Defence

The Block group encompasses all defensive techniques that use the arms, hands, legs, or body to physically intercept and absorb incoming strikes — the most fundamental form of defence across every striking martial art. [1] Blocking creates a physical barrier between the attacker's strike and the target, absorbing or redirecting impact through the defender's skeletal structure. [1,2] While considered the most basic defensive skill, advanced blocking systems — boxing's shell defence, Muay Thai's shin check, and karate's formal uke waza — represent sophisticated biomechanical applications. [2,3] Blocking is the defensive foundation upon which all other defensive skills are built: before a fighter can slip, parry, or counter, they must first be able to block. [3]

Counter striking is the art of using the opponent's attack as an opportunity to land your own strike — exploiting the openings created when an opponent commits to an offensive action, using timing rather than initiating exchanges. [1] Counter strikers are considered the most technically sophisticated fighters in boxing, kickboxing, and MMA because they require superior timing, pattern recognition, and defensive awareness to make opponents miss and pay for their attacks. [1,2] The three primary counter-striking approaches are: simultaneous counters (firing at the same time as the opponent's attack), slip-counters (evading then striking the exposed target), and pull-counters (drawing an attack to counter with a prepared response). [2,3] Counter striking transforms defence into offence, making the opponent's aggression their own worst enemy. [3]

The Evasion-Distance Management group encompasses all defensive techniques that avoid offensive attacks by moving the body or head out of the attack's path, or by controlling the distance between fighters to prevent attacks from reaching their target. [1] Unlike blocking or parrying which intercept attacks, evasion-based defence removes the target entirely, leaving the attacker committed to a strike that hits nothing — a principle that creates superior counter-attacking opportunities. [1,2] This group includes footwork defence (movement of the entire body), head movement (movement of the head and upper body while the feet remain planted), and stance-distance control (managing the spatial relationship between fighters). [2,3] Evasion and distance management are considered the highest-level defensive skills in striking arts because they allow the defender to avoid damage entirely while maintaining balance and readiness to counter. [3]

Footwork Defence covers all defensive techniques that use movement, angles, and distance management to avoid or mitigate attacks — the most sophisticated form of defence, relying on not being where the attack lands rather than blocking or absorbing it. [1] Footwork-based defence includes lateral movement, pivots, retreating steps, angle changes, and the subtle weight shifts that keep a fighter just outside the opponent's effective range while remaining in range to counter-attack. [1,2] Masters of footwork defence — Willie Pep, Pernell Whitaker, Vasyl Lomachenko, and Muhammad Ali — are regarded as the greatest defensive fighters in combat sports history because they could make opponents miss repeatedly without using their hands, demoralising attackers while conserving energy. [2,3] In fencing, footwork (la marche, la retraite, the fleche) is considered the foundation upon which all offensive and defensive actions are built. [3]

The Guard Retention group encompasses all defensive techniques used on the ground to maintain or recover a guard position, preventing the opponent from passing to a dominant position. [1] Guard retention is the foundation of bottom-game defence in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and grappling — as long as the defender can maintain some form of guard (full, half, open), they retain defensive options, sweep opportunities, and submission threats. [1,2] This group includes frame defences (using skeletal structure to create barriers), hip movement defences (using hip escapes and inversions to create space), and reguard techniques (recovering guard after it has been compromised). [2,3]

The Striking Interception Defence group encompasses all defensive techniques that physically intercept, redirect, or absorb incoming strikes using the arms, legs, or body as shields and deflectors. [1] Unlike evasion-based defence which removes the target from the attack's path, interception defence meets the attack with a defensive structure — blocking it, parrying it aside, covering against it, or catching it. [1,2] This group includes blocks (hard interceptions that stop the strike), parries (redirections that deflect the strike's path), and covers (protective postures that absorb impact on non-vulnerable areas). [2,3] Interception defence is the most universal defensive system across martial arts, found in every fighting tradition from karate's formal blocking to boxing's guard and cover system. [3]

The Submission Defence group encompasses all defensive techniques used to prevent, escape from, or neutralise submission attempts including chokes, joint locks, compressions, and cranks. [1] Submission defence is a critical skill in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, MMA, and all grappling arts because a single successful submission ends the contest — therefore, the ability to defend submissions is often the difference between victory and defeat. [1,2] This group is organised by the type of submission being defended against: choke defence, armlock defence, leglock defence, compression lock defence, crank/twist defence, and grip breaking techniques. [2,3] Effective submission defence combines technical knowledge (understanding the mechanics of each submission to know where safety lies), positional awareness (knowing when a submission threat exists), and timing (defending before the submission is fully secured). [3]

The Takedown Defence group encompasses all defensive techniques used to prevent an opponent from bringing the fight to the ground through takedown attempts. [1] Takedown defence is one of the most critical skill sets in MMA and wrestling, as the ability to keep the fight standing (or take it down) is often the primary tactical battleground in mixed-rules competition. [1,2] This group includes sprawling (hips back defence against shots), whizzer defence (overhook-based counter), underhook defence (re-pummelling), crossface defence, stance-and-base defence, cage-specific defence, and counter-attack defences that punish takedown attempts. [2,3]

The Weapon Defence group encompasses defensive techniques against armed attacks, including knife defence, gun defence, and stick/baton defence. [1] Weapon defence is the most serious self-defence scenario because armed attacks carry the highest risk of lethal injury — the defender must neutralise the threat of the weapon while managing the extreme danger of close-range engagement with an armed attacker. [1,2] This group addresses the three most common weapon categories encountered in self-defence situations: edged weapons (knives), firearms (guns), and impact weapons (sticks, batons). [2,3] It is important to note that all weapon defences carry significant risk and the primary recommendation in any armed encounter is to escape if possible. [3]