There are 2 ways to spar in my mind. The first is what we do at tournaments which is Point Sparring and the second is what I call Free Sparring. Point Sparring is a game to get points in 2 minutes at a tournament. You receive 2 points for a kick to the head and one point for kicks to the body and hand strikes to both targets. Free Sparring is open to interpretation. The people sparring decide on whether to have full head contact, take downs, etc… The tip I will give you about sparring in this post relates to both ways of sparring.
Establish Control
To win at a sparring match will need you to establish control. You need to set the pace, mood, and movement of the fight. Don’t kid yourself and think that you will do this at the next tournament. You need to practice and you need to do it on a bunch of different opponents. The biggest hurdle you will come across is the different types of people you will spar and how to control them. Here are the three cookie-cutter examples of sparring opponents:
Overly Agressive Attacker
Good Sparring Techinques to Use:
- Side Kicks
- Spin Kicks
- Retreating Kicks
- Punches
- Circular Movement
How to Establish Control: When someone is Overly Agressive they will constantly be making the first move and coming in you zone. Don’t curl up in fear! Establish control by stopping them every time they start making a move in by side kicking them in the stomach. Even if they stomach is not open you leg is very strong and will stop them in their tracks. You could also try a quick spin side kick or spin kick while they are on their way in. If you land a spin side kick to the gut it is very easy to take someone’s breadth away.
Overly Defensive Partner
Good Sparring Techniques to Use:
- Round Kicks
- Hook Kicks
- Jabs
- Back Fist
- Side Kick
- Axe Kick
How to Establish Control: When someone is overly defensive they may sit and wait for you to make the first move every time either trying to jam you on your way in or move/back up and counter attack. I would say sparring these people gives you a lot more flexibility to experiment and gain control of the match. Try doing kick combos to open up targets and to vary the timing they expect to counter attack. For example, use a combo (do not set you leg down) like Hook Kick at head level, then Round Kick at head level, then Round kick at body level (set your leg down) and then jab and punch. Sequences like the one I just described are hard to block, jam, and counter because the defensive person has no idea how to block so many different level strikes and it is hard to judge when they can counter. This often times will lead to the person trying to counter to literally run in to a strike you are throwing.
The Hybrid
Good Techniques to Use:
- Round Kicks
- Side Kicks
- Axe Kicks
- Double Kicks
- Jabs
- Backfist
How to Establish Control: Hybrids are smart enough to use the situation to become either an offensive or defensive sparrer. You should want to be in this category most of the time. This is the most dangerous type of person to spar because they will switch from one tactic to another mid-fight. Use techniques that you recognize would work when the person is behaving defensively and differ you techniques when the person is behaving offensively. Double Kicks work very well in this situation because it will blur the line to whether you are attacking defensively or offensively making it harder for your adversary to decide which tactic to use against you. Also, try to move “across the line” into and out of their zone either trying to score or trying to make an opening.
