Heel hooks - too dangerous?

[Toastie]

I've never been comfortable with heel hooks, the same way I've never been comfortable with certain spine attacks or neck cranks.

The certain spine attacks and neckcranks (note: not all) should need no explanation. Anything that can seperate certain vertabrae and cause paralysis has been mostly banned from sanctioned MMA, I believe.

Heelhooks in my opinion are way, way more dangerous then ankle locks, kneebars, calf crushes etc.

There's an easy argument that probably will be made: Don't get caught. Easier said then done. Silva is a legit blackbelt in BJJ, he got caught (maybe through a bad judgment), and his career could be over. The moment I saw him tap I knew what had happened.

Shogun Rua's career is in jeopardy, not from a heelhook, but from the same ligaments in the knee being damaged that a heelhook would tear.

I believe with a fighter as dangerous and skilled as Imanari, using heelhooks defeats the point of having a tap out. A tap out is there as a sign of submission before any serious damage takes place. It's conceding checkmate. A tap out is no good if you're tapping after your knee is completely fucked, and a heelhook does not give a fighter the same period of grace as other submissions do.

Continued use of heelhooks will only serve to retire fighters too soon, and possibly spend the rest of their life using a walking stick.

I personally would have no problem seeing heelhooks removed from the sport for that reason. A technique used to permanently disable an enemy on the battlefield in feudal japan has no place in today's MMA, in my humble opinion.

[Alex Gold]

From what I saw, he gave Silva a chance to tap then cranked it on properly.

You could say heel hooks aren't dangerous but not tapping certainly can be

[fishface]

Yeah heel hooks are potentially career enders when doing pro MMA, some will agree with ya and others will say don't be a pussy and keep them in the rules. Nothing pussy about spending weeks in a foot cast and losing anything up to 12 months in training because of them

F

[Reedy]

Take out heel hooks and at the same time get rid of elbows.

[Toastie]

You could say heel hooks aren't dangerous but not tapping certainly can be

Which relates to the period of grace I talked about with other submissions. A kneebar has a gradient of uncomfortable pain before the pain tells you something is being severely damaged.

A heelhook, you might feel nothing, then bang, too late, you're crippled.

That's my main issue.

[Duchman]

i seriously hope this is a piss take.

Well punches have killed people.. take out punches to.

People should start to train with heel hook much much earlier instead of scaring away from them so much

[Toastie]

Take out heel hooks and at the same time get rid of elbows.

Elbows aren't comparable. Unless it's downward elbow aimed at the back of the head, or someone's eye socket.

[Reedy]

Elbows aren't comparable. Unless it's downward elbow aimed at the back of the head, or someone's eye socket.

Still get rid of them though.

[Toastie]

i seriously hope this is a piss take.

Well punches have killed people.. take out punches to.

People should start to train with heel hook much much earlier instead of scaring away from them so much

It is far and away easier to cripple someone with a heelhook, then kill someone with a punch. Unless your frame of mind is to bring in bladed weapons, or, fuck it, give them both guns and let them open fire?

[Duchman]

Stop disallowing heel hooks at most bjj clubs, learn propper escapes from a early day in training.

SO many people have trained for years and years and little to no leg lock knowlegde.

to much of a tradional mind set with most people

Not saying that this is the case with jean silva.. he was doing fine escaping them untill the end