Killer instinct

You can not always wait for the perfect opportunity or wait till you set up a trap, rather you have to just go in. This is courage but it doesn't equate to someone with a killer instinct. Coach had all these little tests to see if someone possessed a killer's instinct. He wouldn't train somebody who didn't have it because he believed the fighter who lacked it would be eaten by the fighter would had it. Here's a real example, today there a fighters who bob and weave under their opponents navel which is an illegal tactic.

Coach taught us to retaliate with a 360 elbow strike to the back of the head followed up by a knee to the head. I'll demonstrate how to set it up in boxing. While the other fighter is rolling head low under your armpit. Drive your right elbow into the back of his neck this is easily done by keeping the right hand in the high guard. Secondly as soon as the fighter touches the canvas knee him in the head. Making sure the rear toe doesn't leave the mat! Then tell the ref the knee resulted from a missed right uppercut.

Most fighters aren't likely to do this since it's dangerous and against the rules. So coach gave little tests, if my fight ended with the other fighter getting cut, he'd make a joke out of it by saying- that cut is a piece of art and if you understood the joke you might have a killer instinct.

If someone hits you low you retaliate and do the same. If they keep doing it you escalate the payback to deter them further.

Different strokes and all that but I think anyone wanting to elbow someone in the back of the head or knee them in the head, and anyone that endorses/encourages it, neither displays it or knows what killer instinct is.

Are we talking about boxing or street fighting? There is nothing more disgusting then a dirty boxer. After awhile he is lucky if anyone will even spar with him, and I have known coaches that taught 'dirty boxing', who eventually were not only shunned by others, but were not welcome into boxing gyms even to watch. It's like a football player carying brass knuckles into a game, or a basket ball player delivering elbows blows to the ribs of another player. Granted there are times when accidental illegal blows are done. But there has to be an understanding that 'killer instinct' does not mean kill or cripple your opponent by any means...that's for military people.