Re-Shot

Last updated: June 7, 2026

What is a re-shot?

A re-shot is what it sounds like: shooting again after a first shot fails. A wrestler drives in for a double leg, the opponent blocks it or pulls a leg back, and instead of standing up to reset, the attacker stays low and goes right back in, usually switching to a different attack.

The point is timing. A defender who just stuffed one shot is briefly out of position and still reacting to the first attack. That half-second window is when a second shot has the best chance of landing. Stand back up, and the opening closes.

Re-shooting is the foundation of what coaches call chain wrestling, the habit of linking attacks together rather than firing one shot and hoping. At the top level, takedowns are rarely won on the first try. Jordan Burroughs, a 2012 Olympic gold medalist and multiple-time world champion in freestyle wrestling, built much of his offense on relentless re-shots, which is why his name comes up whenever the technique is taught.

How a re-shot works

Three things make a re-shot work, and none of them involve a new technique. The first is level. After a shot is stopped, the instinct is to pop back up to a standing stance, but that hands the defender time to recover. Good re-shooters keep their hips low and their head up so the next attack is already half-loaded.

The second is changing the angle or the target. Going back to the same leg the same way tends to meet the same defense, so a stuffed double leg becomes an outside-sweep single, or a high crotch that gets defended by pulling the leg back becomes a low single on the other side. The defender solves one problem and gets handed another.

The third is reading the reaction. The block itself creates the opening. When a defender sprawls, sliding the legs back to drop weight on the attacker, or shoves a head down to kill a shot, they commit their weight in one direction. The re-shot goes where that weight is not.

Offensive and defensive re-shots

Re-shots come in two forms, depending on who shot first.

An offensive re-shot is the follow-up to the attacker’s own shot. You shoot, the opponent defends, you shoot again before they settle. A defensive re-shot flips it. The opponent shoots, you block the attack, and as they start to lift their level to come back to their stance, you stay down and shoot on them. Their recovery becomes your setup. Two-time NCAA champion and Olympian Ben Askren has taught this version as a way to turn an opponent’s failed attack into your own takedown.

	Offensive re-shot	Defensive re-shot
Who shoots first	You do	Your opponent does
Trigger	Your shot gets stuffed	You block their shot
The opening	Opponent reacting to your first attack	Opponent raising their level to recover
Typical follow-up	Switch to a different leg attack	Shoot as they stand back up

A close cousin is the misdirection re-shoot, where the first shot is a deliberate fake to one side that pulls the defender’s weight, opening the real attack on the other.

Re-shot vs. chain wrestling

These two terms get used almost interchangeably, but they are not the same thing.

Chain wrestling is the broad idea of stringing techniques together so an opponent is always reacting and never resetting. It covers takedown-to-takedown transitions, sprawl to front headlock, a snapdown into a re-shot, even reversals and submissions in MMA and Brazilian jiu-jitsu.

A re-shot is one specific link in that chain: a second shot after a first one fails. Every re-shot is a piece of chain wrestling, but plenty of chain wrestling involves no re-shooting at all. In MMA, Cain Velasquez built a heavyweight title run on chained single-leg attacks and constant pressure, and his game shows how re-shots fit inside the larger idea of never letting a defender breathe.

	Re-shot	Chain wrestling
What it is	A repeated takedown shot	Linking any techniques in sequence
Scope	One move	A whole approach
Example	Double leg to single leg after a block	Sprawl to front headlock to back take

Common misconceptions

One mistake newer wrestlers make is treating the re-shot as a panic move, diving back in wildly after getting stuffed. A real re-shot is controlled. The wrestler holds position and picks the next attack rather than flailing.

Another is thinking the second shot has to copy the first. It usually does not. The value comes from changing the attack so the defender has to solve a new problem under time pressure.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does re-shot mean in wrestling?

A re-shot is a second takedown attempt taken right after a first shot is defended, before the opponent can recover their position.

Is a re-shot the same as chain wrestling?

No. A re-shot is a single repeated shot. Chain wrestling is the wider habit of linking many techniques together, and a re-shot is one example of it.

Can you re-shot in MMA?

Yes. Fighters chain takedowns the same way wrestlers do, switching from a stuffed double leg to a single or a body lock to finish.

Who is known for re-shots?

Jordan Burroughs is the name cited most often, since much of his freestyle offense ran on relentless second and third shots.

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Sources

1. Fanatic Wrestling. “Attacking vs Shooting: Change Your Mindset.” Accessed June 2026.
   https://fanaticwrestling.com/blogs/news/attacking-vs-shooting-change-your-mindset
2. Fanatic Wrestling. “8 Drills To Take Your Wrestling To The Next Level.” Accessed June 2026.
   https://fanaticwrestling.com/blogs/news/8-drills-to-take-your-wrestling-to-the-next-level
3. Evolve MMA. “Explosive Takedown Transitions: When And How To Mix Wrestling Into MMA Striking.” Accessed June 2026.
   https://evolve-mma.com/blog/explosive-takedown-transitions-when-and-how-to-mix-wrestling-into-mma-striking/
4. Get Physical. “Chain Wrestling: The Ultimate Cardio Workout for Grapplers.” Accessed June 2026.
   https://www.getphysical.com/blog/chain-wrestling-ultimate-cardio-workout-grapplers
5. Wikipedia. “Takedown (grappling).” Accessed June 2026.
   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takedown_(grappling)

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