The Muaythai Clinch - Malaipet instructional DVD

[Torakaka]

I picked up this video recently as I've been trying to expand on my knowledge of the muaythai clinch (it's very difficult to find good instruction on clinching). This video is excellent as far as instructionals go. In the DVD there's a nice variety of techniques ranging from the basics of securing and breaking the clinch (with a few details I didn't know), defense, elbows, and (my favorite) throws/take downs from the clinch.

Each technique is broken down and very nicely described to give a clear idea of the fundamental details used. Everything is simple and understandable and can be easily applied with a partner, but there is a lot of good stuff in there that I think most muaythai practitioners would benefit from. I have a pretty solid clinch game (as it's one of my major strong points) and I found this video very helpful and informative.

I highly recommend this DVD to anyone looking to expand on their knowledge of the muaythai clinch.

[WhiteShark]

hmmmm Sounds promising you know I love the clinch game. What kind of throws did they cover?

[Torakaka]

hmmmm Sounds promising you know I love the clinch game. What kind of throws did they cover?

A bunch of different ones from a few different positions. Throw from head/neck clinch, a counter to knee strikes (take out supporting leg+dump), a couple throws as defense to head/neck clinch, a simple dump with hands on torso. I think there were about 7 different throws with different set ups. I've tried most (if not all) of them so far and they work great, though are all very situation/timing/surprise dependent.

[Conde Koma]

Amazon link, if anyone's interested:
Amazon.com: Muay Thai Clinch DVD with Malaipet: Movies & TV

Thanks Spatula, it's going on my wishlist.

[Neo Sigma]

Do they cover knees to the thighs? I've been playing around with those a lot lately and having decent success, but I'm sure there's more to know about them.

[Torakaka]

Do they cover knees to the thighs? I've been playing around with those a lot lately and having decent success, but I'm sure there's more to know about them.

Nah, there's nothing on kneeing the legs (besides kneeing the thigh as part of a takedown)

[alex]

kneeing the leg isnt really something you see much of in thai fighters. TBH when ive been kneed in the legs in fights it hasnt done shit and im not sure it scores much either.

YMMV

sounds like a good DVD i absolutely love the clinch, but i need to learn some more throwing techniques

[Torakaka]

Yeah muaythai throws are the whole reason I was interested in this video as it's been one of the biggest things I've wanted to learn and never really have. The throws in this video are great, and learning the fundamentals of a few different throws makes it much easier to figure out other throws on your own.

[Sang]

Don't have enough time to go through the clinch part of it yet but finding the dvd interesting so far.

Have any of you had success checking low kicks like that? I've always been taught to keep the leg's angle to 90 degrees. I could see Malaipet's version causing more damage to their shin.

And the headkick block shown after this is how you properly catch headkicks? I've always wondered how to do this without getting my head kicked off.

[Torakaka]

Don't have enough time to go through the clinch part of it yet but finding the dvd interesting so far.

Have any of you had success checking low kicks like that? I've always been taught to keep the leg's angle to 90 degrees. I could see Malaipet's version causing more damage to their shin.

I think I do this from time to time. When you're getting close and you want to engage right away it works well because you're not going so much force on force and you can just continue right into a combo rather than doing a hard block which halts your motion more dramatically. I don't think it jacks up their shin particularly more than a stiff leg check since you're just letting the kick slide down your leg rather than solidly blocking it. Unless I'm totally misunderstanding what he's doing, the leg is just loose and the kick slides down your knee so you can continue your forward motion.

And the headkick block shown after this is how you properly catch headkicks? I've always wondered how to do this without getting my head kicked off.

I've always just caught high kicks with my head lol.

[Cannon_6]

I've seen the "defend against a low kick" part of the video Sang is referring to. I think the intent there is simply to check the kick with your knee by lifting and folding your leg slightly. At my gym we call it a "lazy block", but it's very effective... it hurts your opponent far more than it hurts you.

During sparring we don't usually follow it up with a knee, however. The standard followup is "Sorry -- you OK?"

[Sang]

There is definitely some good stuff on this dvd. I feel a bit sad watching it because it makes me realize that i know fuck all about the Thai clinch, which is in essence the defining aspect of Muay Thai. I also find it pretty humorous that I've won half my matches in the clinch even with my ineptitude.

I'm going pick two techniques from this dvd to master in sparring each month combined with some drilling with my gf. I'm not sure how well i'm going to be able to perform some of them though, especially the ones where he hooks his leg under their knee. A lot of the moves are very dependent on timing too, but that's just like the rest of the striking game.

[Khun Kao]

Malaipet's clinch dvd is one of the most informative Muay Thai instructionals on the market. I knew pretty much all of those techniques before watching the video, however Malaipet uses a number of variations that I hadn't tried. I've adopted a couple of his variations and in other cases prefer the variations I already knew.

For me, the key thing to take away from the techniques is the footwork! That is the KEY to getting the clinch right. When I coach my fighters in the clinch, I emphasize using technique and leverage rather than strength, so proper positioning and footwork is critical!

My only "critique" of this DVD is in how its structured. I love how they demonstrated and described each technique, but there was no progression from simple to more complicated. Basically it came across like a random sampling of techniques rather than start from the bare-bones basics and progress from basic to advanced level stuff. That "complaint" is meant to be very mild, though, because it is easily the most informative and best produced MT instructional on the market, IMHO.

[..n..]

I have this DVD and It's very good. I've heard a little hype about this one: http://www.budovideos.com/shop/custo...roductid=30096 . I wish it wasn't so expensive but may pick it up if the reviews are good.

[Sang]

I've had a bit of time to play around with these techniques now. Some of the throws are brilliant, I've landed the 'offensive head control throw #1' on pretty much everyone in the gym.

I am having some trouble getting a few of his grappling techniques with gloves on though, snaking an arm in with 16 ounce gloves on is infinitely harder than gloveless. I'm trying to convince my sparring partners to use 12 ounce gloves in grappling training but most of them only own one set.

My clinch work has already improved so much just from watching the footwork and leverage in his basic pulldown and side pulldown. I already used these but for some reason i never realized that the step was vital to utilizing the leverage, I've been trying to pull people's heads down with just my arm strength.