Pressure Points in MMA

[FearlessFreep]

Anybody intentionally use pressure points in MMA? I have some vague thoughts in my head and am curious if anyone has applied pressure point knowledge to MMA fighting

 

[Andrew Green]

Nobody, and I'd bet it will stay that way

I do remember a video a while back that a news crew did where they took a PP master to a MMA club though, the MMA guys (including Stephan Bonnar) just looked at him funny as he tried his stuff

 

[Kennedy_Shogen_Ryu]

I personally think that Pressure Point fighting and MMA fighting will never coexist. I mean if you're going to introduce pressure points next you'll have to include joint locks, then they'll want to start using Kali sticks, who knows where it will end? Ok so I'm over exagerating a little.

Pressure points are very exact and don't work on everyone or all the time. There's already enough to work on in MMA between conditioning, striking, grappling, adding pressure points, would just be too much.
​

 

[brianlkennedy]

My MMA teacher taught us the only pressure point that matters----the tip of the jaw. Hit the button (generally) lights out. So to protect that pressure point, hands up, chin down, bite your mouth piece when going in, cup your ears with your hands to protect your jaw hinge.

Does that count?

take care,
Brian

 

[thetruth]

I have spoken to a high ranking pp guy regards to this. He claimed he taught pressure points to a well known mma group. I asked why they didn't use them, he said they weren't ready for them, I said some stuff and promptly got kicked out of his forum. Now I have no drama's with people saying hit this point or that and they will fall down as long as they are hit with full intent and power. When they are hit this way though it is impossible to say if it was the point that made it work or the force of the blow. PP guys will say it was all pressure points but I am not so sure. As for the tippy tap crap, that will never exist in mma.

Just some thoughts

Cheers
Sam:asian:

 

[Tez3]

Well you know what I'm going to say don't you? Yes we do use some. it's like anything else in MMA if you know a technique you use it but finding the right time to use a particular move is the key to MMA. You don't try a jumping roundhouse kick when you're lying on your back and you don't try using pressure points when you're going toe to toe.
Brian, of course that counts! You probably use them more than the guys who say they fight using only pressure points! As for being 'not ready' for them, that's cowdung. People like putting MMA down and they like making a mystique out of pressure points.
If you only watch the UFC and judge all MMA by it you will see only a few MA techniques being used.

 

[FearlessFreep]

I should probably clarify what I was thinking

I'm not thinking pressure point techniques as in hit some in 47 people in 5 seconds and they fall down.

A few times in ad-hoc class situations I've had opportunity to apply pressure to some known pressure points (mostly armpit and trap muscles, plus strikes to spots in the thigh) and it's been rather effective. caveat that it's been to lighter opponents without as much muscle thickness as others. It's been in situations on the ground mostly where in the position I've been in it's presented a chance to use that sort of technique, so I have.

So I was just curious if others had used any sort of pressure point attackes in the context of a wider fighting/sparring situation and if so what had worked or had not worked

 

[Catalyst]

I've never fought MMA and just recently began watching within the last 2 years (so I don't know very much), but would a submission like a rear-naked-choke be considered a pressure point attack?

If you're applying pressure to a specific point(s), like the carotid arteries, would this qualify as a pressure point attack, depending on the definition?

 

[Tez3]

I should probably clarify what I was thinking

I'm not thinking pressure point techniques as in hit some in 47 people in 5 seconds and they fall down.

A few times in ad-hoc class situations I've had opportunity to apply pressure to some known pressure points (mostly armpit and trap muscles, plus strikes to spots in the thigh) and it's been rather effective. caveat that it's been to lighter opponents without as much muscle thickness as others. It's been in situations on the ground mostly where in the position I've been in it's presented a chance to use that sort of technique, so I have.

So I was just curious if others had used any sort of pressure point attackes in the context of a wider fighting/sparring situation and if so what had worked or had not worked

Yep that's the ones! Try them on the bigger guys too they can work, or just hit the muscle, I've done that too and seems to work sometimes.It actually seems to depend on the person rather than the size I've found. there's a nice one just by the inside of the elbow thats quite sweet, you can also find the lower leg ones and the feet.Don't forget and many do, that you can stamp on feet in MMA, vey good when in clinch or stuck on ropes/cage. I suppose to be correct you can call it a heel strike to the foot lol!

 

[FieldDiscipline]

Ali used them in boxing, so why not in MMA?

 

[Tez3]

There's also an interesting move as patented by Paul "Hands of Stone" Jenkins, when on the ground he slides his opponents groin guard with his arm/elbow/knee/hand whatever, 'downwards' as it were till the elastic stretches then lets go.........

 

[DavidCC]

When Chuck Liddell came to town 2 years ago or so, we asked him specifically if he hunts for specific points, like the side of the jaw. He knew exaclty what we were talking about. He said, basically, that he will hit someone there (side of jaw) if it is available but he doesn't try to force it. He knows a number of "sweet spots" but doesn't call them pressure points.

The outsdie of the thigh, the inside of the leg above the knee, the solar plexus, side of the jaw, tip of the jaw, floating ribs... these are all very common targets in MMA or boxing (except for the leg points) and are also the locations of some of the most effective pressure points.

Are they known and used : yes. Are they taught to the fighters as "pressure points", probably not.

 

[Tez3]

My MMA teacher taught us the only pressure point that matters----the tip of the jaw. Hit the button (generally) lights out. So to protect that pressure point, hands up, chin down, bite your mouth piece when going in, cup your ears with your hands to protect your jaw hinge.

