How are you so sure that your martial art is useful in a real combat situation?

Question

Have you tried it in a real combat ? Or you are hoping that work

This question is for traditional martial arts practitioners ,not for MMA practitioners which we know it works.

Answer 1

because mine helped me survive an attack with a knife, and guess what, there were no rules and no ref to stop it, and i didn't get a break after I was cut open. if my style ha dnot trained me for knife attacks I probably wouldn't have. trust me the real world is nothing like the octogan.

Not that I am saying a MMA's person would not be able to defend himself, I think they would admirably, however there may be situations, such as a knife, or more then one person, that are totally foreign to them.

We test our self defense with full speed and power Randori, however we pull back on some strikes, but grapplin motions and attack are done full speed and resistance.

I like your thinly veiled attempt to slam traditional arts, I will give you credit for that, but there is no garuntee a Muay Thai/Bjj trained person would have survived this knife attack, as I turned and just saw the knife as it was stabbing in at me. Wasn't no posturing up. So much for the repetative motions of kata being useless.

Answer 2

h**l yeah I use that skill in real combat. We don't tap eachother when we spar either, we make full contact. Having the ability to win an combative encounter without being touched is a nice trick to have up ones sleeve. Is Martial Arts useful, definitely. Hoping it works, no. Knowing it works, yes. By the way MMA(mixed martial arts) is a combination of several fighting styles as well as grappling and wrestling you can incorporate any style into your arsenal if your good and use it effectively. So MMA is what, Martial Arts. And now you know. MMA fan for life....

Answer 3

I find this question . . . laughable.  

#1)  Where do you think MMA evolved from?

#2)  In the ring there are rules.  MMA practitioners train for the ring.  They train with those rules.  In a real llife combat situation there are no rules . . .

#3)  Traditional martial arts were wielded, honed and perfected on the battlefield.  If you or your art weren't good enough, you didn't live to pass it on.

#4)  If any martial art is trained in a progressive manner towards reality situations and is taught in a manner that the principles and the science behind the techniques are understood and ingrained as second nature, then the practitioner is better prepared for real life combat.

#5)  I have had plenty of opportunity to test my art working in private security sector for several years (no longer though, but proved it's worth)

Answer 4

Having fought for my safety, not pride, in real life numerous times... My answer would be a resounding yes!

I too have been in situations where guns were visible, knives were visible, and intent for harm was the universal feeling. I have been in situations where there were anywhere from two to many people. Only once have I been in a situation where there was only one attacker. I am still alive today, and with all of my parts fully functional, thanks to the Martial Arts.

I pity your type of person, ignorant to the point of retardation. The asinine statements your type has made throughout the past 18 years of my life initially drew anger from me. I so wanted to prove to everybody who doubted, or didn't believe that they were wrong. Now though, through my experience of life I would no longer have the emotion of anger or hatred, so the only thing left I can give you is a drop of pity, as it proves how sad our society has become.

I would say that I too have yet to hear of an MMA player handling himself in a real situation and coming out on top. There was a recent article about Urija Faber and some friends while on vacation, but  I haven't heard the whole story so, maybe there's one for you.

The fact of the matter is a real Martial Artist doesn't flash their skills to the world for boost of ego. The purpose behind the intense study is personal GROWTH not personal GAIN.

Much luck in the rest of your life.

Answer 5

What do you mean combat situation ?

Nearly every situation that you will be involved with that uses Martial Arts is a Self Defense situation. Nearly all of the time when you use it you have either been

1 - Attacked from behind

2- Ambushed

3 - 4 or more people are attacking you all at once

Also where dose MMA come from traditional martial arts, it is not a completely new style. Also remember it is the person who fight not the style.

Answer 6

No martial art can protect against incoming missiles, bullets, mortor rounds, and mines.  

What's your definition of combat?  A bar fight?

Answer 7

Well, I did two styles of karate. Now I'm in MMA 8 hours a week. I have serious doubts any martial art will work. My thoughts are throw person on the ground, kick him in the head once and get the h**l out before your get shot or more of his friends show up.

Answer 8

Because I've successfully defended myself in the street against weapon attacks and on more than a few occasions facing multiple attackers.

I'll spare the details as these days I find it unnecessary to justify myself in minute detail,suffice to say ...done,that and wore the tee-shirt  :(***

Answer 9

Is Bjj traditional I have kicked peoples asses with it

Answer 10

I really hate these "us and them" questions. We're all martial artists here- don't be so immature!

