KAIZEN
Sept. 25, 2015
By Steve Scott

UCHI MATA
     I used to be a boxer-not a good one, but I did have quite a few amateur fights. Lack of talent and a modicum of common sense (although not much of that) convinced me to stay in the grappling sports. Glad I did.
     But, one thing good that came from my boxing career is noticing the commonalities in boxing and judo.
     For instance, I always looked at an Uchi Mata in Judo in the same way boxers look at a straight right hand punch. The straight right is a mainstay of the sport and is used by boxers in every weight class. Uchi Mata is a mainstay of the sport and used by athletes in every weight class as well. The straight right hand is a "classic" boxing move and Uchi Mata is a "classic" judo move.
     Since Uchi Mata is to judo what the straight right is to boxing, Seoi Nage (especially Knee Drop Seoi Nage) is the left hook. In boxing, there are guys who are left hook specialists. Most notably Joe Frazier, Mike Tyson and Miguel Cotto. In judo, there are Seoi Nage specialists and I always looked at the Seoi Nage specialists in the same way boxers look at the left hook specialist.
     Of course, there are the boxers who can deliver a straight right and left hook with equal ability just like there are judoka who can deliver an Uchi Mata and Seoi Nage with equal ability.
     Foot Sweeps in judo are like the left jab in boxing. They set up an opponent for the big bang. Don't get me wrong, a left jab is a devastating weapon, just like a foot sweep has been used in judo. A foot sweep can produce a big boom and get the Ippon, just like a straight left can put an opponent down in boxing.
     Also, boxers and judoka move in similar ways. Look at how graceful a boxer moves. Not graceful in a dance-like way, but in a deliberate, effective way just like a judoka does. No wasted movement and everything is functional. Additionally, a boxer must have an upright and good posture in order to effectively move and deliver his punches. Same with a judo athlete.  Good posture is essential to success in both sports. Boxing has its own version of Taisabaki, Shisei and Shintai. They may not have Japanese terms like we do in judo, but they are there just the same.
     Maybe these musings aren't great revelations or much of anything else, but they do provide some thought on how good movement is good movement in any sport.


UCHI MATA-4 VARIATIONS VIDEO
     Along this line of thought, I put together a video showing four different applications of Uchi Mata. It's posted above. Obviously, there are other ways of doing this classic throw, but here are four that might be interesting to you.

YOUTUBE CHANNEL
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AAU JUDO
     The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) has the best practice and tournament insurance for judo that I know of. The membership year for AAU runs Sept. 1 through Aug. 31 each year, so please sign up and if you are a coach, sign your club up as well. Membership is really a good deal and we need more AAU Judo clubs so we can have more AAU Judo tournaments-both Freestyle Judo and using the Standard AAU Judo rules.
     To sign up, go to www.AAUSports.org.