[paul]

most people who want to shank are going to hold the knife down at their side and stab up into the body using surprise to gain an advantage. you will likely never see the knife. crazy types are going to slash wildly, I was always taught to hold the knife pointing down out of my fist with the blade towards my wrist. This allows for a hammer stab down wards using not just your arms but all of your back muscles as well, and if someone grabs the wrist of your knife hand you can wrench downwards cutting their hand to disengage. You ca still punch as well, raking back as you come back into a set position. I think that this is one of the stronger ways to grip a knife as well.