# Defense or Countering a Spinning Hook Kick



## Rumy73 (Jan 28, 2011)

What approaches do you suggest for countering a spinning hook kick in a Olympic style sparring situation? For argument's sake, say the competitors are in a closed stance.

One suggestion I heard is to lean back, getting one's head below the attacker's leg, and attacking with a quick roundhouse. 

I'd love to learn some other approaches. Links to videos would be great, too.

Thanks!


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## andyjeffries (Jan 28, 2011)

Rumy73 said:


> What approaches do you suggest for countering a spinning hook kick in a Olympic style sparring situation? For argument's sake, say the competitors are in a closed stance. One suggestion I heard is to lean back, getting one's head below the attacker's leg, and attacking with a quick roundhouse.



That's the defence I was taught and that we still teach at our club.  That said, when I do a spinning hook kick I tend to leave it to the last possible second so they are really close and do it more back kick style so it comes in really tight - much harder to defend against.


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## puunui (Jan 28, 2011)

Rumy73 said:


> One suggestion I heard is to lean back, getting one's head below the attacker's leg, and attacking with a quick roundhouse.



Not leaning back, but rather dropping your head while turning your hip and shoulder. If you are fast, you can try to double as they are spinning. Back Kick works too. Cut Kick to the low back tail bone also works in the middle of their spin, especially if they jump. Big hujin step and narabang or back leg double works. Some people counter spin hook with a spin hook of their own. It really depends on the situation and what you have confidence in.


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## granfire (Jan 28, 2011)

step back?


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## puunui (Jan 28, 2011)

granfire said:


> step back?



Sometimes.


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## Touch Of Death (Jan 28, 2011)

Ok you guys!!! You can, get inside the rotation. You can get outside the rotation. You can get under the rotation, and in some cases, over the rotation.:soapbox:
Sean


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## Balrog (Jan 30, 2011)

But throughout all of this, remember Grandmaster's Rule #1 in sparring:

Never block with your face!


:lol:


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## ATC (Jan 30, 2011)

Simple cut kick to the back hip area is all that you need. The opponent will go flying away from you and hit the ground pretty hard. All that other stuff is nice if you can time it right but more than not you won't.


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## puunui (Jan 30, 2011)

ATC said:


> Simple cut kick to the back hip area is all that you need. The opponent will go flying away from you and hit the ground pretty hard. All that other stuff is nice if you can time it right but more than not you won't.




I try to stay away from one and only one option advice. Everyone athlete is different, and if they don't have the ability or confidence in that one thing, then it messes them up. Also the situation may develop such that you cannot do that one thing.


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## ralphmcpherson (Jan 30, 2011)

ATC said:


> Simple cut kick to the back hip area is all that you need. The opponent will go flying away from you and hit the ground pretty hard. All that other stuff is nice if you can time it right but more than not you won't.


I hear the term "cut kick" quite often in threads concerning sport tkd. What actually is a cut kick?


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## puunui (Jan 30, 2011)

The easiest way to think about a cut kick is to think about a side kick, mostly front leg, but back leg too.


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## terryl965 (Jan 30, 2011)

ralphmcpherson said:


> I hear the term "cut kick" quite often in threads concerning sport tkd. What actually is a cut kick?


 
It is a side kick plain and simple, I have never understood the term cutkick but it works against the sport style very effectively.


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## terryl965 (Jan 30, 2011)

As far as the OP question every person that does Olympic spring needs a great cut kick to be effective, but also trail and errors to see what you are able to achieve is the best advise for you. Try to see if you can jump the kick and land a double or even jam the kick and come out of the clinch with a good solid counter. Remember training with different partners and level of speed is a great way of seeing what you can do.


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## Hollywood1340 (Jan 30, 2011)

Hapkido.


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## ralphmcpherson (Jan 30, 2011)

terryl965 said:


> It is a side kick plain and simple, I have never understood the term cutkick but it works against the sport style very effectively.


Thats good to hear, sidekick is one of my favourites but Id always heard it wasnt effective in sport tkd. Do they alter it any way for sport purposes, or is it just a good old sidekick as we know it?


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## puunui (Jan 30, 2011)

terryl965 said:


> It is a side kick plain and simple, I have never understood the term cutkick



That's because when the term cutkick first came out in Korea in the 80's, it wasn't a side kick. 




terryl965 said:


> but it works against the sport style very effectively.



if you think back and forth or linearly, or otherwise don't know how to counter it.


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## ATC (Jan 31, 2011)

Cut kick is not just a side kick, but most people use the side kick, as it is the best way to do a cut kick. You can use a front push kick in the same manor, but it is not as effective and leaves you open for some pretty easy counters.

