How to Choose the Best Kick for a Street Fight
Kicking can be useful in a street fight. It allows for a longer attack range and is much more effective and powerful than traditional punches.
But I also want to put a disclaimer that you shouldn’t kick in a street fight if you don’t have any formal martial training. The untrained person wants both feet squarely rested on the ground. Attempting to kick will likely cause you to wind up on the ground.
On the other hand, if you’ve some self-defense training, you can quickly end a fight and disable the opponent effortlessly using a kick (s).
And this brings us to the question, what’s the best kick in a street fight?
Best Kick in a Street Fight
Based on my martial experience, and self-defense knowledge, I can authoritatively say 
there’s no “best” kick for street fighting.
Let me explain.
Street fighting is situational-dependent. The best kick will depend on the situation and your
personal fighting style. Your choice of a kick will also depend on your motive. Do you want to immobilize the opponent or simply intimidate them?
The other thing you need to understand is that the street fight setting is completely different from the training space in your local dojo.
First, street fights aren’t fair. There’re no referees to regulate the match. There’re also no rules, meaning you’re allowed to use any means or illegal techniques that would otherwise earn you a suspension from your martial arts school.
More importantly, the street fight setting is nowhere similar to that of your dojo. There’re no cushy mats, a ring, or a hardwood floor. Instead, you get grass, sand, hard floors, and rocky, uneven ground on the street. And then add that you’re not wearing your traditional karate gi. Instead, you’ve oversized boots, tight-fitting jeans, and a T-shirt.
Simply put, you’ll find that most techniques you consider will lose their importance and efficacy in a street fight. You could use them, but there will be serious limitations to your traditional fighting style.
How to Choose the Best Kick for a Street Fight
In this section, we’ll dig deeper and look at how to select the best kick that will suit your street-fighting circumstances.
Situation
Consider the context and situation when selecting a kick technique to use in a street fight. Usually, this depends on each encounter and the persons involved.
Generally speaking, a street fight doesn’t give you much opportunity to prepare or do much anyway. Most street fights are usually explosive and unpredictable. Unlike in the ring, where two people square off and throw kicks.
Ultimately, depending on your situation, the key to selecting an effective kick is training on different techniques and adapting them to the situation at hand.
For example, a sidekick is a great technique when you need to push your attacker away, while the front kick is perfect when your opponent is far from you. Meanwhile, a roundhouse kick may be useful when the opponent is close enough.
Technique
The best kick is one in which you’re conversant with its kicking technique. I understand power and speed are important for any technique, as are good technique and proper form.
Whether it’s a front, roundhouse, or sidekick, the best kick has much to do with what you’ve trained and are comfortable throwing quickly, accurately, and consistently.
Therefore, when selecting the best kick to use in a street fight, consider one you’re well versed with. It might not be the best martial art, but it’ll work for you because technique multiplies strength.
A weak kick, but with proper execution of movement, will cause as much damage as a powerful kick.
In particular, I’d suggest you consider the kicks which use explosive strength. But rather than hit your opponent using strength, try to hit through them. That’s technique. A good way to do this is to kick about six inches behind your target. It’ll inflict maximum damage.
Power
In as much as technique is important when selecting the best kick, it’s important to consider the strength of the kick. A technique without strength is beautiful but ineffective.
In my mind, it’s pointless to kick your opponent if you can’t kick the shit out of them.
The best kick for self-defense should have power. It should also be easy to deliver with speed. A powerful kick, delivered with speed, is much more efficient than a weak and slow kick.
*Kicker: The most powerful kick is the one you give on your first attempt. The element the body uses to deliver the maximum power kick only lasts 10 seconds. After that, the body uses considerably less amounts of strength. Every kick after that is exponentially weaker until the fifth minute, when the element is regenerated.
Therefore, your first kick should be, ideally, the last. It should be powerful enough to deliver a blow that will make your opponent think twice about getting back at you.
