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It frustrates me that evidence is now available on the effectiveness various styles of unarmed combat but so many people seem to ignore it. There is a lot of pl

It frustrates me that evidence is now available on the effectiveness various styles of unarmed combat but so many people seem to ignore it. There is a lot of placebo product sold in the martial arts industry that is designed to make students feel good about themselves while falsely claiming to be effective. The advent of MMA gave us hard evidence on which martial arts were real. If you can't grapple (wrestling, Jiu Jitsu, or Judo), then you have no business being in a fight with someone who can. The styles of striking that emphasized full-speed sparring and competition (western Boxing, Muay Thai) appear to be much more effective than traditional styles based on learning various forms and katas. The very rule changes that allowed MMA to stay legal in the US have corrupted its use as a pure laboratory of combat. However it is still the best legal experiment for the testing of martial arts. There is nothing stopping a Nth-degree blackbelt from stepping into the cage to prove the validity of his discipline, except for Thai boxers accustomed to kicking people in the face. So far, the challengers are few (again, except for Lyoto Machida).

plinkplonk 17y ago
"The advent of MMA gave us hard evidence on which martial arts were real." I see your point, but playing the devil's advocate here, fighting in a ring under rules is still very different from a fight on a street (no "rounds", no referee, multiple opponents, no holds barred, weapons, uneven lighting and general chaos). Japanese martial arts may have been designed to deal with fighting armored swordsmen on a battlefield, for example. So the "framing" of MMA may just show the effectiveness of various styles within that frame. Still useful, but not the ultimate lab (as you point out).
- wyclif 17y ago
  I've seen very few unarmed fights on the street that didn't end up as a ground fight in the first 30 seconds. This is the specific criticism of styles like Brazilian Jiu-jitsu that emphasize grappling and holds over striking: real-world street fights rarely employ strikes refined in sparring sessions or exotic weapons.
  - plinkplonk 17y ago
    "I've seen very few unarmed fights on the street that didn't end up as a ground fight in the first 30 seconds" you are talking about one on one fights? The few (street) fights I've seen were gang on gang or gang on one Any one grapplng on the ground in those situations would probably have their heads kicked in in the first minute (This isn't to vilify acquiring skills in groundfighting/grappling. Both are useful skills to have in a well rounded fighter. I would be wary of a style with zero striking however). The best strategy might be(as with programming) learn many styles (languages), one per important paradigm, and mix and match as the situation (project) warrants)

plinkplonk 17y ago

"The advent of MMA gave us hard evidence on which martial arts were real." I see your point, but playing the devil's advocate here, fighting in a ring under rules is still very different from a fight on a street (no "rounds", no referee, multiple opponents, no holds barred, weapons, uneven lighting and general chaos). Japanese martial arts may have been designed to deal with fighting armored swordsmen on a battlefield, for example. So the "framing" of MMA may just show the effectiveness of various styles within that frame. Still useful, but not the ultimate lab (as you point out).

wyclif 17y ago
I've seen very few unarmed fights on the street that didn't end up as a ground fight in the first 30 seconds. This is the specific criticism of styles like Brazilian Jiu-jitsu that emphasize grappling and holds over striking: real-world street fights rarely employ strikes refined in sparring sessions or exotic weapons.
- plinkplonk 17y ago
  "I've seen very few unarmed fights on the street that didn't end up as a ground fight in the first 30 seconds" you are talking about one on one fights? The few (street) fights I've seen were gang on gang or gang on one Any one grapplng on the ground in those situations would probably have their heads kicked in in the first minute (This isn't to vilify acquiring skills in groundfighting/grappling. Both are useful skills to have in a well rounded fighter. I would be wary of a style with zero striking however). The best strategy might be(as with programming) learn many styles (languages), one per important paradigm, and mix and match as the situation (project) warrants)