Issue 158

September 2017

A jumping knee your opponent won't expect

Rafael Cordeiro, head coach at Kings MMA in Huntington Beach, California, teaches you masterful Muay Thai with Fernando Bettega.

1 - Rafael throws a right kick and Fernando blocks with his left shin.

2 - Rafael fakes like he’s going to kick again by throwing his hips.

3 - Expecting a kick, Fernando lifts his leg to check Rafael’s second strike with his shin.

4 - Rafael takes a small step forward with his left leg and pushes off it to throw a jumping right knee.

TOP TIPS

STUDENT

This combination is designed to confuse your opponent. They will expect another kick, and a knee is probably the last thing on their mind.

KRU

As you jump, you could grab the back of your opponent’s head to bring it onto your knee.

MASTER

Getting a kick checked will hurt. Unfortunately, there’s no way to stop this without conditioning your shins, which takes a lot of sparring and work on the heavy bag.