About this video

• Video Title: If you know ICC, then you can trade Wick Sauce.
• Channel: Wick Sauce Ro
• Speakers: Not explicitly named, but appears to be a single primary speaker with interactive questions from an audience member.
• Duration: 02:14:11

Overview

This video explains the "Wick Sauce" trading strategy, which focuses on identifying and trading specific candle wicks as key areas of potential price reversal or continuation. The speaker connects this strategy to concepts from ICT (Inner Circle Trader) trading, such as no-trade zones, imbalances, and market structure. The goal is to provide traders with a clear method for analyzing and entering trades, particularly in ranging or consolidative markets, by focusing on high-probability wick formations.

Key takeaways

• Wick Sauce Definition: Wick Sauce involves identifying significant wicks at market structure highs or lows, anticipating a retest of these areas, and trading based on price action within these zones.
• No Trade Zones (NTZ) and Market Structure: Areas of consolidation, balance, or ranges, including individual wicks, are considered no-trade zones where both buyers and sellers are active. These are fundamentally linked to order blocks and fair value gaps.
• ICT Concepts Integration: The strategy leverages ICT concepts like indication, correction, and continuation phases. A bearish indication, for example, signals a shift in control from buyers to sellers, making the previously buyer-controlled area "sell territory."
• Marking Wicks Correctly: Emphasis is placed on marking the actual high or low of a candle (the wick) as the critical price level, rather than the body or open/close.
• Rules for Marking Wicks: The primary rules are to focus on wicks at external market structure and wicks that are "alone" (not immediately overlapping with adjacent candles' wicks by more than 50%).
• Trading Strategy: Trades are typically entered on the retest of these marked wicks, often around the 50% level of the wick (representing a premium/discount zone), with stop losses placed beyond the wick's range.
• Timeframe Correlation: Using multiple timeframes is recommended, with the general rule being to halve the timeframe for analysis (e.g., 4-hour wick analyzed on 15-minute, 1-hour on 5-minute).
• Benefits: Wick Sauce aims to reduce false signals and improve entry precision, especially in ranging markets, leading to potentially better risk-reward ratios and less drawdown.

About this video

• Video Title: If you know ICC, then you can trade Wick Sauce.
• Channel: Wick Sauce Ro
• Speakers: The primary speaker appears to be the main educator, with interactive questions and comments from an audience member, identified as "Nathan" towards the end.
• Duration: 02:14:11

Overview

This comprehensive video delves into the "Wick Sauce" trading strategy, presented as a method to effectively trade specific candle wicks, particularly within the framework of Inner Circle Trader (ICT) concepts. The speaker meticulously explains how these prominent wicks, often found at key market structure points, represent areas of high potential trading significance. The strategy aims to demystify trading, especially in volatile or ranging market conditions, by offering a refined approach to identifying entry points and understanding market dynamics through the lens of wick formations and their relationship to established trading methodologies like ICT.

