sleeve grip theory

one-on-one time with prof. daniel as no one else has shown up to the friday morning class. he goes over lots of small, different details. one is how to grip the opponents sleeves. although i had been gripping like a monkey (thumb pressed against my index finger) he noted that a closed hand does not work as well as keeping the hand open and only curling the fingers. (in kempo we call this a leopard fist. the top two knuckles on each finger grip around the uke's sleeve but the knuckles used for punching do not. this grip is surpisingly strong. when the uke tries to pull, i go with him instead of trying to fight it. when the hand is closed, a strong pull by uke creates an opening motion by my hand that is hard to stop. but with this leopard grip, the motion is linear and the grip is less likely to break.