Low Kick
The best type of kick for a street fight is a low kick. I would say that the perfect kick should not go anywhere higher than the hip joint level.
A high kick delivered cleanly is impressive and may intimidate your opponent into backing off. However, I’d only recommend a high kick in street fighting if you’re certain of your ability to pull it off and to recover if it doesn’t come off cleanly.
You see, the danger with a high kick is that most are generally slower since they have a lot of distance to cover. The high kicks also leave you exposed and vulnerable during delivery and retraction. Environmental factors such as crowds and obstacles may make it harder to execute a high kick.
On the other hand, the low kicks are usually the safest best. A low kick is faster, leaves your feet more stable, and is safer to execute, especially in street fights.
Of course, this doesn’t mean you should never train or use high kicks, but you shouldn’t prioritize them in most fighting scenarios.
Not a Telegraphed Movement
The best kick in a street fight should not be telegraphed or have the least amount of telegraphing. Your opponent should not see it coming.
A turning kick is hard to see coming, while the bicycle kick has a dummy element, which works well to surprise and suppress an opponent.
Anatomy
Finally, the target is just as important as the kick. It gets easier to inflict damage on an opponent if you take the time to learn anatomy. Depending on the situation, a “less-powerful” technique could give you results if you know where to use it on your target.
For example, the groin is usually sensitive for everyone. Just because women lack balls doesn’t mean they can’t get hurt down there. A good kick to the groin will hurt anyone.
You also need to learn other body weak points to target with your kicks. Joints and bones can be weak; the easiest joint is the knees. A powerful hard kick to the side of the knee can tear your opponent’s ligaments. The tibias and interior of the legs are also some of the body’s weak points.
Best Kicks
There’s a lot to consider when selecting the best type of kick. But from experience, several kicks tick on most of the boxes discussed above.
Oblique Kick
The Oblique kick, also known as the Jon Jone’s, is powerful and efficient. It’s a stomp kick to the knee and hurts enough to stop the aggressor in their tracks.
If done at a good angle, the oblique kick can dislocate a knee, and because knees a fragile, you should be overly cautious because you could ruin someone’s knees and fuck up their lives.
Muay Thai Roundhouse
If I were to suggest only one kick, I’d vouch for the Muay. That Style is low roundhouse to the inside &outside of the legs and shin areas. It’s a power kick that can whittle your opponent’s ability to throw a kick or even stand.
Of course, Muay That Roundhouse requires a lot of practice and shin conditioning. However, it’s a potent technique, especially for the opponent who doesn’t know how to defend.
This video has been included for its clarification of the topic matter. Credit goes to fightTIPS
Wrap Up
Choosing the best kick for a street fight requires careful consideration and preparation. To make an informed decision, assess your skills and evaluate your proficiency in different kicking techniques. Consider your training, experience, and comfort level with various kicks.
Analyze the situation by taking into account factors such as space, environment, and the number of opponents you may be facing. Opt for kicks that offer versatility in different situations, allowing for quick execution, effective power, and minimal exposure. Focus on kicks that deliver significant impact and have a higher likelihood of disabling or incapacitating your opponent, targeting vulnerable areas like the groin, knees, or head.
Balance power with control and accuracy, striking with force while maintaining balance and the ability to quickly recover. Regularly practice different kicking techniques, seeking professional guidance from experienced martial arts instructors or self-defense experts. They can provide valuable insights, training, and guidance tailored to selecting the most suitable kicks for street fights.
Prioritize your safety, effectiveness, and legal considerations, while staying aware of local laws and self-defense regulations. By considering these factors and engaging in regular training, you can make an informed decision and choose the best kick for a street fight.
The Roundhouse and Oblique kicks are, in my opinion, the best kicks in a street fight, but they’re not magical bullets. Street fighting is dynamic, unpredictable, and unfair, so you can’t always rely on these kicks.
You also need to train on other self-defense techniques, allowing you to adapt your fight depending on the situation.
