Five Categories of Muay Thai Punches
1. The Jab
2. The Straight Punch
3. The Swing
4. The Uppercut
5. The Hook
The Jab
The jab is used to irritate the opponent or to find the range. Accurate and skilful jabbing will cause a lot of anxiety for the opponent. To throw this kind of punch accurately, one has to practice on the punching bag. The jab could be used in the attack, defence, or retreat.
The Straight Punch
In Muay Thai, we use straight punch mainly to attack oponent's facial area such as chin, nose and mouth. To increase the effectiveness of the punch, use the knuckle to attack the opponent as well as twisting the shoulders.
This kind of punch always use after the jab. Normally, the jab is punch thrown to find the range, so it would be followed by the straight punch which is widely known as the one-two punch.
The Swing
Generally, the swing is thrown at a futher distance than the one covered by the hook. The favourite targets of the swing are around the jaw line or as low as the ribs. This punch could be thrown when there is a gap on the opponent's body or face. When the punch hits the target, make sure that the knuckles bear the brunt of the impact.
The Uppercut
The uppercut punches mainly target to attack chin and stomach. When do the uppercut you should bend the knee and the elbow a bit, then make a ounch vertically to attack opponent. Uppercut will be used effectively when opponent is very close or when they are stooping, but sometimes, it is also possible to attack by knee kick instead of uppercut.
The Hook
Hook mainly used to attack side facial area such temple nose and ear. To do the hook you need to bending elbow a bit, then using the back of the nuckle to attack. To increase the effectiveness of the hook, use the same technique as do the straight punch by twisting the shoulders.
