by Sammy Franco
Step 2: He delivers a lead straight punch by extending his arm at his opponent.
Step 3: Franco retracts his arm back to the starting position.
Half Beat Demonstration
Step 1: Franco assumes a fighting stance.
Step 2: He delivers a lead palm heel strike by extending his arm.
Step 3: As Franco retracts his arm back, he immediately converts it to a lead horizontal elbow strike.
Quarter Beat Demonstration
Step 1: Franco begins his quarter beat assault with an eye rake.
Step 2: He rakes the opponent’s eyes in a quick downward motion.
Step 3: Without breaking contact with his opponent’s face, he attacks with a palm jolt to the chin.
Zero Beat Demonstration
Pictured here, the author demonstrates a single thumb gouge technique.
The rear naked choke (RNC) is another effective zero beat technique used at the completion phase of razing.
Razing Techniques
The Shaving Forearm.
The Eye Rake.
The Short Arc Hammer Fist.
The Palm Jolt.
The Thumb Gouge.
The Vertical Elbow.
The Horizontal Elbow.
The Biceps Pop.
Biting.
The Head Butt.
The Throat Crush.
The Neck Crank.
What about Kicking Techniques?
Do not attempt kicking techniques when razing your adversary. As a matter of fact, if you attempt to kick during your razing sequence, you’ll break the offensive flow and put yourself in serious jeopardy.
As I stated earlier, the real power of razing comes from your ability to shock the opponent and force his cognitive brain to temporarily “shutdown.” In order to accomplish this, you must always keep the pressure on the opponent. Unfortunately, kicking techniques take you out of close-quarter combat range and offers the adversary an opportunity to immediately retaliate.
While kicking can be useful in a fight, it should not be used when razing your adversary
What About Knee Strikes?
Avoid the urge to knee strike your adversary when performing razing techniques. Knee strikes are simply too risky to employ. You must remember that razing techniques will almost always force your opponent to frantically pull away from your attack. Delivering a knee strike, while the opponent pulls away, will compromise the integrity of your stance and cause you to lose your balance.
More importantly, delivering a knee strike during a razing sequence will momentarily break your offensive flow. The bottom line is, avoid knee strikes when razing your adversary!
Chest to Back Position
The chest to back position is the ideal place to be when you complete your razing assault. It offers maximum control of your opponent while minimizing his ability to effectively counter strike. More importantly, the chest to back position enables you to apply a devastating rear naked choke (RNC) technique.
However, this is not to say that you must always have a chest to back position to end the fight. It’s just a strategically preferred location.
You can acquire the chest to back position in one of two ways: a reflexive turn or by applying the neck crank technique.
Reflexive Turn — When you raze the adversary his cognitive brain will shutdown and he will reflexively turn away from the attack. The opponent is exclusively focused on avoiding the pain of your quarter beat strikes, he often does not realize that he’s making a huge strategic error by exposing his back during the fight.
Neck Crank Technique - You can also acquire the chest to back position by applying the neck crank technique at the end of your razing sequence. I have a saying, “When the neck turns, the body follows.”
Neck Crank Demonstration
Step 1: Begin with your palm pressed against the opponent’s chin.
Step 2: Next, push your opponent’s chin in a counter clockwise direction.
Step 3: As your opponent’s head and body turn, release contact from the chin.
Step 4: Once the opponent exposes his back, insert your arm against this throat.
Step 5: Next, solidify the rear naked choke hold.
Step 6: Apply pressure with both of your arms while forcing the opponent to the ground.
Razing Targets
Razing techniques require you to attack a very specific set of anatomical targets. All of these targets can be found on the opponent’s face and head. They include the following:
Eyes
Temple
Nose
Chin
Throat
Neck
Let’s begin by looking at each target. We will start with the opponent’s eyes.
All of your razing targets can be found on the opponent’s face and head.
