What would be your first offensive technique in a street fight?

[Crouching Tiger]

first i'd start moveing away with light footwork, then give him a few quick jabs to see how he would react - then i'd blast in and front kick to the body, then see if he gets up. If he gets up, this time I would kick him back down again, but I would follow him down and punch him in the throat or groin! If he gets up again, I would run like hell.

[Slater_E]

my first defensive move would be to step back and get my hands up saying I don't want any trouble. its get's my hands to where I can use them. and it's passive so he wont be expecting me to rip out his throat in a second...hehe
[img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif[/img]

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"In a fight, there is no second place."

[yungak]

Deleted

[This message has been edited by yungak (edited 08-25-2000).]

[joehyer]

I find that I will never know the answer to this question.The last time Iwas in a "fight". Iwas approached by a drunk,insisting I give him a cigarette.I informed him that I had only one. He then grabbed for my pocket.I did not reflect on what was happening then,I simply acted, broke his grab and gently pushed. even though he was drunk,he visibly calmed apologized and we went our separate ways. just saying you never know or have time to think,it just happens.

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Joehyer

[GhostDog]

Firstly, too many of you guys are saying you'd wait for the guy to throw the first punch. Big mistake. Why would you do this ? If you believe that somebody is going to assault you, then you have the right to defend yourself. Also, it's much slower to react than to act, and by the time you think "He's punching", you'll have been hit and the fight will be over. I'd recommend that you get Geoff Thompson's video "Pavement Psychology". He and Peter Consterdine talk about this popular problem with many martial artists in waiting for the other guy to initate.

Secondly, a couple of you guys said that you throw a feint or a couple of jabs to see how he'd react. You guys have been watching too many Kung-fu movies. A feint only works on someone who knows what it is, and if he's drunk then he might not even see the feint. Why waste the energy in throwing a feint when you could just hit him ? Also, why would you want to wait for his reaction ? People who win fights are people who start throwing strikes and don't stop till the opponent is finished. If you throw a punch, then give him time to recover and see how he reacts then you've lost your advantage.

The best wait to initiate the attack is to strike with a quick blow first. Something that is fast and not telegraphed. It doesn't have to be powerful, just hard enough to make your opponent blink, or lose balance so you can follow up with harder strikes. Examples are a quick forehead slap (makes him blink and pushes his head backwards), a quick strike to the throat. Even a quick shove to make your opponent think about regaining his balance while you quickly follow up with a right cross.

[jimmy23]

Also, note that in many states you can be guilty of assault without ever attacking someone.In a criminal case, a secrurity gaurd was guilty of assault when he confronted two hotel guests wielding a nightstick,took an agressive stance and became very confrontational.on one of the reality tv shows(great sources for seeing what REALLY happens)a guy confronted a pimp who was smacking his ho around( I love the cool lingo here [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif[/img] ),then walked away.The pimp followed him,cursing and taking an agressive stance,then the guy turned and knifehanded the pimp across the neck,dropping him.This was perfectly justified,as the guy wlaked awy and the pimp showed what any reasonble person(whatever that is) would construe as intent to assault.
any lawmen or attorneys here that could shed some light on this?

[yamato_damashii]

My first technique would be to remove the safety and look for a clear front sight tip.

Jason C. Diederich
Pax Nobiscum

[shimera]

my advise for you, in fighting whether it be street or sparring, DON'T EVER GO INTO IT WITH A PLAN, 9 times out of 10 it will fail hands down. because your opponent rarely ever does what you want them too.

[magicfist]

attack hard and fast with everything you've got!

[sblano]

I find this question simple to answer. Meaning if you have to think about what technique you have to execute you have already lost.Therefore don`t think do . But remember keep it simple no fancy stuff stay shorp . ;)

[8stepsifu]

sun punch

King of the Assyrians

[Seeker of the Way]

I don't know if you're asking that one takes legal issues into consideration here. However, here in Scandinavia, Kung Fu is actually illegal when it's not a last-ditch measure.

By LDM, I mean that you may never throw the first technique - So I believe that I'd wait for the first punch/kick, sidestep(that being the most common counter in the martial arts I study), and grab the offending limb for either a submission (a so-called 'arm/leg-bar'), or a knockdown technique while she/he's out of balance.

Peace,
SotW.

"I know Kung Fu."

[Vankuen]

I agree with many of you on these posts. Many factors come into play here, depending on where you're from and the laws and customs there, to what your training was in, to what the situation is.

All things being equal, I believe that the fist hit should be a powerful one, if its not, the first attack should be an overwhelming one.

In real life things wont happen the way you want them to. I find, and tell my students that once the time comes to fight, there should no longer be any thinking, but rather, a "no mind" attitude set in. The reactions and actions will come from (hopefully) good training. All you can do is hope that you trained well enough to be able to handle the situation with success.

Remember that logistics plays a role here as well...after youve attacked, take a moment to assess your standings. Continuing when the attack is making no progress is just as useless as not attacking at all, and in some cases, can allow him to counter you. And always, leave the situation as soon as its done and over with. As not being there is the best way to survive. (unless of course youre now being detained by the local authorities. But lets hope not) :)

In any case before this gets too long, train hard, so that when the time comes to fight, you wont have to think about what youre going to do, you'll just do it.