Combat Strategy of Jujitsu - Wrestling in Naperville, Aurora, Schaumburg, Merriville IN

The classical jujitsu of old Japan appeared to have no common strategy to guide a combatant over the course of a fight. Indeed, this was one of Kanos' most fundamental and preceptive criticisms of the classical program. The lack of strategy many have been because classical empty-hand jujitsu was considered a last resort when a warrior had lost his weapon, rather than an independent fighting style. Even Kano's radical changes did not involve a clear statement of a grand combat strategy. The principal strategic element he empathized was the notion of kuzushi, keeping an opponent off balance so that he could be easily controlled and thrown. Along with kuzushi, he added notions such as "minimum effort, maximum effect," and various other interpretation of ju. However, this is far from a complete and specific fight strategy.

Only with the rise of Fusen-ryu jujitsu, and the first era of jujitsu challenge matches with Tani and Maeda, does a clear fight strategy emerge among jujitsu fighters. This strategy was perfected over time by the Gracies, and it rose to prominence in contemporary MMA events. This strategy has town main elements. First, there is the overall strategy. We have seen that the overall strategy is based on the notion of single combat being divided into three phases, each of which has a set of skills that area independent of each other, which means that a fighter can be good in one phase but poor in the other two. Mataemon Tanabe was the first to show that by taking a highly skilled opponent out of his favored was the first to show that by taking a highly skilled opponent out of his favored phase and into a phase where he was less killed, he could be easily defeated. Tani, Maeda adn the Gracies adopted this overall strategy and added to it over time. Maeda applied it in the case of MMA fighting, and Tanabe applied it only in the submission grappling tournaments.

The Gracies added a tactical strategy of positional dominance to this overall strategy of phases of combat. It is the second strategic element on modern grappling jujitsu, and it has been an essential part of the dominance of modern jujitsu in contemporary MMA. It ahas been so successful that it is now the standard modus operandi for all fighters in MMA events when a fight goes to the ground. The central theme here is to attain a position from where you can attack your opponent while his ability to counter is severely undermined. This execution can be done while in a standing clinch, but it is easier on the ground-hence the preference that most contemporary jujitsu fighters have for ground grappling.

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