Kicking the calf vs kicking the thigh, which is the better leg kick technique?

[Bobbybackpack]

Thanx for the contributions guys, for about a day I was convinced that I should switch to kicking the calves. But then I remembered that I've stopped people in sparring (not beginners btw) about 4 times with leg kicks to the thigh, so I'll go back to that. It's riskier but I time my leg kicks well so I never get punished for going to the thigh. Now I just need to land more punches.

 

[Snubnoze707]

In MMA people have to worry about takedowns.

So what? People win fights with thigh and body kicks on a consistent basis in MMA. Kick catches are more common in Muay Thai than MMA...

Calf kicks are incredibly overrated. All you have to do to check is turn your knee inward. You can also shuffle your leg back out of the way and follow up with a strike out of the south paw stance.

 

[Bobbybackpack]

So what? People win fights with thigh and body kicks on a consistent basis in MMA. Kick catches are more common in Muay Thai than MMA...

Calf kicks are incredibly overrated. All you have to do to check is turn your knee inward. You can also shuffle your leg back out of the way and follow up with a strike out of the south paw stance.

I was referring to the stance in MMA being adjusted for takedown defense. I never said kicking was bad.

 

[Fire of Youth]

I'll go with thigh, but they both suck..

That hurt just watching it

 

[Kim Jong Un]

I spar in Muay Thai regularly (usually hard and against bigger guys often) and have the goal of competing in MMA in the near future. I'm around 5"6 140 lbs. I find a lot of success landing naked leg kicks against almost anyone mainly due to speed and timing (instead of throwing combos first). When I kick lower, it puts them off balance allowing me to land punches. When I kick the thigh, It either makes more noise or it feels like I did more damage coz you're hitting more meat basically. Although you have to come closer, you're safer when kicking lower coz Its harder to check lower I think and it's nearly impossible to catch (which is useful when fighting wrestlers in MMA). Trading with a right hand is hard when off balance.

What I really want to know is which one does more DAMAGE for the rest of the fight with the FEWER KICKS? Finally, which one affects movement more and the ability to throw power punches with weight on the damaged leg.

With your frame you could be a great kickboxer, why do you prefer MMA? In Jiu Jitsu guys will drip sweat into your mouth every day. Not worth it.

 

[Snubnoze707]

With your frame you could be a great kickboxer, why do you prefer MMA? In Jiu Jitsu guys will drip sweat into your mouth every day. Not worth it.

I don't think you need to further inflate the ego of someone that "finishes guys with leg kicks in sparring".

 

[Defensive Face]

Both can are extremely effective if executed properly as seen in this vid:

 

[Snubnoze707]

You're using a 10 year old girl fight as an example in your argument?

 

[El_Diazo]

You’re not though. You’re basically telling everyone they’re wrong when they tell you thigh is gonna do more damage

 

[Bobbybackpack]

With your frame you could be a great kickboxer, why do you prefer MMA? In Jiu Jitsu guys will drip sweat into your mouth every day. Not worth it.

I am very good at jiu jtsu and wrestling too by the way. Definitely worth it lol.

 

[FokaiMuayThai]

TS seems dubious. (How old are you little buddy?)

At the highest levels of striking, especially against MTers you're just asking to get a hard check over and over. You just have to check a little lower and it'll cause a lot of pain to the kicker. MMA level strikers tend to not check kicks so it's easier to land on them.

There are calf kicks in MT, they are called sweeps.