Copyright © Geoff Thompson 2004
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'I didn't do anything at first, except try to get up. As I did our heads clashed. The back of mine with the front of his. I felt the weight lift as he rolled over and groaned. I don't think I've ever moved so fast in all my life. I was up and away down the towpath like a shot.' – Unleash the Lioness

The head can be one of the most effective weapons available if used correctly. If used incorrectly it can be as dangerous to the bestower as to the recipient. The key factor in the success of the head-butt is to keep the attack below the opponent's eye-line.

Anywhere above the eye-line is no-go and potentially dangerous for the butter. Paradoxically, the person employing the butt must use only that above the eye-line to attack with, or again they get more damage than their opponent.

You may attack with the head in five ways:

1. From right to left using the left corner of your forehead to attack.
2. From left to right using the right corner of your forehead to attack.
3. A forward thrusting butt using either the left, centre or right of your forehead to attack.
4. You may attack upward with the crown of your head, or
5. Backward with the back of your head.

They are all close range attacks that can be employed with or without the support of your hands to pull. Power in the butt relies on the combination of two things: the whiplash effect, whereby you lurch the body forward slightly before the head, thus forcing the head to follow, creating a whiplash effect, and the propelling body weight which should still be travelling in the same direction as the head as it strikes its target. This momentum will add great weight to the attack.

A good head-butter, and I have worked with a few, will often go through hundreds of fights with nothing more than the head and destroy opponents large and small with the one simple technique. Employed correctly, it can have a devastating, face-demolishing effect on would-be antagonists. Again, as with everything really, it takes much practice to perfect. Let's have a look at the different methods of butting.

Left to right

Lurch your body forward followed by the head. The right corner of your forehead whiplashes into the right side or front of the recipient's nose, face or jaw. If you are actually gripping the opponent's attire at the time of your attack, pull them rapidly toward the head-butt.

Right to left

The same applies, though here the left corner of your forehead whiplashes into the left side or front of the recipient's nose, face or jaw. Again, if you have a grip on your opponent's clothes, pull rapidly toward the head-butt.

Forward-thrusting head-butt

Lurch your body directly forward followed by the front of your head, whiplashing it into the opponent's nose, eyes or jaw. Care should be taken when attacking directly from the front not to hit the opponent's teeth. Although it is very painful for the recipient, it is also potentially dangerous to the attacker. Use a grip on your opponent's clothes to pull them rapidly toward the attack.

Upward head-butt

Generally employed from within grappling range when your forehead is in the region of your opponent's chest. From this position thrust rapidly upward, attacking your opponent's chin with the front crown of your head.

Reverse head-butt

To be executed when an opponent is standing directly behind you or is holding you in a rear bearhug. In the case of the former, lurch your body rapidly backward followed by your head, whiplashing the back of your skull into the opponent's face. In the case of the latter where the body weight is locked in the bearhug and therefore redundant, bring your head slightly forward, then throw it backward as quickly as you can, hitting the opponent's face with the back of your skull.

Equipment

Basically, to practise the various head-butts with any realism you need a partner. If this is impossible (not everyone wants to be used for head-butting practice!), then a punch-bag will suffice. Treat the bag practice exactly the same as you would a person, standing yourself in the correct position in relation to the bag according to which butt you want to practise. Beware, though, of prolonged practice and over-zealous butting. It can cause extreme headaches.

Some people, certainly many women, might feel the head to be an unlikely weapon, or the type of attack they would not employ. In a life or death situation a good butt can and may mean the difference between winning and being battered, robbed or raped. Please don't discard it just because of its unsophisticated demeanour.

Especially ladies. Firstly, a good head-butt is a stopping technique (the pain can stop an attacker in his tracks) and secondly, no attacker will ever expect a lady to use a head-butt, it's unheard of. That's why you must be prepared to use it – it could save your life.