!

7 Killer Knockout Combos For Muay Thai

Who doesnt want to finish a fight with a sick knockout? Personally speaking, when I
finish a fight with a KO I feel much more badass and satisfied since I didnt leave it in
the hands of the judges. The following 7 killer combinations will do some serious
damage and put your opponent to sleep. !

!
!

#1. Jab - Overhand right - Left Hook

This is #1 because its my bread and

butter combo. Although it seems
ordinary and relatively basic, if thrown
with enough technique, fluidity, and
power, you can put some real fear into
your opponent even if you dont
connect 100% with it. !

Starting off the combination with a jab

is a great way to gauge your
opponents reaction and see how they
defend it. Do they parry it? Or do they
slip to the side? Take note of what your
opponent does so you can more
accurately time and land your
overhand right. However, be sure not
to follow every jab with an overhand
right because then it will be easy for
your opponent to see it coming. Make
sure to mix up with different angles and strikes following the jab (uppercuts, low kicks,
straights, etc.) before committing to throwing a hard overhand.!

Once youve got your opponent thinking about your other strikes that come off your jab,
now its time to commit to the overhand and try to land it directly on their chin. A crucial
aspect of landing this punch is not overthrowing it with 100% force. Obviously you want
to throw it hard, but you dont want to telegraph it, miss it, and gas yourself out. Keep it
short, tight, and powerful if you want to connect. Heres a tutorial on how I throw it.!

Now we all know that one punch knockouts are hard to come by, so after landing a hard
strike (your overhand in this case) youll want to follow up with another powerful punch
to put your opponent down. A solid punch to follow up with is the left hook since your
body is positioned for optimal torque to deliver maximum amount of force. Again, keep
your hook relatively short, tight and powerful!!

To see my go-to knockout combination in action, click here to check out one of my fight
videos from Thailand. At about 1:55 youll see me throw a lazy jab to the body and
follow up with a hard overhand right. I neglected to follow up with a hook so it didnt put
him down, but it gave him a taste of my power and opened up opportunities for knees
and other strikes. After missing an attempted head kick at 4:15, I tried my favorite
combination again. This time it landed flush and rocked my opponent hard. Although I
didnt knock him out, it allowed me to follow up with more strikes and eventually put him
away!!

!!
!

#2. Hook - Hook - Low Kick

This short and simple combination does some major damage and can very easily put
your opponent on the ground cringing in pain.!

If you throw the hook to either the body or the head with proper technique and enough
power, it can easily wobble your opponent. Another key factor in this combination
working so well is that when you throw the hook it shifts your opponents weight on his/
her lead leg, where you have the perfect opportunity to throw a powerful low kick.!

One of the best fighters ever to throw this combination is K-1 legend, Ernesto Hoost.
Watch this video by Lawrence Kenshin for a complete breakdown on how to use this
combination effectively next time you spar or step into the ring!!

!
!
!

#3. Rear teep fake - Walk Through Right hook - knee

Knees to the body suck! I took one the

other day while clinching with my Thai
trainer Man and he made me curl up into
fetal position and throw up my guts.
Needless to say, if you can land a hard
knee to your opponents body you can
definitely put them down for the count.!

Of course, its much easier than done to

land a hard knee to the body and thats why
setting it up with other strikes is essential.
One way to do this is to throw a lot of front
kicks (especially the rear teep for this
combo) to pepper their body and get them
thinking that whenever you bring your knee
up it will most likely be a front kick. !
Once you get your opponent thinking about

the rear teep then you can use it to your advantage to gain ground and get within
kneeing range. But wait, since youve been throwing the teep, isnt your opponent going
to protect their body? Yes, most likely. But, this is where the right hook comes into play!
As you step forward off your fake rear teep, you can very easily follow through with an
overhand right or hook. The point of this punch is to get your opponents hands up away
from their body, which leaves it open for the knee strike. If you land the punch, thats
even better!!

Now that your opponent has his guard up to protect from the punch, it leaves his body
open for a brutal straight knee. Ive landed this in a few of my fights and although it
doesnt necessarily always put my opponent down, it does noticeably hurt them and get
them backing up. Watch it in action here (go to 16:20)!

!
!
#4. Clinch - release - high kick
!
We cant forget about the clinch! !
!
There are numerous ways
to do damage inside the
clinch, but one of the best
ways to catch your
opponent off guard is
when you disengage from
the clinch. The split
second after you push off
to escape is a prime
opportunity to land
something when your
opponent is in the middle
of getting reset and often
has a relatively low guard.!

Buakaw is a perfect
example of using this technique since he has used it both in Muay Thai and K-1 fights.
He utilizes the clinch to disrupt his opponents punches and to land a few shots himself,
but as soon as he decides to disengage hell make sure to throw a strike (most often a
head kick) to try and catch his opponent sleeping.!

In this video youll see GLORY fighter Brian The Lion Collette land a brutal head kick
off the clinch. If you want to understand the nuances of the high kick off the clinch, then
this video breakdown by Lawrence Kenshin does an amazing job at explaining
Buakaws clinch disengaging techniques.!

!!

#5. Counter elbow

Okay, so I know this isnt so much a combination as it is just a badass technique, but
either way it can lead to some of the most devastating knockouts youll ever see. !

It is very common for fighters to get overzealous throwing hand combinations that leave
them open for elbow counters. Youll also see plenty of fighters throw kicks without
returning to a proper guard. Both of these situations during a fight allow perfect
opportunities for a short, powerful, counter elbow.!

If you learn how to throw short, sharp elbows it can really mess up your opponent!!

!
!

#6. Jab - Cross - Hook to body - High Kick

This is another relatively basic combination that can lead to some sick knockouts if
timed correctly and thrown with proper techniques. !

The two straight punches (the jab and cross) are a set-up so you are able to land the
body hook to the liver. Once your opponents guard is up due to the straight punches,
youll have the opening to throw the body hook. Your opponent will have to either lower
his guard to block the hook or curl over due to the power and accuracy of your punch.
Whatever your opponent does, it will leave their head open and vulnerable.!

Heres a quick breakdown on how to throw this combination properly and with solid
technique.!

!
!

7) Jab to body - spinning back elbow

Throwing a spinning back elbow is cool and all, but if you throw it wildly without any type
of set-up then you can expect to either miss or get countered with ease. If youve seen a
spinning elbow KO before, you should have noticed that whenever a person is able to
land a spinning elbow its usually because it comes off a miss or set-up strike.!

One of the simplest ways to set up the spinning back elbow is with a jab to the body.
This set-up strike works two ways. First, it gets your opponents guard down to deflect
the jab. Second, it gives you the opportunity for you to move your feet and set-up your
body properly for the spinning back elbow.!

To show you what I mean, check out this short tutorial by Kevin The Soul Assassin
Ross. To see it in action, check out this awesome knockout.!

!
!
!

Final Words

These are just a few of my favorite combinations that I have either personally used in
my fights or I have seen successfully used by other fighters in the ring. Make sure to
keep an open mind and work around your strengths to figure out what combination will
help you KO your opponent!!

Lastly, dont get carried away just working on one specific combination. Although you
will most likely find a couple combos that work best for you, its still super important to
have a diversity of strikes to keep your opponent guessing and to capitalize on your
opponents openings. If you keep going back to the well with the same combination,
your opponent will see it coming miles away and be able to counter with his own killer
combination!!

Keep learning, keep improving, keep training and one day, youll be the owner of a sick
knockout!