| Psychological Dominance
When an opponent knows that they cannot defeat you, they are always correct. Once they decide that you are superior they will play your game, fall for your traps, lack the confidence needed to execute their own moves, be unable to maintain physical/mental composure, and will get winded easily. This is all based on what your opponent believes, and is true if they believe it, regardless of whether it is actually true in reality.
I’m going to name a few strategies that can be used to get into a competitors head, but there are more, feel free to be creative. Once you have your opponent convinced that they cannot beat you, do not stop, dominate them to the point of total submission. It should be clear to everyone watching the match/practice/etc. that the other wrestler wants nothing to do with you. Total submission means that they no longer want to wrestle against you and are willing to do anything to get out of it. They may start crying, using injury time (when they aren’t physically injured), roll over and pin themselves, lie on the mat doing nothing, move in slow motion, etc. You probably already know which kids in the wrestling room don’t like wrestling with you (or who you don’t like to wrestle with), this is psychological dominance.
Caveat: Do not over-dominate your practice partners. If you do, it will be tough to get good partners and you will make enemies. Find a sweet spot, push it too far, pull back, etc. DO NOT BE A BULLY TO YOUR TEAMMATES.
Example: I only got to watch Jessie Jantzen’s father coach him once, and I’ll never forget it because I learned a lot. Jessie was in his second year of college and was leading a match by a point or two going into the third period. In the third period, after a really long scramble, Jessie slammed his opponent with a double (legally). It was the straw that broke the camel’s back, and it was obvious to everyone watching. Jessie’s father sat on the sideline repeatedly calling out things like, “you broke him, he’s broken, just have fun.” It was no longer the same two wrestlers. Jessie scored upwards of 10 points in that period, much more easily than his first few points. He no longer needed to go through long scrambles to score, one or two transitions were all it would take. His opponent knew he couldn’t win, and gave up. You could see it in his face, his posture, his demeanor, and his eyes… amazing.
Another reason I remember this match so well is because I wrestled the same guy in the wrestle backs, and he dominated me. It was my first college beating, and I was not prepared for the brutality and aggressiveness which is standard at the college level. I didn’t cry, but I wanted to… I just stalled for 7 minutes and was happy when it was over.
Strategies for psychological dominance:
Attacking: All focus should be on offense. You need to be in his face, aggressive, and vicious. Push him around the mat; the ref, crowd, and competitor all must know who is running from who. Be very physical. Keep it legal, don’t let it get to punches, but make it obvious that you are here to fight, and you aren’t going to stop until he completely submits.
Caveat: Although impenetrable defense demonstrates to your opponent that they cannot score, they still have a chance for victory by also focusing on their own defense and keeping the match close. No match should be close, either break them or get broken trying. Close matches only happen when both wrestlers are reserved.
DO NOT GIVE HIM TIME TO COLLECT HIS COMPOSURE.
If you want to break someone, this is the most important strategy of all. If you attack someone hard for 15 seconds, they may be able to defend you long enough, regain their mental state, and be prepared for the next 15 second burst. If you go after someone non-stop, without pauses, giving them no time to think, and being very physical, they will not be able to hold their concentration forever. No one can hold their concentration for long when they are getting thrown around, feeling pain, and are out of breathe.
LASTLY
With all of that said, remember that wrestling is just a game. Dominance is a tool that you can use to your advantage, but off of the mat you should be a calm and happy person. Keep in mind that most people don’t wrestle to be the best, but wrestle to have fun, to make friends, and to compete in a sport for their school. I hate bullies and so does everyone else. Do not bully those weaker than you, because Karma will come get you… and if it doesn’t, I will.
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