See the Tie-up, React, and Attack
9/13/2002
Ted Witulski/USA Wrestling
Wrestlers drill offensive shots. They shoot singles off a touch and go. They post an opponent’s arms and run through a double. They gain elbow control and hit a hi-c. We drill offense very well. But one important area that wrestlers and their coaches can easily overlook is tie-up recognition.
Wrestlers have to be prepared for anything the styles, stances and attacks that a wrestler must defend against are complex and varied. So, in the practice room it will often pay for coaches to have wrestlers drill out of a defensive position. Eventually a wrestler will face an offensive minded opponent, who has his favorite position he wants to be in. When this occurs it is important for a wrestler to be able to recognize the tie-up, react, and attack.
Getting wrestlers to make that quick identification and attack seamlessly off of a tie-up is an outstanding skill to teach in the wrestling room. Once wrestlers learn a base offense of a sweep single, double-leg and a hi-c then it is important for them to learn how to use these essential shots to attack quickly off of a tie-up. See the opponent’s tie-up, react, and attack.
The wrestling room at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, is constantly filled with elite wrestlers. The top wrestlers in the nation rarely take a day-off in their pursuit of wrestling perfection. Wrestlers are always steadily honing their skills and reaction time so that they can earn the number one spot on the national ladder and represent the United States in the next World Championships.
Most all of these elite wrestlers have a consistent drilling pattern that focuses on the skill of reacting to an opponent’s contact. As individuals get into their drilling that usually takes about forty-five minutes prior to the beginning of the hard part of practice, wrestlers pay close attention to the particulars of an opponent’s contact.
While there are many different ways that a wrestler can attack off of a defender’s tie-ups an elite athlete consistently drills one or two per position. Wrestlers that are attacked by an opponent under-hooking his left arm, will then on a daily basis practice base shots off that position.
One of the shots off of an under-hook might be to drop the under-hooked arm straight down reversing the palm and elbow into the under-hook. The turn of the arm in this manner lengthens the arm and blocks the under-hook. At the same time, this creates added weight and pressure on the under-hook. The defender of the under-hook will then step outside of the opponent’s stance and snatch a high-level single-leg.
Another way of shooting off an under-hook involves limping the under-hooked arm back into position. Wrestlers accomplish this by elevating the under-hooked arm straight above the attacking opponent. Once the arm is elevated they will turn their palm towards their own body and pull down, essentially jamming their arm back into position.
By limp-arming the under-hooked arm back into position the tie is cleared, and the wrestler should see an open shot. This type of maneuver can lead to a near side sweep single, or a hi-c to the opposite side. Regardless of the favored shot of the defender it is important that they consistently practice attacking or shooting on the opponent after clearing the under-hook.
The most often used tie-up technique in youth and high school wrestling is the head-tie. Learning to attack quickly off of a head-tie can really help a wrestler’s offensive potential. There is a wide-range of attacks that wrestlers can use to beat the contact created in a head-tie.
To learn reaction time wrestlers should pick their two base shots that they will use to defeat a head-tie. Commonly, wrestlers will shoot a hi-c to the nearside off of an opponent’s head-tie.
The near-side hi-c is shot by circling away from the reach of the head-tie. For example, if an opponent head-ties on a wrestler’s left side, the defending wrestler would circle to his right. The circle steps to the right would bring the opponent’s right leg forward. With the leg forward the shooting wrestlers grasps at the elbow of the head-tie and would push it to the outside. This motion creates the space for the hi-c to be shot.
Another common near side attack off of a head-tie is a shuck to a single-leg. USA Wrestling’s Coaches Education Program defines a shuck as a push of a control point across an opponent’s body. Using the example of a head-tie, the defender would grasp the elbow as the control point and push it across the opponent’s stance.
Shucking the elbow in front of the defender will bring the near leg forward much like circling away from it does. While the elbow is shucked the defender will circle step towards the opponent and shoot a single-leg.
Often in wrestling when an opponent gives up the corner of their stance they will attempt to flee forward. In these cases it is valuable for wrestlers to practice running down an opponent’s leg or even ankle. Typically “running down an opponent” will look less like a single leg and more like a chase.
Attacking off of a “Russian” Tie is also a valuable skill that wrestlers should consistently drill. Again, there are number of ways which wrestlers can shoot off of a Russian-tie. Two commonly practiced shots at the elite level are a swing single to the far side and a slap-back double.
Generally a key error that occurs in the grasping of a Russian tie is the momentary squaring of the stance of the wrestler. When an opponent pulls a Russian tie in often the defender will be able to use their free arm and the momentum created by the opponent to hit an open sweep single.
If a wrestler reaches with his left hand, then that arm is vulnerable to being controlled by the two on one or “Russian” tie. When the opponent pulls the 2 on-1 in as a tie-up, the wrestler should look to quickly shoot off of the tie.
To do this the wrestlers needs to take a sweeping outside penetration step away from the Russian. At the same time the wrestler shoots the hand of the arm that is being controlled down and away from the opponent.
A subtlety that can help develop the feel of this technique is to practice this off of the reach of the head-tie. The wrestler that will hit the shot will start with a head-tie on his partner. The partner will take the head-tie off by using a Russian. The 2 on 1 tie, of course will bring the shooter’s arm down. When the movement is created off of the Russian, the shooter will sweep to a single leg on the far side.
Developing quick reflexes to the pull of the tie-up can lead to open single legs on the opposite side. The faster a wrestler’s reflexes the better the chances are for getting the takedown.
The slap-back double again requires that a wrestler quickly un-leashes his attack after an opponent gains a 2 on 1 or Russian tie. Once a wrestler ties on the left arm the defender will use his free hand (right hand) to gain head position. To do this, utilize the slap-back technique. This is basically a shove or shuck of the opponent’s head back to the left directly over the Russian tie.
While the wrestler is “slapping-back” the opponent’s head, he should be positioning his left leg to split the opponent’s stance. As he moves his left leg into position he should change his level down and drop his hands. The slap back should open space for the shooting of the attacker’s head to the far hip (left hip) of the opponent. With hands dropping after the startling shove of the head and pre-positioning of the lead leg (left leg), a quick double leg tackle should be open.
By consistently practicing base shots off of an opponent’s tie-up wrestlers will gain muscle memory that will increase their reaction time. A wrestling match is a steady stream of thrusts and parries of offensive and defensive maneuvers. Wrestlers of course should know how to attack when they are in position to use offensive tie-ups but of equal importance is the ability to react off of an opponent’s tie.
Helping wrestlers break down an opponent’s tie-ups and the shots that can be “seen” after a quick tie-up counter is an important way to advance a wrestler’s technique. Many times wrestlers will be faced with under-hooks, head-ties, and 2 on 1 ties. Consistently practicing the counter-shots to these tie-ups will help wrestlers achieve a greater level of success.
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The National Coaches Education Program (NCEP) provides this article to help coaches advance their wrestlers technique. The NCEP encourages coaches to make an active commitment to the sport of wrestling by being a member of USA Wrestling, the National Governing Body for the sport of amateur wrestling in the United States.
Coaches can deepen their commitment to the sport by:
*Being members of USA Wrestling
*Achieving certification at the Copper or Bronze level
*Volunteering with their USA Wrestling state associations
*Hosting a Copper, Bronze, or Technique clinic at their school
*Organizing a USA Wrestling sanctioned club in their area
For more information on making a deeper commitment to the sport of wrestling contact Ted Witulski, NCEP Manager, by email at twitulski@usawrestling.org or call (719) 598-8181.