Edge impact weapons specialist Doug Marcaida goes head to head against Instructor Zero to demonstrate what happens when an expert brings a knife to a gun fight.
They challenge the age old “21 foot rule,” which supposes that the fighter with a knife can beat a fighter with a holstered firearm if they start within 21 feet of each other.
This decades old concept was often used to train law enforcement officers to defend themselves against knives and other melee weapons. The “21 foot rule” has been examined by multiple researchers over the years and statistucs show that it takes an average of 1.5 seconds for the knife attacker to make impact with the target. In this time the shooter must observe the danger, decide how to respond (fight or flight), and react (run or draw and shoot).
In this experiment, Instructor Zero will stand with his back to the threat. He will only react when he hears the sound of Doug’s feet hitting the mat.
The raw and uncut footage below was originally filmed for the Knife vs Gun series.