Fighter's Brew – S3: E8 (Audio + Transcript) (Patreon)

• Fighter's Brew

[Note: Read the manga images from right to left.]

Ayako Nagamine and Kaoru Nobeoka are up.

"Fight!" the referee shouts.

Ayako is tense. Kaoru takes the initiative with a jab, but Ayako backs away and eats an inside low kick. Kaoru grabs her and runs her into the corner. She takes her down.

Ayako gets back up, but Kaoru takes her back.

Despite the jitters, Ayako listens to her corner and peels Kaoru off her back.

[Confidence comes from trust. If you don't have trust in yourself, you can have trust in your team. Ayako is nervous but trusts that her team got her ready and will tell her what to do when she's stuck.]

They're both back to standing.

"That's weird," says Maki.

"What do you mean?" asks Meguru.

"Nobeoka, just let her go. Back when I fought her, she would've rushed in for another hold instead of breaking away like that."

"I can see her jabs and hooks coming," Kaoru thinks.

"Looks like Nobeoka's been working on her striking," says Maria.

"I've got a bad feeling about this," says Tamiya.

Kaoru lands an inside low kick. She follows up with punches, but Ayako backs away.

"She's loosened up," says Maki.

Ayako lands a right straight and floors Kaoru.

[For the fighter at a reach disadvantage, they have to close space to be close enough to strike their opponent. However, the risk is getting caught on the way in. That's the dilemma. Reach matters in combat sports.]

"Down!" the ref shouts.

"What hit me," Kaoru thinks.

"I'm surprised she's still conscious," says Maria.

"It's okay," thinks Kaoru, "I can still move. Breathe."

Kaoru beats the count, and the fight is back on. Ayako fires a right straight. Kaoru covers her head but takes it to the stomach.

Kaoru shoots, but Ayako stuffs it easily. As they scramble, Ayako lands a knee.

Kaoru hesitates to engage in any more striking and shoots for tackles with no setups. Each tackle is easily stuffed.

"With one right straight, she turned the match around," Muroi tells Kohei.

Kaoru backs up. She takes a blow to the liver. She's pinned against the corner. Kaoru takes a big breath.

"Fight back," she thinks.

Ayako swings a big right, but Kaoru counters with a right straight. Ayako retreats. Kaoru chases her into the clinch and tosses her.

[If Kaoru shoots, it's blocked. If she strikes, she's countered. But by mixing it up, she's hard to predict. MMA is unpredictable because of all the variables.]

Ayako rolls to escape, but Kaoro sticks to her and takes her back.

Looking for the finish, Kaoru gives up control.

[Rather than thinking of control as a step in getting the finish, it's better to think of submissions as an extension of control.]

Ayako uses that moment to turn and escape.

They both get up.

Ayako is down on points. She pressures Kaoru into the corner again. Kaoru shoots. Ayako turns her around and goes for her back. They scramble, and Ayako lands a right hook.

Kaoru is dazed but manages to grab a leg. Ayako sprawls and locks in a front head-and-arm choke. Kaoru tries to spin out, but Ayako jumps to guard to cinch it up.

[Just because Ayako's not initiating the takedowns doesn't mean her grappling is bad. She just prefers to strike. However, by mixing in takedowns, Ayako's striking will find more success.]

Silence.

The referee halts the fight. Kaoru is out.

But Maki is unfazed.

"She's strong," says Furuya. "She's the type that stays cool and sticks to the game plan down to the last second. Fighters like her are the scariest of all."

"Meguru Takayanagi," Shu Katori says as he watches footage on a camcorder. "Nine wins, four losses. He's gotten three wins by choke, two by armbar, and two by TKO. Ain't much that stands out about him other than he won a decision over Keiji Mitsuya. Man, I hate fighting unpredictable guys. Just means you gotta be extra cautious."

"Like you, he tends to close the gap with a jab-straight combo," says Katori's teammate. "But he really shines in melees, so watch out."

"Once I get a hold of his neck, it's over," says Katori.

"Shu Katori is 180 cm tall. Has Meguru ever fought someone with that much reach?" Yudai asks Maria.

"Nope. I wonder what kind of strategy Nabe-san and Kenichiro-kun put together for him. Maki is also a lanky southpaw, but I wonder how power will play into this."

"In the red corner," shouts the announcer, "fighting for Fighter's Brew, Meguru Takayanagi! And in the blue corner, from Shintokai Suruga Dojo, Shu Katori!"

Katori towers over Meguru.

"Fight!" the ref shouts.

Katori immediately lands a jab.

"From that far?" blurts Yudai.

"He hits hard!" Meguru thinks.

Katori throws a front kick, backing Meguru up.

"Meguru, strafe left!" yells Furuya. "Punch high and kick low."

Meguru heeds the advice and lands a low kick, then moves out of range.

"Furuya told me not to force my way in," Meguru thinks. "That's what Katori is counting on. That's how he gets his choke. I also don't have the power to finish with a single blow from the inside. I have to use my feet to chip away at him from afar."

Meguru lands another kick.

"Eventually, he'll get fed up and come to me," Meguru thinks. "Nabe-san pointed out how he likes to lean forward like a wrestler. That's when I have to aim for the chin."

Katori rushes forward, closing his own distance. Meguru ducks and throws a right uppercut. Katori evades and lands a knee to body.

[Long legs afford the ability to counter punches with knees.]

