Ground fighting (also called ground work or ground game) is hand-to-hand combat which takes place while the combatants are on the ground. The term is commonly used in

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, inc ...

and other

combat sport A combat sport, or fighting sport, is a competitive contact sport that usually involves one-on-one combat. In many combat sports, a contestant wins by scoring more points than the opponent, submitting the opponent with a hold, disabling the opp ...

s, as well as various forms of martial arts to designate the set of

grappling Grappling, in hand-to-hand combat, describes sports that consist of gripping or seizing the opponent. Grappling is used at close range to gain a physical advantage over an opponent, either by imposing a position or causing injury. Grappling ...

techniques employed by a combatant that is on the ground. It is the main focus of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and is featured in varying amounts in

Catch wrestling Catch wrestling (originally catch-as-catch-can) is a classical hybrid grappling style and combat sport. It was developed by J. G. Chambers in Britain . It was popularised by wrestlers of travelling funfairs who developed their own submission ...

Judo is an unarmed modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyclopedia Nipponica, "Judo"). ...

Jujutsu Jujutsu ( ; ja, link=no, 柔術 , ), also known as jiu-jitsu and ju-jitsu, is a family of Japanese martial arts and a system of close combat (unarmed or with a minor weapon) that can be used in a defensive or offensive manner to kill or subdu ...

Sambo , aka = Sombo (in English-speaking countries) , focus = Hybrid , country = Soviet Union , pioneers = Viktor Spiridonov, Vasili Oshchepkov, Anatoly Kharlampiev , famous_pract = List of Practitioners , oly ...

, Shoot wrestling, Dishuquan Dog Kung Fu, some schools of Shuai Jiao and other styles of

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

. Similarly to clinch fighting, ground fighting implies that the combatants are at a very close range, usually involving one or both combatants

the opponent using various

grappling hold A grappling hold, commonly referred to simply as a hold that in Japanese is referred to as ''katame-waza'' ( "grappling technique"), is any specific grappling, wrestling, judo, or other martial art grip that is applied to an opponent. Grappl ...

s. Depending on the positioning of the combatants, the proximity can allow for techniques such as biting,

chokehold A chokehold, choke, stranglehold or, in Judo, shime-waza ( ja, 絞技, translation=constriction technique) is a general term for a grappling hold that critically reduces or prevents either air (choking)''The New Oxford Dictionary of English'' ( ...

fish-hooking Fish-hooking is the act of inserting a finger or fingers of one or both hands into the mouth, nostrils or other orifices of a person, and pulling away from the centerline of the body; in most cases with the intention of pulling, tearing, or lace ...

, eye-gouging,

joint lock A joint lock is a grappling technique involving manipulation of an opponent's joints in such a way that the joints reach their maximal degree of motion and hyperextension. In judō these are referred to as, 関節技 ''kansetsu-waza'', "joint lo ...

pressure point techniques derive from the supposed meridian points in Traditional Chinese Medicine, Indian Ayurveda and Siddha medicine, and martial arts. They refer to areas on the human body that may produce significant pain or other effects when manipulated in a spec ...

, or various strikes.

Striking on the ground

Traditionally neglected by most

arts, striking on the ground is an important aspect of ground fighting. Typically, a top position is better for various strikes than a bottom position, simply because the combatant in the top position can generate the distance and movement needed for effective strikes, while the bottom combatant is restricted by the ground and by the combatant on top. Another factor is

gravity In physics, gravity () is a fundamental interaction which causes mutual attraction between all things with mass or energy. Gravity is, by far, the weakest of the four fundamental interactions, approximately 1038 times weaker than the stro ...

, which is in favor of the top combatant when they are striking downwards. In addition, the effect of ground strikes may be amplified, depending on the area struck, by the strike driving the opponent into the ground. The types of strikes that can be employed effectively depend on the particular grappling position. Common strikes include

elbow The elbow is the region between the arm and the forearm that surrounds the elbow joint. The elbow includes prominent landmarks such as the olecranon, the cubital fossa (also called the chelidon, or the elbow pit), and the lateral and the me ...

s, headbutts, knees and punches.

Gallery

Image:Strikes from guard.tif, Although the guard is generally considered an advantageous position in pure

, punches can be very effective from the top. File:Bokatorgroundfighting.jpg,

Bas-relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term '' relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that th ...

of knee mount. Located at Angkor Wat( 1100's A.D.) in the Kingdom of

Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailan ...

. File:Silek Lanyah Kubu Gadang, Minangkabau.jpg, Submission lock on grounded opponent in Silat Minangkabau. File:Two_men_wrestling_-_Tashrih_al-aqvam_(1825),_f.203v_-_BL_Add._27255.jpg, Ground fighting from

Pehlwani Pehlwani, (पहलवानी) also known as Kushti, is a form of wrestling contested in South Asia. It was developed in the Mughal Empire by combining Persian Koshti pahlevani with influences from native Indian Malla-yuddha. The words '' ...

in a drawing from 1825. File:Gangaram_Chintaman_Tambat_-_Two_Jeyties_Wrestling_-_B1977.14.22290_-_Yale_Center_for_British_Art.jpg, Drawing of ground fighting in Indian wrestling(1792 A.D.). File:Rawla_Mandi_Sports_Wrestling.jpg, Ground fighting in Indian wrestling. File:Judo_at_the_2016_Summer_Paralympics_–_Men%27s_81_kg,_Safarov_vs_Drane_6.jpg, Ground fighting in

. File:Capoeira_de_Rua.jpg, Ground fighting in

Capoeira Capoeira () is an Afro-Brazilian martial art that combines elements of dance, acrobatics, music and spirituality. Born of the melting pot of enslaved Africans, Indigenous Brazilians and Portuguese influences at the beginning of the 16th cent ...

File:Lutte_sénégalaise_Bercy_2013_-_Mame_Balla-Pape_Mor_Lô_-_35.jpg, Ground fighting in Senegalese wrestling File:Grand_Prix_Paris_de_Sambo_2017_IMG_2301_(34121533944).jpg, Ground fighting in

File:Grand_Prix_Paris_de_Sambo_IMG_1980_(34575715540).jpg, Ground fighting in

File:Grand_Prix_Paris_de_Sambo_IMG_1962_(34963130265).jpg, Ground fighting in

Notes

References

* Løvstad, Jakob
The Mixed Martial Arts Primer
(PDF format) {{martial arts Martial art techniques

Striking on the ground

Gallery

See also

Notes

References