Oblique Kick

The knee disruptor

The oblique kick is a linear push kick aimed at the opponent's knee or upper shin. The kick's mechanic is similar to a teep (front kick), but the target is the knee joint rather than the body. The technique is widely controversial because of knee-injury risk — an extended knee taking a clean oblique kick can hyperextend or buckle in ways that produce ligament damage.

Jon Jones's career was built largely around the oblique kick. The technique disrupted opposing wrestlers' stance integrity and prevented them from setting up takedown attempts. The Cormier-Jones bouts, the Belfort-Jones bout, and the long stretch of Jones-era LHW title defenses all featured oblique kicks as a primary defensive tool.

Mechanics

From an orthodox stance, throwing the lead-leg oblique kick:

• Lift the knee: bring the lead knee up to chest height, foot dorsiflexed.
• Extension downward: push the foot down and slightly forward at the opponent's knee. The angle is roughly 30-45 degrees below horizontal.
• Connection: the heel of the foot (or the ball of the foot) lands on the opponent's knee or upper shin.
• Snap back: pull the foot back to chambered knee position immediately.

What the oblique kick is for

• Stance disruption: the kick interrupts the opponent's stance integrity, preventing them from setting up their offense.
• Range management: stops forward pressure by attacking the lead leg's structural integrity.
• Takedown defense: a kicker who's loading a takedown attempt has their lead leg straight; an oblique kick to that leg disrupts the level change.
• Cumulative damage: clean oblique kicks accumulate and limit opposition mobility over the course of a fight.

Variations

• Lead-leg oblique kick: the textbook version.
• Rear-leg oblique kick: thrown from the back leg. More power, slower.
• Step-in oblique kick: closing distance before the kick lands.
• Oblique kick to upper shin: aimed slightly below the knee, on the shin bone.

The controversy

The oblique kick has been controversial since Jon Jones first used it at championship level. The mechanism — direct force on the knee joint at a near-straight extension — can cause ligament tears and meniscus damage. Critics argue the technique should be banned; defenders argue it's a legitimate stand-up tool similar to other knee-impact strikes.

Several fighters have publicly criticized the oblique kick, including Daniel Cormier, Alexander Gustafsson, and Vitor Belfort (all opponents of Jon Jones who absorbed multiple oblique kicks). The UFC has not banned the technique, but the broader MMA-medical community has flagged it as the highest-risk strike in the modern UFC.

Common errors

• Throwing from too far away: produces no impact.
• Foot placement: aiming for the side of the knee rather than the front produces less damage and risks foot injury.
• No setup: an oblique kick from neutral range is easy to step away from.
• Single-attempt thinking: the oblique kick is a cumulative tool; a single landing doesn't end fights.

Defense

• Step back: backing out of the kicking range.
• Knee lift: raising the lead leg to absorb the kick on the shin or knee.
• Catch and counter: scooping the kicking leg with the lead arm and converting to a takedown attempt.
• Pre-emptive offense: striking the opponent before they can load the oblique kick.

Exemplified by

• Jon Jones: the oblique-kick attack that's been the primary defensive tool in his title-defense career.
• Anthony Pettis: oblique kicks integrated with the karate-distance striking template.
• Cody Stamann: bantamweight-level oblique-kick attacks.

Drills

• Heavy bag oblique-kick reps: 30 oblique kicks per round, focused on accuracy at the knee target level.
• Pad work: pad holder presents low Thai pads; you fire oblique kicks on cue.
• Distance partner drill: partner walks forward; you maintain distance with oblique kicks targeting the lead-leg knee.
• Live sparring with oblique-kick emphasis: light sparring where the oblique kick is the primary defensive tool.