I have only fairly recently learned how to do a Muay Thai style round kick, so bare with me here.

After spending a lot of time in my Saturday class practicing roundkicks against kicking shields, I realized something. I don't really know how to use a round kick like that in a combo. I can throw push kicks and side kicks left and right like crazy, but I've been doing those for years. And every time I have done the MT style round kick it has been a step in and slightly over to the side before twisting the hips to launch the kick.

That doesn't really seem to flow so well from some like a jab cross because there's the step in time where you're just asking to be hit. It seems like something like that would be a great counter, or distance closer, and a possible KO hit if the guy is staggering, but not really at the end (unless on the run) or middle of a combo.

So is the round kick really used in combos, is a modified version of the kick used with a smaller step, or no step? I've already tried searching through the old threads and saw no mention.

Watch Ernesto Hoost's sherdog highlight reel. Flurry high, then throw your hardest low kick when they bring their hands up.

Where in NY do you train? Anyways, the round kick you are doing can be modified or adapted to fit into many different things.

To flow from lets say a left jab to a right round kick, you wouldn't need the outward step with the left foot as much. Reason being, a good jab that uses proper hip/shoulder etc. rotation should have your body, how should I say, wound up and it should give you most of the torque that otherwise would have been gained from the step. Very hard to explain, very easy to show.

For a left leg kick: step as you jab and kick as the jab is coming back.

For a right leg kick: jab-cross and step as you cross and kick as the cross is coming back.

Edit: if you were taught to throw the arm back when you kick then the combo becomes:

jab-left round-left hook

or

jab-cross-right round-right hook

They are simple "predictable" combos that nevertheless work a LOT of the time.

Kick the body first to get used to using it in combos.

Then do this.
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Originally posted by WhiteShark
Then do this.
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The drop your gaurd and hope he backs up straight without a counter technique. (I've used it before and I also tried the back up straight a few times.) It works in the movies.

Gyp,

Where did you learn t3h deadly muay thai round kick? You did not see anyone throwing combos there?

In general, if you are a perfect badass any punch or kick can be thrown after any other punch or kick.

That being said there a certain combos that may 'feel' natural to you, while others will feel shitty.

To start with any time you throw a left kick or punch, try to follow with a right and vice versa. I think this is easier for most people because one attack helps load up the other.

You should also practice following the right with a right. This doubling up usually feels awkward and therefore less powerful at first.

People make lists of combos to work out with, they shouldn't be hard to find with the smallest effort if that is what you really want.

Interestingly, Whiteshark is doing the second of the combos I described but just with an extra jab-dross at the beggining.

I posted: jab-cross-kick

WhiteShark: jab-cross-jab-cross-kick

It looks more like left - right - left/stutter step - kick

The right hand comes forward again, but it doesn't come out into a punch (unless the animation is missing some frames).

It's hard to compress an animation from video enough to use for an avatar.

It's actually: Left - Right - Left hook - Kick

Although I shouldn't do it I dropped my hands because we weren't punching to the face. (Knockdown Karate Rules)

Originally posted by WhiteShark

Although I shouldn't do it I dropped my hands because we weren't punching to the face. (Knockdown Karate Rules)

the exchange make more sense then (except for the part with circular aikido footwork, doh)

Originally posted by Little Idea
the exchange make more sense then (except for the part with circular aikido footwork, doh)

?circular Aikido footwork? Are you serious? I'm not offended just genuinely curious what you thought was circular or Aikido?

****...I can see the hook now that you mention it. It's not even to the head. It's a body shot. Nice. high high low high.

I take it back. I was seeing what I wanted too.

There's a bunch of low punches there. How'd you keep him on the run like that. I'd never dream of throwing that many low punches. I feel INTENSE pressure to keep throwing the odd shot of high to make sure he stays on defense.

Again I couldn't punch high because we were sparring Knockdown Karate rules. Which includes no punches to the face. Also TNK had been sparring all day and was very tired by the time this video was taken. However it was planned, I noticed that he was turning away and dropping his hands from my hook to the body so I used it to set up the head kick.

Also I drill that combo day in and day out. I could probably throw it in my sleep.

my only experience is with point sparring and Japanese KO rules, but generally I'd like to set it up first by throwing a lot of combos to the leg first, so left jab, straight right, low right round kick, then after you get your opponent to start dropping his hands to defend the low kick you bring it high to the head, I believe this is what WS did to me and it works pretty good

Omar, I'm backing up because I thought he was either going to throw a side kick to my gut or low right round kick which is why I was stuttering back with my left leg back

And so anybody knows..... the kick looks like it lands really good because it looks like he kicked my head really hard, but actually the head-whipping motion is me trying to get my head out of the way of the kick... not to detract because it hit me square on the forehead, but luckily he wasn't trying to kick my head off either

Thanks a lot for all the advice. It feels infinately more natural now. To answer a few questions at once: I train at the Great Neck Tiger Schulmann's. Say what you like, but it's the closest MMA place to me, and both the sensei and deshi have solid MMA records.

The reason that I didn't see any combos being done way because this was purely MT kicking pad work for most of that day. It might be arbitrary, but different days they just do different things.

I can't get great height on my round kicks just yet, maybe about my shoulder level, but that head kicking advice did help some on getting it up a few more inches today alone. Thanks a lot to everyone who posted, this has helped me immensley.