BOXING DQ’S FOR SELF-DEFENSE

Boxing AKA the Sweet Science, as we all know, may be a science but it’s not all that sweet. Let’s face it; what’s sweet about a sport that has as its ultimate goal to render you unconscious via blunt head trauma? As sour-intentioned as the “sweet” science is there is an even more unsavory side—the area of illegal blows, disqualification shots (DQs). These DQs have no place inside the ring (sorry, but you’ve got to keep your teeth to yourself, Mr. Tyson) but for the street, well, that’s another story altogether. Pure boxing, with zero illegal shots added to the mix is already a formidable self-defense art; add the DQs and you’ve got a leaner, meaner street ready animal.

Below we set forth a primer on how to take the already efficient standard boxing arsenal and add the bad intentioned shots back into the mix to make it a street-ready self-defense option. We’ll only touch on a few of the higher-percentage shots; for a great deal more information on this topic see our exhaustive instructional set The Complete Pugilist.

1. Location, Location, Location—Just as in real estate, where you land a blow can spell all the difference between man-stopper and a missed opportunity. You can take any of the blows in the standard boxing arsenal (the jab, cross, hook, uppercut) and target “verboten” areas on your opponent and have a nice effect. Aim for the soft targets of the throat and kidneys; these are far easier to hit than most imagine.
2. Below the Belt—Outside the sport rule-set but no need to exclude it from the street arsenal. A well-placed uppercut south of the border is mighty effective.
3. Rabbit Punching—Blows to the back of the head are particularly damaging and forbidden in the sport of boxing, which means this is a prime tool for the street-boxer. Rabbit punches are best delivered while engaged in a clinch. To deliver an effective rabbit-punch, think of a short choppy hook hitting your opponent directly on the back of the head or neck. BTW—The term rabbit punch comes from a technique used to kill rabbits caught in traps. Once the live rabbit is removed from the trap a sharp blow to the back of the neck and our live rabbit is now a past tense live rabbit.
4. Roughing Inside the Clinch—Once two boxers are clinched the fight is strictly regulated for the sportsman, but for the street-boxer a whole new world of hurt opens up. We’ve got the previously mentioned rabbit-punches, knees to the groin and/or thighs, foot stomps, short-choppy head-butts, you’ve even got Mr. Tyson’s ear lobe hors d`oeuvres available. There is a wealth of mayhem to be inflicted inside the clinch; dish it out well.
5. Thumbing—Modern boxing gloves are manufactured with the thumbs attached to the body of the glove to prevent “accidental/incidental” thumbs to the eyes. The street-boxer has no such glove restricting his fifth digit so; he should utilize this opposing appendage with extreme prejudice. Thumb the eye while roughing inside the clinch, fire your jabs with an open palm and your thumb extended targeting the eyes and/or throat. Another nice little roughing use of the thumb inside the clinch is to jam it hard up and into your opponent's armpit—it won’t stop the fight but it’s just one of the many disconcerting multiples you can throw.
6. Combinations, Combinations, Combinations—The best of the best in the sport of boxing throw combinations; the street-boxer would be wise to emulate that tactic. Be overwhelming in your offense—be overwhelming in your defense. Be overwhelming in your counters. Do not look for the Sunday punch or the KO, instead strive to be the proverbial buzzsaw, strike fast, strike often, and then strike again.

There are many (many) more illegal shots/inserts that we can cull from the boxing arsenal but these half dozen will serve you well when the game is not inside the ring, there is no referee to stop the fight and the stakes are higher than a mark on your record. Train hard; train safe!

Thanks everyone and have a great weekend!

Mark Hatmaker