Martial Arts | Self Defense | Use of Force | Combat | Research and Training
This is a compilation of a few instances where Australian police disarm offenders using open-hand or minimal and less-lethal methods.
A couple of other arrests were thrown in for entertainment purposes – highly ranked police who were interrupted and performed arrests during press conferences.
Shocking vision has emerged of police trying to subdue a woman who was threatening drivers with a large knife in the middle of one of Australia’s busiest highways.
A 52-year-old woman will face court on Wednesday, charged over allegedly threatening drivers and causing traffic to come to a halt on the M1 Motorway near Taree.
At about 4pm on Tuesday (26 November 2024), emergency services were called to the motorway at Koorainghat following reports of a concern for welfare.
Police vehicles descended on the area with uniformed and plain clothes officers surrounding the woman in an attempt to subdue her and remove her from the roadway.
Officers attached to Manning/Great Lakes police district confronted the woman who was armed with the knife and threatening other drivers who were speeding by.
Police blocked the northbound lanes of the Pacific Highway and negotiated with the woman who allegedly threatened officers with the knife.
After calls for her to put the knife down and move away from the roadway, a taser was used to slow here progress toward officers as another can be seen tackling here from behind and pinning her to the ground in the middle of the motorway.
The knife was wrestled from her grasp as a group of police officers fought to subdue her and place her in restraints.
She was taken to Taree police station, where she was charged with attempt stalk/intimidate intend fear of harm (personal), common assault, possess or use a prohibited weapon without permit and use knife in public place – cause person to fear for safety.
The woman was refused bail to appear before Taree Local Court on Wednesday.
There is a lot of debate around the difference between “sport” and “street” fighting, and what effect things like eye gouges, biting and knives have, particularly when it comes to ground fighting. Too much of the discussion is based on theories and assumptions.
I think the martial arts community can learn a lot from the infamous Ukraine knife fight video:
First, the idea you should never take a fight to the ground. This discussion is usually oversimplified and misunderstood.
You take the fight to the ground when it is tactically appropriate, and you do everything possible to keep off the ground when it is appropriate. Saying NEVER is a brain dead response. It depends on the situation.
Neither man seemed to have a plan of ending up on the ground. The Ukranian was forced to close the distance because it was the only option left when he was caught without his own firearm. There was nowhere to run.
For a moment, it worked – he disarmed the Russian and was able to force him down, before the Russian drew a knife.
In my opinion, the Ukrainian appears to have fixated on taking possession of the knife at this point, and conceded top position to get it.
Meanwhile, the Russian worked to take a controlling position on top. This was a critical moment in the ground component of the fight.
Many of us assume that if we end up on our back, “dirty” techniques like eye gouges should cause our opponent to react in pain and fall off. Or if we stab them, they will quit the fight or be injured/killed and unable to continue. And yes, this is a possible outcome.
Another possibility is that your opponent is determined to kill you, willing to fight through serious injury and pain, and has achieved a dominant position. Poking them in the eye or even stabbing them might not work without hitting a large artery.
Many have noted that the Russian bit the hands of the Ukrainian. This indeed happened several times.
A very important detail many have missed: almost every time the Russian would bite, it was in response to the Ukrainian reaching up to eye gouge him. However, the Russian was able to move his head and avoid most of the damage.
The reality is that just like strikes and submissions, “Dirty” techniques and weapons work better from dominant, controlling positions.
They stabbed each other. The attacked each other’s eyes. The (smaller) man fighting from a top position was able to do this more effectively.
Another point many have missed is that the Russian used biting not just to cause pain and injury, but for control: he held one hand in his teeth, which allowed him to use two hands to fight against the Ukrainian’s one.
He was also able to scan the environment and look for improvised weapons. He picked up three pieces of rubble, one being a shard of roof tile which was stabbed into the Ukrainian’s eye. Stuck on his back, the Ukrainian was unable to move his head to avoid this.
Knife design played a significant role. The knife lacked a pommel or guard, which would have greatly reduced the risk of hands sliding off each end of the knife. Both men lost control of the knife and were injured by the blade incidentally when their hands slid off at various times.
They also both grabbed at the blade intentionally which worked in terms of delaying attacks and fighting for control of the knife. One of the more stomach-churning aspects to watch, but they really did not have much choice.
Much has been made of the Ukrainian’s last words, asking the Russian if he could leave him to die peacefully. Personally, I don’t believe the Ukrainian gave up on survival.
I think it’s more likely that he understood he had lost the fight and was about to be stabbed a lot more, and his request to be left alone to die peacefully was a tactical decision more than anything; he was hoping that although severe, his injuries might be survivable at that point if the Russian stopped. His last words were “don’t do it” as the Russian placed a grenade under his vest.
Finally, pain compliance is unreliable, because it is not direct control. Compliance might be a secondary effect of pain, or it could cause more resistance. Control and position must be of highest priority in a fight.
