When the Fight Hits the Ground: A Real-World Example of Winning from the Defensive Position

Why we train for the worst-case scenario—because that’s often the real one.

Attack by naked man forces 79-year-old to shoot from an unconventional position on the ground

Some real-life stories shake us awake. They strip away the glossy image of self-defense and remind us what it actually looks like. One such story just unfolded in Los Angeles—and it speaks directly to the heart of the Never Defenseless mission.

A 79-year-old Vietnam veteran, responding to a neighbor in danger, was slammed to the ground by a naked, violent assailant, breaking both of his legs in the process. Yet—flat on the ground, injured, overwhelmed—he drew his firearm and engaged the threat from the ground. He won.

Yes, he won the fight—by shooting from the ground, in pain, against a much younger attacker.

This is not the sanitized version of self-defense many imagine. This is reality—and it’s why we train for it.

See the full story here.

The Defensive Position: Why It Matters

In Defensive Pistol Skills, we emphasize that you won’t always be standing when it’s time to fight. Whether you trip, get tackled, or chose to, you may have to fight from the ground.

That’s why we teach the Defensive Position—a grounded shooting stance where your body is compact, indexed, and ready to respond. It’s not glamorous. But it’s real.

This veteran’s story reinforces three key truths:

1. Expect to be knocked down.

2. You can still win.

3. Mindset beats perfection.

Our Training Approach: Practice from the Ground

We don’t just theorize about fighting from the ground—we train it. We learn:

• How to access your firearm from the ground (even when partially pinned)

• How to use your legs to create distance or frame the attacker

• How to take advantage of the grounded angle

• How to retain your firearm in close quarters when standing is not an option

Train to fight from non-standard positions.

You Don’t Need to Be a Combat Veteran to Train Like One

Let’s be clear: the man in this story has previous training to draw from. But you don’t need military service or tactical gear to train smart.

If you’re preparing to defend yourself and your family—this scenario is still yours.

• You might be slammed to the floor by a larger attacker

• You might choose to take this Defensive Position against someone wielding a knife

• You might be injured, disoriented, overwhelmed

And if you’ve trained to fight from the Defensive Position? You’re still in the fight.

What “Never Defenseless” Really Means

Being never defenseless isn’t about bravado. It’s about resilience when conditions collapse. It’s about training when it’s inconvenient. And it’s about learning to win from positions most people fear—because that’s often what real fights demand.

So here’s your takeaway:

If you carry a defensive pistol, train to use it from the ground. Because as this Vietnam veteran just proved—the fight may come when your legs are gone, your body is broken, and all you’ve got left is mindset, training, and a will to survive.

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