Elbows, Knees and Clinch (diary entry)

9th July 2014

This is my client’s third lesson in Muay Thai for martial arts cross training. We began with a revision of boxing, kickboxing, basic footwork and focused on better kicking development. Then we moved onto the theme of today’s lesson: elbows, knees and the clinch.

I first taught the slashing elbow as an illustration of how Thai elbows differ from basic self-defence elbow stirkes. Although knockouts from elbow strikes are not uncommon in Muay Thai, their primary function is to create cuts and therefore incur stoppages. The slashing elbow hits a target horizontally and is usually aimed at the forehead. These elbow strikes were first practised on a live target under control and then, in combination, on the Thai focus mitts.

We then turned to knee strikes, training straight and round knees. We shadow boxed these and then applied them to a live target, under control, before training them against the Thai focus mitts. Knees are a particularly devastating technique and have a wide range of targets. Their most telling effect is when they are delivered to the head.

Next we moved onto the clinch range. The system of Muay Thai has several advantages in its methodology. Since head-butts were forbidden in mainstream bouts since the 1930s it has become known as the “Science of Eight Limbs”. These limbs being represented by the two fists, two elbows, two knees and two feet. It is still a very modest simplification of the art, as the clinching techniques are such a vital part of the sport that I know of some clubs that dedicate an entire separate regular class to them. Back to the advantages and one of them is the art’s consistent blending of its main attack tools. Along with other closely related Southeast Asian martial arts in Cambodia and Myanmar, and with the possible exception of Chinese Sanshou or Sanda, it has the longest unbroken and regular usage of punches with kicks and grappling with striking in any full contact combat sport. With the pressure of having to fight professionally on a regular basis and its huge popularity inside Thailand, the sport has gone through a consistent evolution and the ranges used seamlessly blend in to one another. The same applies to the clinch.

Over time possible pressure to make the sport more spectator-friendly has led to a greater reduction of clinch techniques. We are now at a stage where virtually all clinching techniques in mainstream Muay Thai are centred on the head, neck, shoulders and arms. Throws are very limited and only scored – at least when I did my judging course back in 2004 – if the thrower shows intent to couple the move with a strike. Nevertheless, I have always held that restriction provides fertile ground for creativity and Muay Thai has developed many sophisticated and efficient methods connected to highline grappling.

We began with basic neck wrestling, aiming to control the head and the centreline. Then we moved back to footwork, which is very similar to western boxing. Interestingly Muay Thai’s stance is shallower than both boxing and most wrestling/grappling. This is for the swifter execution of strikes with the knees and feet, although it can compromise balance. As previously mentioned, the Thai stance is more square-on than the Western Boxing stance. We covered one movement that wasn’t focused on during the Boxing cross-training, despite being a part of Western Boxing, because of its importance at clinch range. This is what was always referred to me by Tony Hayes (my deceased Muay Thai kru) as the “v-step”. At normal stand-up striking range it allows a fighter to angle off on an opponent. In a Thai clinch it allows a fighter to dramatically disrupt an opponent’s balance and is usually combined with a strike.

We trained this movement in isolation and then in conjunction with the rest of the footwork before combining it with elbow strikes and knee strikes. Although elbow and knee strikes are often thrown without clinching, the majority occur at clinch range and this will later nicely dovetail into self-defence training towards the end of this particular course.

Training was taken to the bag as we covered some solo work for my client to undertake regarding tonight’s subjects. We began with a freestyle session of elbows, knees and clinch.  I then introduced the side pendulum or Newton’s Cradle footwork that can be utilized well to deliver knees when at clinch range.

Bottom photograph by Charlotte Von Bulow-Quirk Photography. Copyright Charlotte Von Bulow-Quirk/Jamie Clubb. No unauthorized use of this picture permitted. This is part of a series to be selected for Jamie Clubb’s upcoming book, “Mordred’s Victory” published by Ex-L-Ence Publishing