![]() ![]() Watching the movement in slow mo, you can almost imagine Cruz holding a red rag on the centre line. This then moves Cruz’s body off the centre line from whence the strike came and where the opponent will want to strike in retaliation. Importantly, at the same time as the weight shifts to the back foot it becomes the centre point for a pivot, as the front foot traces an inverted c shape. This shifts the weight onto the trailing foot which it at the other end of the ‘I’ In the dart, it is as if with the lead leg Cruz traces is drawing a lowercase ‘i ‘ he traces the line of the ‘i’ when moving forward to deliver the strike, the dot of the ‘i’ (known as tittle for all you trivia fans out there) represents the point at which the front foot plants to allow dominic to push off it and reverse his momentum. If you consider this from a birds eye view (which sometimes makes the consideration footwork patterns easier, trust me, try it) you can remember the footwork by thinking of the phrase “I see”, because the feet trace versions of the letters I and C. The footwork for this is almost gymnastic as it involves stepping forward with the lead leg to allow the punch, but then also pushing off that foot to switch weight into a backward motion to allow the escape. ![]() Instead, however the aptly named dart usually consists of a single harpoon like (and point scoring) shot that comes in before Cruise again disappears out of range. rushing forward as if into a Vitor Belfort style punching sprint across the ring (see his contest against Wanderli Silva if you don’t know what I mean by this). ![]() In the dart Dominick will use the lead right instead of the jab to strike through an opening in the opponent’s guard. Though of course with a talented Mma fighter ‘tagging’ you in the face it is somewhat less fun. The process literally being the same as a schoolboy might use during a game of tag to catch someone but be out of range to be tagged back. When slowed down and broken into steps this approach almost looks like it has its origins in the playground. In contrast to many fighters who tend to plant and swing with an emphasis on delivering maximum power in their strikes, or those who are willing punch through exchanges in order to gain an advantageous position for grappling or range, Cruz’s balletic maneuvering, fluidly transitioning from orthodox to southpaw and showing little regard for traditional notions of how to approach centreline or the pocket seemed dazzlingly fresh.īut what are the specifics? What techniques and tactics make Dominick Cruz’s footwork so admired within the sport, how does his footwork allow him to find answers to the questions set by his opponents and what are the approaches he shares with these boxing luminaries? Time, I think, for a closer look at his feet. Cruz’s impeccable footwork stands out even at the highest level of MMA competition because it is so unorthodox by comparison to the norm in the octagon, a characteristic he shares, along with a number of other tactics, with the boxers named above, all of whom were considered to have an eccentric or even reckless approaches in their day. ![]()
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