The term cut mean just that, to cut off someones technique. Mostly used to cut off or defend against spinning kicks used as counter kicks. Many times it looks like people attack with it but they don't, they give the apperance of a front leg round kick but then cut with it as a front leg side kick. Great to defend againt bada kicks or turning counters such as the back kick or back spin kick (spinning hook). You really are setting up your opponent to counter you so you can counter the counter. If he does not counter and slides or steps back, then you simple drop the cut leg and attack with a rear leg round kick. If he stands still then you use the side kick as a simple attack. Most people slide off or angle off, they don't just stand there.


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## ATC (Jan 31, 2011)

Minute 2:55 in the video below is a great example of a stationary or defensive cut kick. He cut off the attackers spinning hook or maybe it was a simple back kick. Either way he cut it off with a perfectly place cut kick to the back hip as the person turned.
[yt]JVh_WM-A_OM[/yt]


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## andyjeffries (Jan 31, 2011)

terryl965 said:


> It is a side kick plain and simple, I have never understood the term cutkick but it works against the sport style very effectively.



I'd disagree that it's the same as a side kick.  A side kick has a lot more chamber than a cut kick.  I'd always describe a cut kick as a 70 degree/mostly turned over version of a snappy-looking push kick - than as a side kick.  For example, when doing a cut kick my standing foot goes to 90 degrees away from the opponent - during a side kick my standing foot goes to 170-180 degrees.

Then, I guess it depends how much you chamber your side kicks as to whether you have this distinction.


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## andyjeffries (Jan 31, 2011)

ATC said:


> Minute 2:55 in the video below is a great example of a stationary or defensive cut kick. He cut off the attackers spinning hook or maybe it was a simple back kick. Either way he cut it off with a perfectly place cut kick to the back hip as the person turned.



Thanks for the video ATC, the kick before the one you mention is actually an example of what we'd consider a jumping cut kick. If you look at the screengrab below it shows his body is facing forwards and his knee is mostly over rather than fully over as a side kick would be.







It's kind of like the lovechild of a lazy (in technical accuracy rather than speed) side kick and a traditional (knee to chest) push kick.

In the one you mention the hips go fully over but that's because he's trying to put a lot in to it to take his opponent off balance (we normally use a cut kick either as a feint or as a setup to something else).


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## ralphmcpherson (Jan 31, 2011)

ATC said:


> Minute 2:55 in the video below is a great example of a stationary or defensive cut kick. He cut off the attackers spinning hook or maybe it was a simple back kick. Either way he cut it off with a perfectly place cut kick to the back hip as the person turned.
> [yt]JVh_WM-A_OM[/yt]


Thanks heaps for that ATC, that illustrates it well for someone who had no idea what the term meant.


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## Balrog (Jan 31, 2011)

ATC said:


> Minute 2:55 in the video below is a great example of a stationary or defensive cut kick. He cut off the attackers spinning hook or maybe it was a simple back kick. Either way he cut it off with a perfectly place cut kick to the back hip as the person turned.


Gotta love that defensive side kick.  When you stick it into the middle of someone's carefully planned out attack, it just ruins their whole day.   :lol:


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## ATC (Jan 31, 2011)

andyjeffries said:


> Thanks for the video ATC, the kick before the one you mention is actually an example of what we'd consider a jumping cut kick. If you look at the screengrab below it shows his body is facing forwards and his knee is mostly over rather than fully over as a side kick would be.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


More of a jumping front push kick to get someone out of the ring. It is loosely called a cut kick.


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## ATC (Feb 1, 2011)

andyjeffries said:


> In the one you mention the hips go fully over but that's because he's trying to put a lot in to it to take his opponent off balance (*we normally use a cut kick either as a feint or as a setup to something else*).


The cut kick is a great kick to setup all kinds of things. You guys sound like you are using it correctly.


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## andyjeffries (Feb 1, 2011)

ATC said:


> The cut kick is a great kick to setup all kinds of things. You guys sound like you are using it correctly.



Thanks man.  At our school we're quite a way behind the curve both in terms of Modern Training Methods and Kukkiwon standards.  We've improved incredibly in terms of the latter over the past few years (a focus I've been trying to push) along with visits from Grandmaster Pan Sim Woon that has helped us tremendously.  Still got a way to go on MTM though...


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## Phenix_Rider (Feb 1, 2011)

Step in, grab the knee and dump him on the ground then kick him in the ribs :ultracool

Oh, you mean flailing like a busted windmill...


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## Archtkd (Feb 1, 2011)

ATC said:


> Minute 2:55 in the video below is a great example of a stationary or defensive cut kick. He cut off the attackers spinning hook or maybe it was a simple back kick. Either way he cut it off with a perfectly place cut kick to the back hip as the person turned.
> [yt]JVh_WM-A_OM[/yt]


 
Thanks ATC. In Kenya, we used to call that specific cut kick a "stopper." and that's what I still call it.


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