EYES
Eyes sit in the orbital bones of the skull. They are ideal targets for razing because they are extremely sensitive and difficult to protect, and damaging them requires very little force. The eyes can be poked, scratched, and gouged from a variety of angles. Depending on the force of your strike, it can cause numerous injuries, including:
watering of the eyes
hemorrhaging,
blurred vision
temporary or permanent blindness
severe pain
rupture
shock
unconsciousness
TEMPLE
The temple or sphenoid bone is a thin, weak bone located on the side of the skull approximately 1 inch from the eyes. Because of its fragile structure and close proximity to the brain, a powerful strike to this target can be deadly. Other injuries include
unconsciousness
hemorrhage
concussion
shock
coma
NOSE
The nose is made up of a thin bone, cartilage, numerous blood vessels, and many nerves. It’s a particularly good target for razing because it stands out from the opponent’s face and can be struck from three different directions (up, straight, down). A powerful blow can cause:
stunning pain
eye-watering
temporary blindness
hemorrhaging
shock
unconsciousness
CHIN
The chin is equally a good target for razing techniques. When it is struck at a 45-degree angle, shock is transmitted to the cerebellum and cerebral hemispheres of the brain, resulting in paralysis and immediate unconsciousness. Other possible injuries include:
broken jaw
concussion
whiplash to the neck
THROAT
The throat is a lethal razing target because it is only protected by a thin layer of skin. This region consists of the thyroid, hyaline and crocoid cartilage, trachea, and larynx. The trachea, or windpipe, is a cartilaginous tube that measures 4 1/2 inches in length and is approximately 1 inch in diameter. A powerful strike to this target can result in:
unconsciousness
blood drowning
massive hemorrhaging
air starvation
death
If the thyroid cartilage is crushed, hemorrhaging will occur, the windpipe will quickly swell shut, resulting in suffocation.
BACK OF NECK
The back of the neck consists of the first seven vertebrae of the spinal column. They act as a circuit board for nerve impulses from the brain to the body. The back of the neck is a lethal target because the vertebrae are poorly protected. A quick and forceful twisting of the neck can cause:
shock
unconsciousness
a broken neck
complete paralysis
coma
death
The opponent’s neck serves as both an anchoring point as well as a zero beat target.
Probable Reaction Dynamics from Razing
In my book, Maximum Damage: Hidden Secrets Behind Brutal Fighting Combinations, I discussed the critical importance of mastering “probab
le reaction dynamics.” Basically, probable reaction dynamics refer to your opponent’s anticipated or predicted movements or actions during combat.
Probable reaction dynamics awareness is also a vital component of razing. As a matter of fact, your entire razing sequence is predicated on how your opponent reacts to your hits. Each of one of the opponent’s physical reactions will determine each one of
your quarter beat strikes. Remember, razing techniques are not memorized or delivered in a specific sequence or set pattern. They are spontaneous and delivered in a very intuitive and adaptable manner.
For reasons of simplicity, I’ve included a list of general probable reaction dynamics your opponent might demonstrate when being razed.
1. He will fall to the ground and curl into a fetal position.
2. He will push you away and attempt to disengage the range.
3. He will rush forward and try to “steam roll” you.
4. He will grab your razing hand and try to pull it off his face.
5. He will turn his head away and expose his back to you.
6. He will swing violently in a futile attempt to get you off of him.
There are other, more specific, probable reaction dynamics that might occur when you are razing your adversary. For example:
1. Raking the eyes usually forces the opponent’s head down.
2. Palm jolts and vertical elbow strikes often force the opponent’s head to snap backwards.
3. Shaving forearms often turn the opponent’s head sideways.
4. Short arc hammer fist strikes often bring the opponent’s head down.
5. When executing a throat crush, the opponent will almost always attempt to pull your hand away.
The Razing Stance
Theoretically you can raze your opponent from any standing posture, however if you want to maximize the effectiveness of your assault you should employ razing techniques from a good stance.
A razing stance should function as a “reference point” from where you will deliver your offensive strikes while exploiting your opponent’s reaction dynamics.
A good stance facilitates optimum execution of your razing techniques while simultaneously protecting your vital body targets against a counter strike.
To achieve the razing stance, position your feet and body at a 45-degree angle from the opponent. This moves your body targets back and away from direct attack but leaves you strategically positioned to raze your adversary.
When assuming a razing stance, place your weak side to the front. For example, a right-handed person stands with his or her left side toward the assailant. Keeping your weakest side to the front
enhances the stability of your anchor while maximizing the power of your razing arm. This doesn’t mean that you should never practice fighting from your other side. You must be capable of razing from both sides, and you should spend equal practice time on the left and right stances.
