The 5 Angles of attack.

[jukado1]

I would like to throw out some thoughts on the "5 angles of attack," And explain some of the values of its use. The value of the 5 angles is to help find a method of successfully hitting a resisting opponent,  Many times if we attempt to hit an opponent with our best technique, Lets say a back fist and it fails we blame the technique, And on our next attack we may use what we feel is a secondary technique that we may not be as comfortable with. This is where the angles of attack come in, Instead of changing the technique, I would change the angle of attack/footwork to make the technique work.
  First lets cover the 4 types of opponents based on their defensive footwork,
)1st. A jammer, A fighter who when attacked's first thought is to drive in and try to hit you BEFORE you hit them, Think of a joe Frasier type. 

)2nd. A blocker, A blocker will try to move just slightly back, Set and counter, They will let you throw your attack and then block it.

)3rd. A runner, Someone who as soon as you move will attempt to get the heck out of dodge.

)4th. An evasive runner, Think of a young Cassius Clay/Muhammad Ali.

To be continued

[jukado1]

Next we have the 5 angles of attack.

)1st. First the direct attack,  As quickly and explosively hit you opponent with a initial attack, And while you DON'T stop there thats all were concerned about for this subject.
 And while nobody but me cares my favorites and back fist/front hand strike and lead leg sidekick.

)2nd.  Next the indirect attack, An indirect attack is using a fake attack to gain time and distance,  As an example, Faking a step in back fist to get my opponent to back up and lean slightly away, And while he's reacting to the fake I throw my lead leg sidekick, Or use a hip fake and follow up with a back fist. These are just examples, the combo could just as easily be a hip fake a side kick and follow up with a round kick to the head.

)3rd.  Combination attack, Throwing one direct angle attack followed by a second, IE, A straight blast, Or just a basic punch followed by a kick, And so on.

)4th.  Obstruction attack, Any attack where you first attempt to impede your opponents mobility before striking them, You could use a foot sweep to unbalance them or use a grabbing or hand trap to slow down their response time.

)5th.  Broken rhythm. Starting an explosive attack and in the middle of your attack slowing down enough so the opponent thinks your not serious in your attack, But as they start to slow down as they are thinking your not serious, You RE EXPLODE, Changing the time/essence/beat of the attack.

[jukado1]

Now the fun part.  How can this relate to what we are trying to accomplish,  Certain methods of attack work more effectively against some types of defensive fighters,

Against a jammer you can effectively use a direct attack, Or an obstruction attack,  But you may find that on a indirect or combination  attack you may find yourself getting hit before you can throw your real attack, As far as a broken rhythm, While if very well done it could work it is an iffy attack against this type of fighter.

Against a blocker any of the angles of attack can work,

Against a runner, Direct, Obstruction, And combination attacks work well. But indirect or broken rhythm usually wont work as your opponent will be two blocks away on your first move.

Against an evasive mover, My suggestion would be a shotgun.

[MartialDirect.com]

Against an evasive mover, My suggestion would be a shotgun.

I take it this is your least favorite opponent?  

Against a jammer you can effectively use a direct attack, Or an obstruction attack,  But you may find that on a indirect or combination  attack you may find yourself getting hit before you can throw your real attack, As far as a broken rhythm, While if very well done it could work it is an iffy attack against this type of fighter.

I would think that the direct attack would not be the way to go. That's what the jammer is waiting on, isn't it? Obstruction attack I can see.

I'm not sure where it would be categorized in your 5 ways. I guess it could be a combination of Indirect Attack & Broken Rhythm. But I favor getting him to commit by use of fakes & feints and then counter. Jammers tend to attack on any offensive move you make. Strategic use of fakes and feints coupled with broken rhythm can set him up. Be ready for him to commit and then counter. Of course distance is key here.


These are all from Joe Lewis, correct? They seem to be a modification of Bruce Lee's 5 Ways of Attack.

Bruce Lee
Single Direct Attack
Attack by Combination
Attack by Drawing
Progressive Indirect Attack
Hand Immobilization

Joe Lewis
Direct Attack
Indirect Attack
Combination Attack
Obstruction Attack
Broken Rhythm


Why do you think Joe Lewis changed them? Maybe it was easier for him to apply them in his modified form? Or were these his creation independent of Bruce Lee?

[jukado1]

MD, This is what "I" learned from Joe Lewis, And since this was in the mid 70's I can't guarantee that I learned it right, This is MY understanding and way of doing,  For short I'm NOT speaking for Joe, As for what Joe called his work as compared to what Bruce called his, I found that Joe's wording was simpler and less cumbersome, Remember, Bruce was trying to make his work sound more intellectual, Plus if I remember the time line, Bruce and Joe had fallen out, And Bruce had died and EVERYBODY was shouting that they were teaching what Bruce did, Joe, Out of respect for Bruce did not run around shouting Bruce Lee, Only after he had shown me some things did he say that these were things that he had picked up from Bruce, He always gave Bruce credit, As he did with his other instructors, As far as fighting a jammier, When ever your fighting/sparring an opponent you should b using set point control, Movement, And independent motion, Once a fight has started I believe in being very nervous, Not trying to stand Shotokan still, But Joe was quick enough to stand about 7 feet away and still hit me before I could even start to move my hand to block, And once upon a time, When I still had legs that worked, I could still hit Meany opponents before they could jam me.

[MartialDirect.com]

I appreciate you sharing what you learned, Bob. I've only met Joe Lewis once. It was a 3 day JKD event. I remember him being very explosive and he looked real mean when he put all his sparring gear on!   

He was very cool with all the guys he sparred. You could see he was just playing with everyone. He would turn it up a small bit if he saw you could take it.

Joe was one of the main reasons I went to the seminar.

As to the Direct Attack against a Jammer, yes I can see that as a valid attack if you can beat him to the punch.