Always look to create a viable threat to your opponent whenever possible: One of the biggest determinants of how your opponent will behave in a match overall, and at a critical juncture of a match in particular, is his THREAT ASSESSMENT of you. If he doesn't find you threatening at all, he will confidently attempt his moves. If on the other hand, he is strongly intimidated by you, he will be very reticent to attempt any but his absolute best moves and only when he feels it is safe to do so. Your opponents willingness to move is a direct reflection of the level of threat he feels. Note how georges st pierre immediately threatens a strangle when he gets behind Gordon Ryan. Even if the threat isn't particularly strong, it will keep an opponent honest and force him to restrict his hands to a passive, defensive role. Most of those defensive roles are very predictable, which means you will have the tactical advantage in an ensuing hand fight. Always seek to create a level of threat that gets your opponents attention – without it he will move much more freely and prove to be a more difficult adversary
