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In this wrestling match, Russia’s Behkana Goygeerva shows amazing athletic ability defending himself against the single leg takedown attack of his Iranian opponent.
The back flip defense is actually against the rules of free style wrestling at the high school level in the United States because of it’s inherent danger. An athlete could possible land on their head and be serious injured. It is allowed at the collegiate level and international level.
Since is it a very common takedown, defending it is import for every wrestler to learn:
The single leg takedown is the highest percentage takedown in American collegiate wrestling. You shouldn’t be surprised if all the wrestling greats in American history tell you it’s one of the most important moves you need to know. Therefore, knowing how to defend against the single leg should be a top priority.
Single legs aren’t only used in wrestling, they’re also prevalent in other grappling sports, and mixed martial arts as well. Japanese MMA legend Kazushi Sakuraba had arguably one of the best single legs in all of MMA. He was able to use it to great effect against opponents who were much heavier and stronger than he was. Sakuraba was one of a kind. It’s doubtful we’ll ever see someone with his unique fighting style ever again. But just in case we do, it’s important to know how to defend against against such an efficient technique.
Without getting into detail, some common ways to defend include sprawling and pushing the head down, grabbing your opponents ankle, a whizzer and wrist control, and just plain old fighting for your life. As is mentioned in the article, the single leg takedown is the most common and most effective takedown in wrestling, so it makes sense that learning to defend it is one of the most important things you can do as a wrestling competitor.