Does that count?

take care,
Brian

You are going to be taken out with a liver shot if you keep your hands that high, far worse than being KO'd. You are also inviting take downs. If you are fighting amateur rules ie no head strikes then it would be useless defending your head while you are taking body shots.

 

[Kennedy_Shogen_Ryu]

Yes and upon reading posts and second thoughts, my Sensei has a somewhat unorthodox technique, he hits people in the forearms. Sounds silly to some I'm sure, but there are quite a few pressure points in the forearm, and if you keep striking away at them it makes it very difficult to A) Keep those hands up and B) block with the forearms, so in a way that is pressure point fighting while practicing MMA.

Plus inside leg kicks, I mean how many pressure points are there in the thigh?

 

[Tez3]

Yes and upon reading posts and second thoughts, my Sensei has a somewhat unorthodox technique, he hits people in the forearms. Sounds silly to some I'm sure, but there are quite a few pressure points in the forearm, and if you keep striking away at them it makes it very difficult to A) Keep those hands up and B) block with the forearms, so in a way that is pressure point fighting while practicing MMA.

Plus inside leg kicks, I mean how many pressure points are there in the thigh?

With respect, hitting the arms repeatedly is not going to help in MMA, when judging I would be looking for quicker effective moves than bangin away at someones arms. As a ref I think I would be thinking about warning for pacivity as it's not an overtly aggressive move expecially it's just being repeated. As a fighter I'd think thank you and good night! No one is going to stand there letting you bang away at their arms. If you are going to use a pressure point it has to be in a way that brings instant results.

 

[Kennedy_Shogen_Ryu]

Tez3:
Totally see where you're coming from, didn't mean that he just stands there and just aims for the forearms, but if there is a bit of a lull in the action or we wants to get a reaction out of someone it seems to work quite well. I'm not saying that it's his one and only technique or that he relies on it or anything, another thing that I've found is a lot of people don't expect it.

 

[Tez3]

Lol! I did assume he did more than that! The problem with MMA, and people often don't think about this is that you have to 'work'. Obviously you are going for a KO or submission to win the fight outright with no doubts as to who the winner is but you also have to think that if it does go to the judges your workrate and the effectiveness of your strikes is going to come into play.If there is a lull in the fight I'd want to see something more than a couple of punches to the arms to gain the points or the advantage. Most of our fighters have come up through amateur rules where striking on the arms is common so it wouldn't surprise them too much I think. In the pro fights hitting the arms is common in GnP as the fighter below blocks the punches from above so again being stuck on the arms, repeatedly in this case, is nothing new to fighters I'm afraid.

 

[Kennedy_Shogen_Ryu]

Tez3

Very good points, and I talked to my instructor about it, and he, how shall I put it, corrected my statement.
With the striking to the forearm, he'll do it while training in class to help get guys used to getting hit in the forearms either as a strike or as a block, but he informed me he has never actually done so in an actual competition, so I stand corrected, it's not the first time, and oh I know it won't be the last!

I totally agree though, I have refereed a couple fights (couple traditional point sparring, couple MMA) and I agree that I wouldn't think that striking to the forearms was a way to press the action, and I agree with what you stated earlier that, yeah, it would probably just annoy the crap out of your adversary and cause them to want to hit you, hard!
​

 

[Tez3]

Tez3​

Very good points, and I talked to my instructor about it, and he, how shall I put it, corrected my statement.
With the striking to the forearm, he'll do it while training in class to help get guys used to getting hit in the forearms either as a strike or as a block, but he informed me he has never actually done so in an actual competition, so I stand corrected, it's not the first time, and oh I know it won't be the last!​

I totally agree though, I have refereed a couple fights (couple traditional point sparring, couple MMA) and I agree that I wouldn't think that striking to the forearms was a way to press the action, and I agree with what you stated earlier that, yeah, it would probably just annoy the crap out of your adversary and cause them to want to hit you, hard!​

Sounds as if you and your instructor have a good relationship! A lot of non MMA people post up saying well in MMA they don't do this or that which they take to mean that the fighters can't do the techniques but the problem as I said is that the fighter has to do things that will work and he also has to look as if he's working! I'm not actually sure if non MMA people understand that if fighters don't appear to be working when on the floor they will be stood up by the ref nor that the ref can deduct points for passivity, though perhaps watchers of Pride should know what the yellow cards are for.It's one of those things that make me laugh ( a tad bitterly) when detractors say there's no rules in MMA. There's actually a lot of rules!

 

[Kennedy_Shogen_Ryu]

when detractors say there's no rules in MMA. There's actually a lot of rules!

Much agreed, I've actually talked to people who think that they can get in the ring and pretty much do whatever they want. I witnessed an amateur fight where the fighters were given the rules when they registered, and one of the rules was no knees to the head and no elbows on the ground (these were amateur fights by the way). This one guy with an ego big enough to make up for everyone, was fighting and doing quite poorly when he suddenly clinched with the gentleman he was fighting and just started kneeing to his head, both corners and the ref jumped in to break it up. I asked him afterwards why he had done what he did his response: "They don't call it 'full contact' for nothing, I can do what I want when I want" he went on a bit longer but at this point I stopped listening.

Point of this winded story, it's not just the ones outside MMA there are the ones who compete that also believe there are no rules!