Attacking Strategies To Counter The Jab By Firas Zahabi
The most common attack in the fight game is the jab, an athlete that can utilise a fast and accurate jab can be extremely hard to beat. As a counter striker you need to develop ways to defend and counter the jab, often fighters will just keep their hands up and back away from the attack.
Staying focused inside the ring or cage is crucial, so when you attempt any kind of counter strike you must keep your head protected. Keeping your hands up and staying ready to parry or block punches is very important. You can use many tactics to counter your opponents attacks like slipping under punches, side stepping, blocking or even throwing counter punches or kicks.
In this video Firas Zahabi shows us a great way to counter the jab or the cross using a parry and a Teep kick at the same time. Using a parry in striking is an excellent way to catch your opponent off guard, you can always land strikes using a good parry. In this case Firas uses a Teep kick with his lead leg aimed at the rib cage.
Who Is Firas Zahabi?
Firas Zahabi is an MMA and grappling coach teaching out of Tristar gym in Montreal Canada, he is also a Black Belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu under John Danaher. Firas has previously won 2 Muay Thai titles and 2 gold medals in wrestling, he has worked with many MMA greats like George St Pierre, Denis Kang, Miguel Torres and Rory McDonald.
Check Out This Video Below On Countering The Jab With A Teep!
This video shows us the techniques involved in countering our opponents jab or cross. Always anticipate your opponent’s movements, set yourself up by staying guarded and being ready to identify the danger. Using the parry as a way to set up the Teep kick, is an important tool in being successful with this technique inside the cage.
Countering The Jab!
The first thing you need to do is keep your hands up in a guarded position, so they are protecting your head. Anticipate your opponent’s jab and as they come in with one, parry their jab with your rear hand, at the same time throw your teep kick off your lead leg and aim for your opponent’s ribs. Make sure to use your toes as a spike and really poke into their ribs, this will cause your opponent a lot of discomfort.
Countering The Cross!
When your opponent throws a cross the only thing that changes is your parry, you still need to meet the cross. Firas explains his long guard which is his way of meeting his opponent’s cross before it gains momentum. It’s a lot like the parry except you just reach out further to meet the cross, then you throw your Teep kick with the lead leg.
A couple of pointers to remember are, firstly when you throw your Teep kick you always keep your guard up. Your Teep kick could slip off their abdomen and if you're not guarded you could suffer some brutal counter strikes. Another good point to remember is don’t pull down too heavy on your parry, just a tap and then attack with your teep kick.
The Teep Kick!
A Teep kick can be executed off the lead leg or the rear leg, In this technique Firas uses his lead leg. Using the lead leg to Teep kick is a faster way compared to the rear leg Teep kick, which takes longer for you to lift your leg and then propel it forward. It is a good idea to wait until your opponent closes in on your range to throw your Teep, so you can land it effectively without overreaching. As you develop this technique you will find that you can hop in and then throw the lead Teep kick, this is a good way to land the strike by initiating attack instead of waiting to counter attack.
Now you have an understanding of this jab counter so get to the gym and work on these principles with your sparring partners, and you will develop the flow of utilising this parry/long guard to Teep kick technique brought to you by Firas Zahabi and Dynamic Striking!
Learn More From Firas Zahabi On His Striking Combinations!
If you enjoyed learning Firas Zahabi’s Teep kick scenario and you want to improve your knowledge, then check out his instructional series Core Striking Combinations and Tricky Attacks by Firas Zahabi Available exclusively on Dynamic Striking!