Key takeaways

• Conceptual Foundation of Wick Sauce: The strategy is rooted in the idea of identifying a "significant wick" at the top or bottom of a market structure. The core belief is that price will eventually return to retest this area. This concept is directly linked to the idea that such wicks often represent an "area of indecision" or a "no trade zone" where both buying and selling pressure were active.
• No Trade Zones (NTZ) and Unified Market Concepts: The video emphasizes that terms like "consolidation," "area of balance," "order block," "sideways trend," "range," and "area of indecision" all refer to the same fundamental market condition: an area where both buyers and sellers are actively participating, resulting in overlapping price action. This is crucial because it simplifies the understanding of market behavior.
• Wicks as No Trade Zones: By definition, every wick on a candle is considered a no-trade zone because it signifies a point where price was pushed back and forth by opposing forces (buyers and sellers). The speaker argues that the market's activity within these wick areas leads to indecision, hence they are technically no-trade zones.
• Wick Sauce within ICT Framework: The video connects Wick Sauce to ICT's "Indication, Correction, Continuation" (ICC) phases. A price move that breaks through a previous support or resistance level (buyers' or sellers' control) is an "indication." The subsequent move back into that area is the "correction," and a confirmed break in the original direction is the "continuation." Wick Sauce provides a specific way to interpret and trade these phases, especially when dealing with wicks.
• Precise Identification of Market Structure Highs/Lows: A critical element is the accurate marking of market structure. The speaker stresses that the actual high or actual low of a candle (the extremity of the wick) must be used, not the open, close, or body of the candle. Incorrectly marking these levels can lead to misinterpretations of indications and continuation trades, resulting in losses.
• Rules for Selecting Tradeable Wicks:
  1. External Market Structure: Prioritize wicks that represent the absolute highs and lows of a significant trend or larger market structure.
  2. "Alone" Wicks: Focus on wicks that are isolated, meaning the wicks of adjacent candles do not overlap the primary wick's range by more than 50%. This signifies a more decisive move and a potentially "untested" area.
• Trading Mechanics and Entry Strategies:
  • Bearish Wick Sauce: If a wick forms at a high and price fails to close above it (indicating rejection), it becomes a "sell territory." Entries are sought on a subsequent candle closing below the wick, with stop losses placed above the wick's high.
  • Bullish Wick Sauce (Inverted): Conversely, if a wick forms at a low and price closes above it, it can signal a buying opportunity. Entries might occur on a retest of the wick area, with stop losses below the wick's low.
  • 50% Level as Key Entry Point: The 50% level of a wick often acts as a critical entry zone, particularly for buying in a discount area (below 50%) or selling in a premium area (above 50%), aligning with the principle of buying low and selling high.
• Timeframe Correlation and Analysis: While Wick Sauce can be applied to any timeframe, using correlated timeframes enhances analysis. A common practice is to analyze a wick on a higher timeframe (e.g., 4-hour) and then refine entries or look for confirmation on a lower timeframe (e.g., 15-minute). The principle is that significant structure on higher timeframes often mirrors patterns on lower timeframes ("inception" or fractal nature of markets).
• Avoiding Ranging Market Pitfalls: In ranging markets, where traditional ICC signals might be ambiguous or lead to losses, Wick Sauce offers a method to trade effectively by identifying zones of potential support or resistance within the range (the wicks). It turns "no trade zones" into tradable opportunities.
• Risk Management and Reward: The strategy aims for trades with potentially high Risk-to-Reward (RR) ratios (e.g., 1:8, 1:10, 1:15) because entries are often taken at the extremes of these significant wicks, and drawdowns are expected to be minimal on valid trades.
• The Importance of "Why": The speaker stresses understanding why a trade setup works, not just what the setup is. This deeper understanding, derived from concepts like order flow and market structure, builds confidence and improves trading consistency.
• Practical Application Examples: The video features numerous chart examples illustrating how to mark wicks, identify trade setups, and execute trades in real-time scenarios across different market conditions. This includes analyzing failed continuations and identifying valid entries based on the core Wick Sauce principles.

The video emphasizes that the Wick Sauce strategy can be applied across various timeframes. While the speaker demonstrates analysis on different charts, including 5-minute, 15-minute, and 1-hour, there isn't a strict rule mandating a specific timeframe for the candle closure to confirm a trade.

The key is the context of the market structure and the wick's significance on the chosen timeframe for analysis. The strategy relies on identifying wicks at key highs or lows (external structure, wicks that are "alone"). Once identified, the analysis looks for price action relative to that wick.

For example, if analyzing a wick on a 1-hour chart:

• Bearish Scenario: If price fails to close above the high of that 1-hour wick, it signals rejection. A subsequent candle (which could be on the 1-hour chart itself, or a lower timeframe like the 15-minute for refinement) closing back below the wick's high would confirm the bearish move.
• Bullish Scenario: If price closes above the low of that 1-hour wick, it signals a potential bullish continuation. A subsequent candle closing above the wick's low (or retesting it successfully) would confirm the bullish move.

The speaker stresses that the concept applies universally, but traders can use lower timeframes for more precise entry confirmation after identifying a significant wick on a higher timeframe. The crucial aspect is that the closure respects the identified wick level as a point of significance within the broader market structure.