Meguru looks for a clinch, but Katori takes control and lands another knee. Meguru is down.

The ref begins the count, but Meguru beats it.

The fight resumes.

Meguru eats another jab. He fires back, but Katori ducks and tackles him. Katori spins around and takes his back.

"His height makes him feel like a blanket," thinks Meguru. "I can't escape him."

Katori cinches the rear strangle. Meguru is in trouble.

He can't fight Katori's hands, but since Katori's legs are so long, Meguru finds space to spin around.

[When grappling, being small can have its advantages. Since you take up less space, there's more room to move.]

Meguru is on top, but Katori breaks off and gets back up.

Meguru is down on points. He circles left with jabs and lands another low kick but eats a jab.

"I can read him like a book," Katori thinks. "He's so predictable."

Meguru drives for a tackle. Katori grabs a clinch. Meguru lands an uppercut but eats a knee in return. He fires a hook to the head and then another.

"You call that a punch?" Katori thinks, "It barely tickles."

"Keep your balance!" Meguru tells himself.

"Katori's clinch is too loose," says Maki.

Meguru lands another uppercut as Katori goes for another knee. Katori takes it, not expecting much power. Meguru lands Takashi's secret uppercut.

[Maki is right. You want to be close in the clinch to constrain the possibilities. The objective of the clinch is to make things more predictable.]

Takashi can't believe it.

Katori is stunned and releases the clinch. He throws a jab, but Meguru ducks. Expecting an uppercut, Katori loads the knee. Meguru switches stances, closing the space needed for the knee, and lands another uppercut.

[Meguru draws the counter to counter it.]

Katori is down.

"Think he's done?" Takashi's teammate asks.

"No," says Takashi. "After a surprise attack, you need to follow up to get the KO. He'll get up."

"I want to see the ocean," Katori thinks. "This doesn't end here. Not for my team. We're not done yet."

The fight resumes.

Meguru rushes in with another uppercut. Katori dodges.

"I'm not falling for that again," he thinks.

Katori throws a knee, but Meguru blocks. They disengage. Katori throws a high kick. Meguru fakes a tackle and goes for an uppercut, but Katori lands a left straight.

"I've gotta mix it up," Meguru thinks.

Meguru fakes the tackle. Expecting an uppercut, Katori fires the left straight but runs face-first into a right overhand punch.

[Meguru can predict Katori's reactions. With that knowledge, he draws Katori onto his right overhand.]

"Bullseye," says Takashi.

Katori struggles to stay on his feet and shoots for a tackle. Meguru sprawls and takes his back. He secures a rear strangle. Meguru gets points for the submission attempt. However, Katori escapes and ends up on top. He transitions to an armbar, but Meguru escapes and passes to side pin.

"Did Meguru bait the armbar to get on top?" Furuya wonders. "Would Meguru even know the answer to that?"

Katori uses his wrestling to work back to his feet.

They're back in clinch.

"The first one to get a takedown wins," thinks Katori.

Katori trips Meguru and scores a takedown.

"No!" Meguru thinks.

Katori has the pin.

"I can't move," thinks Meguru. "It's over. This sucks. Wait. Why's his hand on the mat? I can grab it."

Meguru grabs the hand and uses his leg dexterity to capture Katori's head and arm in a leg triangle. With no time for a strangle, Meguru grabs Katori's free arm and cranks it.

[We always have more movement potential than we know. It's often the awareness of what's possible that is lacking. That's why exploratory play is critical for learning, as it allows you to map out opportunities.]

The bell rings.

It goes to the judges for a decision.

"Who won?" asks Yudai.

"I don't know," says Maria.

The judges declare it a split draw.

"The judges will decide the match via vote by flag," says the announcer.

It's two to one in favor of Meguru. He wins!

Meguru and Katori shake hands.

"I don't feel like I earned that," Meguru tells Furuya.

"I bet. There's a chance element to fighting. Either of you could have won that fight. Today, it just happened to be you. Cherish this victory."

"Looks like he's not the same kid you fought last year," Takashi's teammate says.

"His technique has no soul," says Takashi. "It comes from improvisation rather than disciplined repetition. It's free play rather than kata. I can't stand that."

"Even though they came up together," Takashi's teammate thinks, "they're polar opposites in their fighting philosophy. Takashi's got talent and ambition. When he first came to the gym, he was easy to handle. But bit by bit, he refined his technique and he got better and better. Rather than sparring, he prefers to do kata. He takes a ton of pride in perfect repetition and repeating a technique over and over like a machine. On the other hand, his friend seems to figure it out as he goes. That seems a lot more soulful than being a machine."

It's on to the next fight.

"In the red corner," the announcer yells, "fighting for Burnish, Takeshi Kagaya. And in the blue corner, from Kogure Gym, Takashi Yamabuki."

"If I can beat this guy in front of me," thinks Kagaya, "I can prove to myself how much I've grown."

The fight begins. Kagaya charges in, but Takashi throws a left kick. Despite blocking it, it still rattles Kagaya.

Takashi throws another. Kagaya blocks and throws a left hook. Takashi blocks and backs up. Kagaya winds his right overhand, but Takashi snaps his head back with a clean jab.

[Kagaya is too predictable, and Meguru has already mapped out the blueprint to defeat his overhand.]

Kagaya stumbles back. Takashi lands a left middle kick. Kagaya is down.