Answer 11

I have been in some street fights, and I have found my martial arts quite useful indeed. 3 men tried to mug me in Houston and I KO'd 2 before they knew what hit them. The 3rd a.h. ran rapidly away when he saw his pals fall. I had a feud with a founder of the Wah Cheng gang. 2 of his pals drew pistols on me, and I had only my hands and feet. 5 men attacked me at a bar. 6 men were going to beat my brother, but when they saw me with him, they ran. What is MMA exactly? Is it anything like UFC? I have seen a bit of that stuff on TV, but it is boring watching hogs wallow in the mud, so I soon switch channels. If it is similar, I think you are wrong. I would like to see some UFC clowns in the situations I have encountered.

Answer 12

Sorry but actually non of the single traditional arts. You will have to mix arts in order to have effective self-defence system. I would suggest some form of JKD based art that will give you appliable kickboxing skills (like Jun Fan kickboxing), fast solutions if u get close (like elbows/knees etc from FMA) and if you get on the ground (which is not really desirable in street fight for various reasons) then u will need some efficient modification of bjj or similar to fast escape or fast finish.

You will also need all this in coherent form (as a fighting system with logic flow) plus some extra desirable elements like knife / stick FMA approach and overal attitude / stress fighting training. All in all, i would suggest Progressive Fighting System developed by Paul Vunak or some smiliar Jeet Kune Do based art. Cheers & good luck! :)

Answer 13

And by what reasoning do you think MMA practioners "know it works" rather than TRADITIONAL MARTIAL ARTISTS.

Since the mid 50s there are hundreds of newspaper accounts of TMA practioners defeating armed assailants .I have yet to read of any MMA people doing the same.

Yes TMA has become a bunch of watered down bullshido by the great majority of mcdojos" karate is fun and cool "more interested in making people look like a martial artist instead of being a martial artist all in the pursuit of an easy buck by people to lazy to work for a living.

You also seem to have the opinion that MMA is something new .Properly taught TMA has always been a MMA practice.

In the pursuit of tournament trophys and other dust collectors much of what was effective in TMA was shoved aside and the people who learn't this junk went on to teach this basterdized western c**p as  a TMA.

Have I used it to defend myself?YES.

Slashed on the temple with a razor I won

Stabbed in the arm I won

Had a gun shoved in my face without warning I took it away and kept it

Have I used it in defense of others again YES in a few cases absolute strangers.

I teach security and police personnel I have to be sure what I teach works against any attacker including dummys who want to do it on the ground.

There are only 3 type of personalitys  sheep your average person wolves who prey on the average person and sheep dogs who put themselves between the wolves and the sheep.

Looked at it from that perspective sport applications seem a great waste of time and energy .

I will give you this point and it is probably the reason you believe as you do.In the last 15 years I have visited many TMA dojo there was only 2 or 3 I would reccomend as a place to learn the rest were trash.

Answer 14

I totally agree with Katana's answer. This is a pretty snide shot at traditional martial artists. It's also a bit hypocritical, which I find mildly amusing *smirk*.

The hypocrisy is, how would an MMA practitioner know their art worked in a self defence situation if they have never had the chance to test it? Fighting one on one in an arena, with rules and a referee, is NOT a self defence situation, is it? In fact, I think if an MMA practitioner was confronted by multiple opponents, or someone armed with a knife, they might be a little bit out of their element. Not to say that they couldn't defend themself - it's just that in most traditional martial arts, we train for self defence, not for sport, so we're taught to deal with multiple opponents and people with weapons, etc.

Ultimately though, the ability to defend yourself comes down to whether you've been well taught by your instructor, and whether you have the mentality to use what you know effectively. I've fortunately never been attacked, but it gives me a little confidence that, if it does happen, I at least know enough to defend myself efficiently.

Answer 15

Lots of good points to the people who have answered before me. As always, Aaron J, bunmin, and all the rest of the main answerers have given fantastic answers.

I will add my own. Yes, I have been in several situations. My TMA (Goju Karate) worked.

I will also add that many schools of TMA are crappy.

But I will also point out that most MMA schools focus TOO MUCH on ground work. And as a few people pointed out, not all fights are 1 on 1. You would have to be pretty stupid to go to the ground if there are more attackers.

Most MMA is unproven. They have rules. No different from the TMA schools. Don't be fooled by perceptions. Open your own eyes and see....

Answer 16

MMA is a sport-this is why a lot of MMA fans/practicioners are perceived as ignorant-because of S**t like this..MMA is no match for Krav Maga or even some forms of karate in a real life situation...will training in MMA help you in a street fight?  Absolutely-but it's not designed for that-other more "traditional" arts are more suitable.  Don't knock traditional martial arts-without it, MMA woulnd't be created and we'd all still be watching boxing and Bruce Lee movies.............

Answer 17

Yes, I know that many of my martial arts work. Especially Ninjutsu. Just break his arm with a little koppojutsu and he'll leave you alone real quick.