun defense stuff that Krav has ill reputation for. I'm good with my knees and elbows, and I've got a decent ground game. I've been practicing martial arts since April of this year, and the individual that I'm fighting will have been practicing Muay Thai and BJJ for 1.5 years by the time of our fight. He also is a black belt in TKD from his youth. Am I screwed, or is there something that I can do to beat him?

Physically, I beat him by three inches and at least 20 pounds, and considering the orangutan length of my arms, I'm willing to safely bet I beat him in reach by more than enough. He's trying to slim the weight gap between us, by what I've been able to divine from his copious bragging about how he's going to kick my **** in, and exactly how he's training to do so. When we first agreed to the fight in October, he was 160, and now he claims to be 180. The fight is in February.

What can I do to maximize my chances of beating him? Is it footwork? Should I focus on a specific strategy, or should I be adaptable? Should I try an outboxing strategy on him, or would that be a bad idea against a grappler?

I don't know. I can explain why we're fighting if anyone asks, but no, it can't be resolved with words if anyone's wondering. I just made this account, and I really am worrying about my current training, and if there's anything I can even do to beat him.
 

O'Malley

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Take this with a grain of salt, as we can't have a clear picture of the situation from your message alone.

My first idea would be to avoid going to the ground if you've never trained BJJ, period. Other arts may train some ground stuff but it's consistently inferior. I'd keep the fight standing, as your training focuses on that area. It would also make it easier for you to capitalise on your range and weight advantage.

The other thing I'd do would be to take a couple of Muay Thai classes, so that you know what you'll be facing in the ring. Try and find a good MT gym and ask for tips. I'd also take a couple of wrestling classes to work on takedown defense (so you can keep the fight standing).

I'm no MMA fighter and this is based on my own limited knowledge. That said, we have several other members who are knowledgeable about MMA and striking in that environment, so maybe they can chime in.
 

drop bear

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Cardio.

Here is your drill.

Get as many of your friends as you can to help. And they just go after you one after the other. It is competitive. You are not necessarily going to win each exchange. And the drill ends when you loose a position or tap.

5 minute rounds. Ist round.

1st minute is you taking them down in open space. You start up close hands on their knees one knee down.

2nd minute is them taking you down.

3rd minute is you taking them down off a wall.

4th minute is them taking you off a wall.

5th minute is you fighting off a standing guillotine.



2nd round.(they add striking. )

1st minute you are in their guard and passing

2nd minute they are in yours

3rd minute half guard.

4th minute side control.

5th minute back.

3rd round.
Mount

Back

Standing up from inside their guard.

Standing from them inside yours.

Pummelling for double underhooks.

So fifteen minutes or so Mabye three times a week. You can mix and match the positions and as this is literally designed to destroy you. Mabye just do two rounds to start with.
 
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Hanzou

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Learn some BJJ reversals and escapes so that you can get out of inferior positions as quickly as possible. I wouldn't rely on not getting taken down.
 
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sneezy

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I don't have any footage I can provide, but I can say that I am a relatively decent fighter. In my gym, I'm definitely one of the better students when it comes to sparring with kickboxing. In terms of the current daily training I do outside of the studio, I do 100 pushups, at least 15-20 minutes of core workouts (banana hold, bicycle kicks, Russian twists, etc.), 100 squats, and lots of stretching to increase flexibility. Cardio's difficult to work in because my knees are still recovering from a longboarding accident. My diet's not the greatest, as I eat predominantly rice and meat, with little vegetables. I try to drink at least a few liters of water a day.

What I'm most concerned about is the clinch and grappling. It's inevitable that grappling will occur, so my goal is to learn how to prevent him from taking me down to the ground on his terms at all costs. If I do get on the ground, I want to be in a dominant position so I can get some strikes in, then get back on my feet as fast as possible.

Thank you for the wrestling drill, Drop Bear. I don't have any wrestling buddies I can do this with currently, but the school I'm transferring to this January has a wrestling team, and the coach invited me to train with them whenever I've got the time. I'll most likely do that then.

In the meantime, what should I do for cardio? I want to maximize my gains in endurance, speed, and skill by the time of the fight, as I already hit hard enough to take down pretty big opponents in comparison to me.
 

