Fight like Sagat from Street Fighter: 90/10 “Traditional Muay Thai Stance”

Have you heard of the Street Fighter character Sagat, created based on the real legendary Muay Thai fighter Sagat Petchyindee? If you are reading this, you probably have.

Since then, many movies and video games have portrayed the following fighting stance as the “Traditional Muay Thai Stance”: 60/40 or even 90/10 (having most of the body weight on the back foot and tapping the lead foot up and down).

Remember, in Muay Thai, there is more than one fighting stance, and they all have their pros and cons. I have gone over them in our blog post: 5 Key Muay Thai Stances - “Not one is Better than Another”.

In this blog post, we will cover the advantages and disadvantages of this 90/10 "Traditional Muay Thai Stance".

The Stance

Let's get heavy on the back foot about (60% - 90%) and light on the front foot (40% - 10%). As shown in the diagram below. This stance is very short and leaves the front foot on the ball of the foot. Fighters would usually tap the foot up and down to get into rhythm.

Front Leg Unleashed!

The beauty of this stance comes from the utility of the front leg. That is not to say the back leg is not useful; it simply means that the front leg is easier to pick up and use for one of a Muay Thai practitioner's favorite weapons: the teep! 

The teep is much easier to fire off from a shorter stance, especially the lead teep. This weapon can really open up a fighter’s game by keeping the opponent far at bay while helping the fighter measure the distance. 

In many ways, the lead teep acts just like a jab, but for your legs! Although, most of the time, this technique is used defensively, it can also be used offensively. Common techniques from this stance are:

• Lead Teep Fakes (to set up knees, punches, elbows, and kicks)
• Lead Teep Push - creates space and keeps opponent away
• Leg and Hip Teeps - to stop opponent’s attacks and movement

Better Defense Against Round Kicks

Roundhouse kicks score very high in Muay Thai, especially to the body. It is a powerful weapon that can break arms and ribs. In a traditional Muay Thai fight, you will see fighters smash their shin bones on each other to inflict damage and to score points. A shorter stance allows the fighter to be able to bring their knees up to their chest much faster than any other stance to block incoming body kicks. 

Try out the drill: MARCHING BLOCKS. Block with one leg and then the other continuously. You will notice you naturally start to shift to a very short stance.

THE CONS

• This weight distribution “MAY” leave the open side of the fighter more vulnerable….

The Rear leg becomes heavier, and hence, harder to pick up in time to block body kicks on this side. You will see many fighters cross-blocking with their front lead to cover that open side.

• Power arm is locked…. 

I do not mean to say fighters from this stance can’t throw powerful punches. It simply means a bigger shift has to be done to be able to pivot the back foot and get into a wider stance that gives power punches…..well……their POWER. 

EVERY SPLIT SECOND IN A FIGHT IS VALUABLE. A 0.5 OF A SECOND DURING A WEIGHT DISTRIBUTION SHIFT CAN MAKE A HUGE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GETTING HIT OR NOT. HENCE, LEARNING HOW EACH STANCE CAN MAKE CERTAIN TECHNIQUES FASTER TO ACCESS IS ESSENTIAL.

• May be harder to lean back from attacks…. 

If a fighter is on the back foot, they can only lean back so much to avoid an attack. Especially during an incoming combo, for instance: double jab, cross. If the fighter is against the ropes, this can be very dangerous. In this situation, you may often see fighters slip incoming attacks while coming forward and entering the clinch to get to a safer zone.

Now that you know more about this particular “Traditional Muay Thai Stance”, try it out in your next training session.

Hope you enjoyed this blog post!

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