When assuming your razing stance, place your feet slightly wider than shoulder width apart. Keep your knees bent and flexible. You must be stable when razing your adversary, so keep fifty percent of your body weight on each leg and always be in control of it.
Razing & Anchoring
In Chapter 2, I discussed the various ways you can anchor your opponent. Since we are discussing razing in this chapter, this section just serves as a brief review of offensive anchoring.
Pictured here, the author demonstrates the proper anchoring technique for razing.
As I said earlier, anchoring is the strategic process of trapping the assailant’s limb in order to control the range of engagement. Once again, the opponent’s neck is the ideal “anchor point” when delivering your razing techniques. Anchoring is critical for effective razing skills for the following five reasons:
1. It maintains the close quarter range necessary for effective and continuous razing.
2. It prevents the adversary from disengaging from you when you are razing him. In essence, the two of you are “locked up”
until you choose to break the connection.
3. By anchoring the opponent’s neck you will maximizes the damage of your razing techniques. It permits you to apply maximum pressure against facial and throat targets.
4. It provides a “tactile” reference point if your vision is impaired during the course of the fight. As a matter of fact, if you are adequately trained, you can perform razing techniques without actually seeing your opponent. Essentially, if you can feel the opponent, you can raze him!
5. Controlling the opponent’s neck is a very dominant action that transmits a very strong message to your adversary.
Psychologically, the action of anchoring establishes you as an “Alpha” or “Predator.” When this is combined with razing, your opponent immediately becomes psychologically terrorized.
Razing Limitations
Unfortunately, razing is not the be-all and end-all self-defense solution. Actually, no self-defense technique or methodology is an end in itself. Functional self-defense requires you to possess a wide range of skills, tactics and techniques. Razing does have its limitations and should be seen as just another tool in your self-defense tool box.
What follows is a list of several situations when razing should not be used.
1. Non Deadly Force situations - As I said earlier, razing can produce serious bodily harm and possible death for your adversary. It is classified as deadly force and must only be used when you are legally justified to use deadly force.
2. Pain compliance situation - Razing should never be used as an intermediate use-of-force response. It’s not designed to be a compliance tool to gain control of your opponent.
3. Multiple attacker situations - Successfully defending against multiple attackers requires the freedom to hit and move around your opponents. Unfortunately, razing requires you to commit and anchor to one opponent at a time. Essentially, your mobility is temporarily inhibited.
4. Knife and Edged Weapon situations - The number one rule when defending against an edged weapon attack is to always control the weapon first and then neutralize the assailant. Razing a knife wielding adversary with one hand while attempting to control his knife with your other is a foolish action that will almost certainly get you killed.
Razing Demonstrations
To give you a better understanding of my razing methodology, I’ve included nine different razing demonstrations. Keep in mind that all of the following razing sequences are performed and completed in just a few seconds.
About the Photographs
Also, the following photographs were taken during a live razing demonstration. They are snapshots of fast and dynamic movements in real-time. They are not posed!
Unfortunately, still photographs don’t do justice to the ferocious nature of razing. To truly appreciate the Widow Maker program and witness how fast and devastating razing can be, I strongly encourage you to watch the numerous razing demonstrations featured in my Widow Maker video. It truly is a sight to behold. You can find it on my website and Amazon.com
THE WIDOW MAKER DVD
Razing Demonstration # 1
Step 1: Franco begins with his left hand anchored behind the neck.
Step 2: The razing begins with a shaving forearm.
Step 3: As Franco drives his forearm across the face, he prepares for an eye rake.
Step 4: Next, he attacks with a vertical eye rake.
Step 5: As he rakes his hand downward, he prepares for a palm jolt.
Step 6: Franco delivers a palm jolt to the chin.
Step 7: Without breaking contact with the face, he delivers a diagonal elbow strike.
Step 8: After delivering the elbow strike, he attacks with a reverse shaving forearm.
Step 9: The shaving forearm turns into another eye rake attack.
Step 10: Once again, without breaking contact, Franco sets up the neck crank.
Step 11: Franco cranks the neck counter clockwise with both of his hands.
Step 12: The razing se
quence is complete.
Razing Demonstration #2
Step 1: Franco starts with his left hand anchoring the neck.
Step 2: The razing begins with a shaving forearm.
Step 3: Franco follows up with a short arc hammer fist strike to the nose.