No Holds Barred Fighting: Takedowns: Throws, Trips, Drops and Slams for NHB Competition and Street Defense (Paperback)

by Mark Hatmaker (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

This fourth No Holds Barred Fighting training manual contains all fighters need to know about the art of takedowns, or "shooting," and how to counter takedown tactics used by an opponent. Readers learn to see it from both sides with offensive and defensive stances, footwork, setups, and shooting techniques. Several variations of the most commonly employed shots are featured—double leg takedowns, single leg takedowns, snatch singles, and low singles—as well as counters for each. Hundreds of sequential photos illustrate the steps, grips, and angles of every move, and takedowns are included for use inside the inevitable clinch. Sections on drills and chains, as well as a list of resources for further practice, round out the text.

About the Author

Mark Hatmaker is the author of Boxing Mastery, More No Holds Barred Fighting: Killer Submissions, No Holds Barred Fighting, and No Holds Barred Fighting: Savage Strikes. He has extensive experience in the combat arts, including boxing, wrestling, and jiu-jitsu, and is a highly regarded coach of professional and amateur fighters, law enforcement officials, and security personnel. He is the founder of Extreme Self Protection (ESP), a research body that compiles, analyzes, and teaches the most effective western combat methods known. He lives in Knoxville, Tennessee.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Tracks Publishing; illustrated edition edition (November 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1884654258
• ISBN-13: 978-1884654251
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #105,680 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good basic book for boxers but weak for grapplers , March 22, 2006

By	Dave (AZ) - See all my reviews

I like Hatmaker and enjoy his easy writing style and ability to simplify fighting concepts. This book is a nice catalog of takedowns for someone who is used to stand up fights and wants to learn how to take his opponent to the mat. Boxer, kick boxers and karate grounded guys can see a wide range of techniques.
Wrestlers and soft martial arts guys, judo and jujitsu, may pick up a technique here and there, but most of the book really misses this group. The philosophy for a lot of the set ups for the takedown techniques seemed based on a sparring or jabbing model. The opponent's balance is disturbed by a sudden jab like push, pull or grab of some kind which is then abandoned so you can follow up with usually a double leg takedown -- though many other takedowns are considered later in the book. The problem I have with this model is that it won't work with "sticky" opponents.
Unlike boxers who spar, soft martial arts guys often welcome an opponent's push, pull or grab as an opportunity. They hold on to attacking hand/limb while they they yield to momentum of the attacker and then redirect his attack to their advantage. It feels like your hand hit glue on a swinging door. These set ups calling for a jabbing attack can end up being used to off balance the attacker. Of course, if you limit yourself to inexperienced opponents or boxer type opponents, this shouldn't be a problem.
This book would benefit from something like a strategy section. While the subject is briefly addressed in choosing a stance, vertical versus bent over and wide base versus normal base, it is not discussed in how to deal with varied opponents. The author states such a book is in the planning, and I look forward to reading it. But with this book, clearly one shoe does not fit all feet. Most soft martial arts guys are going to be more vertical than lean in boxers and wrestlers. In the same vein, different takedowns will work for wide based stances than normal shoulder width apart stances -- square versus staggered foot stances. Tailoring the takedowns to different opponents seems just as important as selecting your own stance.
Two specific weaknesses: Nothing was said about learning how to fall safely. A few pages would have gone a long way to insure guys without any background in landing on their backs from a standing position not get hurt. Most guys do something stupid like reaching back while falling and risk injuring the joints of their arms or cracking their necks (chin to chest when going down.) Second, some of the less used takedowns shown in the book are clearly not neck friendly and inexperienced guys should be very careful with them if they are going directly from the book to their backyad with a hapless buddy.
Good book for non grapplers who want to see what takedowns look like. But expect that quite a bit of fine tuning will be necessary for the techniques to actually work.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars He's done it again!, December 25, 2005

By	Joseph M Burtner (Kennesaw, Georgia) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

In his fourth book in the "No Holds Barred" series, Mark Hatmaker as tackled (pun intended) the subject of takedowns. He designs this book to introduce novices to takedowns and takedown counters, and also to fine-tune some principles for more experienced players.

The introduction covers the need for a strong takedown strategy in the NHB game, the principle of being a "sharpshooter", why certain techniques were chosen for this book, and the role of the clinch in relation to the shots that are shown.

Chapter one is on the proper distance from which a fighter can shoot, and ways to gage that distance specific to the NHB game. This chapter, most importantly, covers when and when not to go for a takedown. Chapter two covers the bare basics of takedowns: the stance (including a modified one for NHB players). He includes the centerline principle, and why one will be more efficient for "thinking like a sprinter" before moving on to chapter three. Three is on shooting footwork, and Mark beggins with the five essential rules for a shooter, after which he includes some drills for improving footwork from the basic stance. He also discusses and demonstrates the penetration step commonly seen in modern wrestling, as well as discussing how it contrasts with the leg dive, and which one he prefers. Chapter four demonstrates the old-school leg dive, which focuses on upper-body movement; included are examples of it's use and a drill that you can use to train your body for it. The next chapter is on various grips and handles, and why some should be avoided. After that is a chapter on various set-ups, which are normally ignored by most authors. This chapter alone has added to my understanding of the takedown game. He even shows how to combine various set-ups.

Chapter seven starts us on our takedowns; we start with the double-leg. Being the bread-and-butter takedown for most people, Mark only devotes three pages to the takedown itself, but much to my (pleased) surprise, takes up 50 PAGES with double-leg counters! Many of the counters end in a submission, which is great for both sub wrestling and MMA. Next, he goes a similar route with the single-leg, showing some very basic but essential variations of it before compiling a long list of counters, including several subs. Chapters 9 and 9.1 (low singles and counters) is a total of ten pages long, but nice, since the takedown isn't seen much in US MMA as opposed to Japan. In the last four chapters, we finish with tie ups, as Mark covers arm-drag takedowns and counters, and collar-and-elbow takedowns and counters.

This is a great book for those interested in non-gi submission wrestling or takedowns for MMA. Throughout the text, Mark offers concise advice on his takedowns, the underlying principles behind them, and how it all relates to the all-in fight game. I can't recomend this book enough, and I look forward to his book on the clinch.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another excellent book in this series., January 13, 2006

By	Ian Rafferty (Nashua, NH) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Hatmaker writes some of the best MMA books out there. His explanations for movement are very good and the photos are extensive. His blend of "old school" wrestling technique and objective viewpoints on modern training techniques are exceptional.

As a note toward one of the other reviews: he clearly states that clinch-based takedowns will be covered in the next volume.

An overall excellent book, consistent with the standard set throughout this series.