Flying Crane

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If he has gained twenty pounds in about two months, perhaps he simply stopped training and started a hardcore diet of twinkies.

Maybe you’ve got nothing to worry about.
 
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sneezy

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If he has gained twenty pounds in about two months, perhaps he simply stopped training and started a hardcore diet of twinkies.

Maybe you’ve got nothing to worry about.
Or drugs. That's a possibility. He's 18 and stupid, so I wouldn't put it past him to go roid up so he can kick my ***. Thankfully there'll be a ref, so even if he does try to seriously injure me intentionally, he'll have to go through him. Victory is through KO or submission, 5 rounds, 5 minute rounds. If it hasn't been decided by the end of that, ref chooses victor.
 

Flying Crane

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Or drugs. That's a possibility. He's 18 and stupid, so I wouldn't put it past him to go roid up so he can kick my ***. Thankfully there'll be a ref, so even if he does try to seriously injure me intentionally, he'll have to go through him. Victory is through KO or submission, 5 rounds, 5 minute rounds. If it hasn't been decided by the end of that, ref chooses victor.
That was my other thought as well. But it wasn’t as funny as twinkies.
 
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sneezy

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That was my other thought as well. But it wasn’t as funny as twinkies.
very true.

The most recent development I've gleaned is that he's not taking the fight seriously at all, and he's not training for it because he assumes he's going to kick my *** without changing his current regimen, so it very well could be that he is just getting fat, lol. Still, I'm not gonna rely on that.
 

wab25

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Work on your jab. Don't make it the strongest or hardest jab.... make it the fastest and most accurate jab. You are not trying to knock him out with it... you are trying to snap his head back with it. Then, as soon as you make contact, cut an angle to one side or the other. The idea is that you snap his head back and when is eyes come back down, you are not where you were.

Make sure your jab is fast, with no tell that it is coming. And make sure your jab is finished by moving to an angle. The stepping around the other guy has to be as automatic as the jab. If you stay in place, he will eat your jab and take you down. If you move straight back, he will eat your jab and take you down. If you jab and move around him, he has to turn. You will likely get some openings for a stronger attack. If you want to get more distance, angle first. Jab, cut to the side and then step back.

Remember that you can change levels too. When he changes levels to to come under you for a take down, you can change levels as well... bend your knees. You can then throw your jab and circle around. If it all goes wrong, by getting lower, you are in a good position to sprawl.
 

drop bear

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I don't have any footage I can provide, but I can say that I am a relatively decent fighter. In my gym, I'm definitely one of the better students when it comes to sparring with kickboxing. In terms of the current daily training I do outside of the studio, I do 100 pushups, at least 15-20 minutes of core workouts (banana hold, bicycle kicks, Russian twists, etc.), 100 squats, and lots of stretching to increase flexibility. Cardio's difficult to work in because my knees are still recovering from a longboarding accident. My diet's not the greatest, as I eat predominantly rice and meat, with little vegetables. I try to drink at least a few liters of water a day.

What I'm most concerned about is the clinch and grappling. It's inevitable that grappling will occur, so my goal is to learn how to prevent him from taking me down to the ground on his terms at all costs. If I do get on the ground, I want to be in a dominant position so I can get some strikes in, then get back on my feet as fast as possible.

Thank you for the wrestling drill, Drop Bear. I don't have any wrestling buddies I can do this with currently, but the school I'm transferring to this January has a wrestling team, and the coach invited me to train with them whenever I've got the time. I'll most likely do that then.

In the meantime, what should I do for cardio? I want to maximize my gains in endurance, speed, and skill by the time of the fight, as I already hit hard enough to take down pretty big opponents in comparison to me.

Hill sprints, road running, intensity in your pad work. Some sprawls probably wouldn't hurt.

Five times five minutes is a very long time.
 

Monkey Turned Wolf

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Train with wrestlers/grapplers. Try to do light sparring with them, where you focusbon striking and escaping what they do. You're not going to beat him at that area, but if you can learn to strike while he tries to transition, and get back to your specialty, that should help a lot.
 

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