Concept: The Attack and Adjust Cycle

”In defence lies Invincibility. In attack, the possibility of Thug Life.”*

- Sun Tzu

We’re going to discuss something so fundamental that it can be seen in combat arts, negotiation, and foosball. This pairs nicely with the Priority of Defense

What is the purpose of attack?:

A. To cause damage or advance position

OR

B. To cause a reaction**

An attacking technique’s purpose is to hurt the opponent or put its user in a better position to win the fight. Far more often, however, what the attacker has to settle for is the reaction to the attack. In this case, the information they glean from the response is what they’ll use to adjust their next attack. Broadly, we see many businesses use some form of the “Agile” model: Frequent iterations and market testing followed by scaling appropriately.

Here are a few examples of adjustments we see across different sports:

Key:

A. Fighter 1’s Action

B. Fighter 2’s Reaction

C. Fighter 1’s Adjustment for Success

Kickboxing/Striking:

A.Mirko Filipovic: Southpaw Left Straight

B. Igor Vovchanchyn: Slip to the Outside/Parries

(Fighters reset distance and a few more instances of the straight)

C. Cro Cop: Fake Straight, High Left Round Kick to the dome

BJJ:

A. Professor Pedro Sauer: Attempts to break Uke’s Posture by pulling down from closed guard

B. Uke: Resists by trying to keep spine straight and bringing weight to haunches

C. Professor Sauer follow’s B up and finishes with a Sit-up Sweep

Wrestling:

A. Coach: Overties and Snaps Down

B. Wrestler: Stabilizes and attempts to get back to stance

C. Coach: Shoots through space given and fits into a double leg takedown

Here’s hoping that you stay scrappy and keep adjusting!

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*Paraphrased

**This is a slightly modified idea I picked up from www.expertboxing.com. I heartily recommend you check them out!