In the context of the video, an "order block" is presented as being synonymous with an "area of balance" or "consolidation." It's described as a price range where both buyers and sellers were actively participating, leading to an indecisive market state.

Essentially, the speaker explains that when price moves sideways, creating a range with overlapping highs and lows, this entire area is considered an order block. The key takeaway from the video is that these areas are characterized by both buying and selling pressure, making them "no trade zones" in a traditional sense, but crucial reference points for future price action according to strategies like Wick Sauce and ICT. The video emphasizes that labels like "order block," "consolidation," or "area of balance" all refer to the same concept of a neutral zone with dual-sided market activity.

Here's a simplified, step-by-step process for applying Wick Sauce with ICC concepts, based on the video:

Step 1: Identify Significant Wicks

• Focus: Look for wicks at the absolute highest highs or lowest lows of a clear trend or major market structure. These are points where price was strongly rejected or pushed.
• Rule 1: External Structure: Ensure the wick is at the extreme of a significant move (e.g., the peak of an uptrend or the bottom of a downtrend).
• Rule 2: "Alone" Wick: Prioritize wicks that aren't immediately surrounded by overlapping wicks (less than 50% overlap from adjacent candles). This highlights a more decisive price action.
• Timeframe: While you can use any timeframe, using a higher timeframe (like 1-hour or 4-hour) to identify these significant wicks is recommended, and then you can drop to a lower timeframe (like 5-minute or 15-minute) for finer entry details if needed.

Step 2: Understand the Wick as a "No Trade Zone" (NTZ)

• Concept: Recognize that the area covered by the wick represents a "no trade zone" because both buyers and sellers were active there, causing indecision. This area is a future reference point.
• Key Levels: The critical levels to note are the very top (high) and the very bottom (low) of the wick. The 50% mark of the wick is also important as a potential entry or pivot zone.

Step 3: Apply ICT Concepts (Indication, Correction, Continuation)

• Indication: This is the initial strong price move away from the identified wick area.
  • If price moves strongly down from a wick at a high, it's a bearish indication.
  • If price moves strongly up from a wick at a low, it's a bullish indication.
• Correction: This is when price moves back into the wick area (the NTZ) after the indication. This is the zone where you look for your entry setup.
• Continuation: This is the expected price movement after the correction, continuing in the direction of the original indication.

Step 4: Identify Your Trade Entry (The "Wick Sauce")

• Bearish Trade:
  1. Indication: Price pushed down from a high wick.
  2. Correction: Price moves back up into the wick area.
  3. Entry Signal: Wait for a candle on your chosen timeframe to close below the high of the wick. This rejection of the higher price confirms sellers are still in control.
  4. Entry: Enter a short (sell) position as the price action confirms this rejection.
  5. Stop Loss: Place your stop loss just above the highest point of the wick.
• Bullish Trade:
  1. Indication: Price pushed up from a low wick.
  2. Correction: Price moves back down into the wick area.
  3. Entry Signal: Wait for a candle on your chosen timeframe to close above the low of the wick. This rejection of the lower price confirms buyers are still in control.
  4. Entry: Enter a long (buy) position as the price action confirms this strength.
  5. Stop Loss: Place your stop loss just below the lowest point of the wick.
• The 50% Level: Often, the entry can be refined to the 50% level of the wick itself, especially if it aligns with other indicators of support or resistance.

Step 5: Manage Your Trade

• Targets: Aim for price to move in the direction of your trade, potentially towards the next significant zone or wick.
• Risk Management: Always use your stop loss to limit potential losses. The strategy aims for trades with good risk-to-reward ratios.
• No Double Testing: Generally, only take the first test of a significant wick. If a wick has already been tested and played out, it's usually best to avoid trading it again.

In essence: Find a significant, isolated wick. Wait for price to move away from it (indication), then return to it (correction). Enter your trade when price shows rejection of the wick's boundary (closing below the high for a sell, or above the low for a buy), with your stop loss outside the wick's range.