Crane kick

The crane kick is a fictionalized version of the Mae tobi geri (Japanese: 前飛蹴). The move was created by Darryl Vidal for the classic film The Karate Kid (1984).[1][2] The move is taught by the character Mr. Miyagi to Daniel LaRusso and eventually used in the final scene with his arch rival Johnny Lawrence. The move involves a one-legged karate stance and launches into a flying jumping kick. [3] The movie became synonymous with karate in the United States and helped popularize the martial art in the country.[4]

Mixed martial arts

The move's effectiveness and practicality has been questioned by critics. The premise of the technique is to lure the opponent to move forward into a counterattack by appearing vulnerable, in practice this is not tactically sound. Standing tall with one foot flat on the ground creates a stationary target for an opponent to strike while spreading arms wide leaves the head and center of mass undefended. It is also an extreme feat of athleticism for any fighter to leap off one foot (already bearing all their body weight) to deliver an effective strike with that same foot. Modified versions have been used effectively in Mixed Martial Arts, most notably by Lyoto Machida. Starting from a southpaw stance, Machida quickly feinted with his left leg before leaping off his right foot to deliver a knockout upwards right kick to the mouth of legendary former UFC champion Randy Couture. Commentators Mike Goldberg and Joe Rogan immediately noted similarity to the Crane kick. [5][6]

References
  1. "30 Sweeping Facts About The Karate Kid". Mental Floss. 4 August 2017. Retrieved 25 December 2017.
  2. Writer, NELSY RODRIGUEZ - Staff. "MURRIETA: Karate kid kicker teaching kids the art". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved 25 December 2017.
  3. Powell, Larry; Garrett, Tom (20 December 2013). The Films of John G. Avildsen: Rocky, The Karate Kid and Other Underdogs. McFarland. ISBN 9780786490479. Retrieved 25 December 2017 – via Google Books.
  4. "Behind the scenes of the original Karate Kid movie". SI.com. Retrieved 11 May 2019.
  5. Hodges, Mike. "Brazilian Karate Coach Says Machida's Crane Kick Is "Most Difficult to Land"". Bleacher Reporter. Retrieved 25 December 2017.
  6. Mahlmann, Andrew. "UFC 129: Are You Karate Kidding Me? Lyoto Machida Crane Kicks Randy Couture". Bleacher Reporter. Retrieved 25 December 2017.
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