Stickgrappler: How to Clinch and Not Get Hit

How to clinch and not get hit

zm wrote:

I was wondering how grapplers keep from getting hit by someone who is a striker,
seems to me that as the grappler comes in he is liable to get rocked with a
strike. However I have seen grapplers that seem willing to get hit in exchange
for a chance to get in close. Is that how all grapplers feel about getting in on
an someone?

Actually, a grappler does NOT have to settle for taking a shot or two to get to the clinch. This is a common misconception. It's all a matter of timing and angling. Look at it this way. When it comes to angling, you simply have to shoot in low and off-center with the head, and you can relatively easily avoid getting hit (either with a punch or kick). The opponent can only hit something solidly that is right in front of him and at the right vertical level.

Then you look at timing. The two best times to shoot in against a striker are :

1. Right after he has initiated an attack

2. When his attacking limb is fully extended and has begun to retract. But if you go in straight up the middle at, say, chest level, and time it when he is cocked and ready to fire, then yes, I would then say that you're going to have to eat a punch or two to get the clinch. But change the timing and angling of your approach and the odds weigh heavily against HIM. The important thing, though, is that you avoid going in right into his firing line.

Frank Benn
Integrated Arts
Austin, Texas