In this instance, we see both men fighting through gunshot wounds, stab wounds, eye gouging, biting.
Both men were equally aggressive and willing to do anything to win the fight.
In the end, the fight was won by situational awareness, adaptability, improvisation, and positional control.
Click here to watch video on Youtube
This video covers unarmed defense against both blunt and edged weapons, highlighting the importance of understanding range to either deny attackers their advantage or impose our own.
Yes, you should never fight someone who is armed, and running away is a good idea. However, there are some scenarios where evasion isn’t an option and hand-waving comments like “just run away” do not help. Strategic positioning, range management and movement are the foundation of dealing with weapons.
We start with understanding the nuances of unarmed striking, the significance of maintaining an appropriate stance for mobility and reaction, and the concept of “lunging distance” which is critical for both offense and defense.
Then we move on to managing distances to either escape harm or close in, underlining that effective defense involves being either out of reach or too close for an attacker to utilise their weapon effectively.
The guide also touches on the specialised considerations for dealing with different types of weapons, from long and short blunt instruments to edged weapons, stressing the need for speed, control, and tactical awareness.
And here’s an extra:
Also, check out other videos categorised under weapon disarms on this website
At a supermarket in the Netherlands, a 34-year-old man was removed from the store by security for attempting to steal a bottle of alcohol. He returned and attacked guard with a broken bottle neck, resulting in injuries to both. The man was arrested and hospitalised overnight, so he obviously came out of the ordeal in far worse shape then the guard.
He faces charges of attempted manslaughter or serious assault and will appear in court on February 14 2024.
The actions of the guard were considered self-defense.
Dutch article covering the incident here.
Although not a knife, a piece of glass can cause serious or potentially fatal injuries. There’s certainly the risk of losing an eye, the way this man was attempting to slash at the guard.
The response of the guard demonstrates how effective distance management, footwork and striking can be against edged weapons. These are not the typical wrist-grabby techniques we often see taught by “self defense” instructors, but fundamental methods from empirically developed styles such as Muay Thai and wrestling.
This could easily have resulted in the guard suffering far more serious injuries had there been an inch or two of difference, and I have shared these scenarios on the site before.
My point here is NOT that learning a martial art will guarantee success, however:
Off-duty officer attempts to arrest man who smashed his car window, however is attacked by a second man who tries to take the officer’s gun from the holster. In the struggle, the officer is shot in the leg and a man is shot in the hand.
CUTLER BAY, Fla. – A former professional mixed martial artist won the fight of his life outside the ring, and it was all caught on camera.
Javier Baez told Local 10 News Friday that he is grateful to see another day thanks to his combat training after a man attempted to stab him in Cutler Bay early Wednesday morning.
Baez said he was out late on Halloween night, getting back to his complex around 4 a.m. Wednesday, when he saw Omar Marrero, 50, of Cutler Bay, behind the 11,000 block of Southwest 211th Street, holding a knife that was about 14 inches long and yelling in the parking lot.
Marrero’s arrest report stated moments after seeing Baez in his vehicle, he began hitting his car window with the knife and then opened the driver’s door and attempted to cut him.
As Baez exited his vehicle and attempted to diffuse the situation, Marrero continued to swing the knife at him, the report stated.
Shortly after, Marrero went back to his vehicle while placing the knife on the front passenger side floor and began fighting Baez.
Police said moments after, Marrero went back to his car, grabbed a second large knife, and attempted to cut Baez several times.
Additional surveillance video showed Marrero rushing at Baez, who quickly overpowered him, lifted him, and then slammed him to the ground.
“You train so many times that it becomes just a reflex,” Baez said.
Baez was able to defend himself while disarming Marrero and detaining him until police arrived at the scene.
“Once I started putting the choke in, he kind of just let it go because no one is worried about anything else but breathing when you’re losing air,” he said. “I was able to hold him down with my knee and call the cops, and he woke up, cops came, and it was good, easy peasy!”
Baez told Local 10 News that he was unhurt and only sustained minor scratches to his hands following the scuffle.
“Once it came to that, it’s all instincts. I couldn’t do much but just react,” Baez told Local 10 News. “I’ve been training my whole life — black belt jiu-jitsu, wrestled in college, I’ve got eight pro fights, MMA masters. I’ve got great training partners.”
Baez said that he didn’t personally know Marrero but had seen him before walking around in his neighborhood.
Marrero was transported to the Cutler Bay Municipal District where he was interviewed and provided a statement to police.
He currently faces one count each of burglary with assault or battery and aggravated battery, according to jail records.
As of Friday, Marrero is being held without bond at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center.
Bludgeoning weapons like baseball bats are lethal, but it’s quite possible to nullify that force by closing the distance. They need some room to swing and get the full effect.
Might seem counter-intuitive, but it’s better to move in than back away and stay in the range they need.
Origin and circumstances are unknown.
