Bulls vs Bears: How to Tell Who Controls the Market

One question decides your whole trading day. Who controls? Read the answer off the candles, the structure, and the sequence… then hunt only in that direction.

From the free MicrosTrader Trading Library… 140 lessons mined from 1,042 live ES and MES futures sessions taught since 2018.

Who controls the market… the bulls or the bears? One side always holds the ball. You read which side by three things: the sequence of highs and lows, the character of the candles, and how price behaves at key break levels. Then you trade in the controlling side's direction and treat everything against it as counter-trend.

George asks this question in nearly every live session he trades in ES E-mini futures and MES micro futures. This page gathers his full teaching on control from over 100 recorded sessions… how to diagnose it, why one red candle never changes it, and how to stay on the right side of price action.

“"Who controls? Trade with them. Which direction is the current going? That's the way you want to go."”

— George, live session, Mar 25, 2025

ES futures Battle Plan chart from George’s published record

From George’s published record: Micros Trade Plan #334 — a 60-point move, mapped in advance.

Why You Trade With the Controlling Side

Start with the payoff. Trades taken with the controlling side carry the whole weight of the market behind them. Trades taken against it fight that same weight the entire ride.

His own trade stats hammer the point home. One session review scored eight potential trades and found a clean split… the four that would have become full losers all ran counter to the trend, and the four that would have become full winners all ran with it. "There's a lesson there to think about" (March 26, 2025). Why fight that math? "Why not put the odds of success in your favor and trade with who controls?"

“"When the Bears control, shorts are cool. They're easier. They almost all work. When the Bulls control, almost every long works."”

— George, live session, Mar 25, 2025

George has taught this in 100+ recorded sessions… and every claim in the full lesson links to the recording it came from. The full lesson covers far more than fits here.

Read the full lesson free at MicrosTrader.com →

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📍 Originally published on MicrosTrader.com

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