The best way to not lose a fight is to not enter into one.
we learn our skills mostly for when those situations cannot be avoided. So the first rule must be to avoid a fight if possible.
However the next rule must be somethign akin to not losing. A solid defence in any sport or martial art is essential for either longevity or simply to not lose.
Brazilian football used to work off the premise of scoring more goals than the opposition. A solid defence, exposed their frail defence and Brazilian football was never to be the same.
Martial arts based on no defence is destined to come up short. If you cant hit someone because they DO have a good defence, you will need to have a decent defence for when they come back at you..
So for me there are a few aspects to fighting.. some people are offensive fighters.. they lead the fight, try to control the rhythm and pace, some are defensive who try to nullify the attacks and then take over, and then you have the counter hitters who can do a bit of both..
the problem with street fights is that they dont last long, so if you are relying on your opponent to punch himself out in the 6th round, you may get into trouble before that. Street fights dont take long- 20-30 seconds will do it.. So you have to take control quickly. No gloves and no rules means there is a chance of you getting knocked out and hurt a lot quicker. But how do you do this?
In pukulan, we talked a lot about reversing.. or turning the pressure around.. So we look for opportunities, to interrupt the flow of strikes coming at us, and take control away from our attacker. there are a few ways we do this.. sometimes you just have to dig in and grit your teeth, take the distance and not step back. Most people have a preferred distance so they want to keep you at that range. if you change the range or rhythm, it will mess them up. thats what you are looking to do.
redirection is another great option. You can redirect their force maybe off-balancing them and giving you a moment to catch them, while they attempt to recover.
Redirection also works by giving you and opportunity to blindside them. sparring in Singapore years ago, i had to spar with someone more than 10 Kg heavier. getting hit seemed like a bad idea, so i moved. the footwork from Lincah and the Langkah Mati principles gave me the opportunity to move, and not get hit, while keeping me close enough to counter. blind-siding him, selling a dummy and moving.
Silat is an art designed for smaller people to overcome larger ones, through footwork, body mechanics, and sometimes straight deception. Selling a dummy and running for your life is often the smartest move!
