Tell me why?

Question

Why does everyone think that Muay Thai is like the best martial art out there?

Answer 1

i wouldnt say its the best, but i think muay thai and BJJ are the two best BASE martial arts as far as MMA goes... both arts teach most reasonable and realistic strategies.... muay thai is one of the few striking martial arts that doesnt rely on lightning fast reflexes as means of deffense, it teaches a person to defend themselves by weakening the blow of an opponent useing positioning rather being able to simple place your hand or leg in the perfect position at lightning speed... there IS NO ""BEST" MARTIAL ART, but in my opinion BJJ and Muay Thai are two of the best base techniques to learn going into MMA

Answer 2

Because it's simple to understand. That's it. It seems to make sense, no mystery, so it works the best.

Answer 3

mma fighter is definetly on the right track. The reason that they are such good base styles for MMA is that they get you to the point where you can apply them effectivly fairly quickly, which is one of the main goals in training MMA.

Styles like karate, kung fu, tae kwon do, etc. tend to take longer to learn and get to the point where you can use them effectivly. Neither way is right or wrong, it is just different ways of teaching and learning. Traditional arts teach slow because it gives the instructor a chance to evaluate your temperment and charicter before you get to the point where you could actually hurt somebody severly. It also shows the instructor if you have the patients and dicipline to stick with it. To most good instructors, you are more then just a pay check.

Muay Thai is great for many Americans because it fills the I want it now mentality many of them have. It is definetly a very effective striking style, but quite honestly no more so then any Okinawin style of karate, or kyokoshin karate, or San Shou which is the kung fu eqivelant of Muay Thai, only with throws and take downs. Realize also that many of the people on here that say Muay Thai is the best do not actually train themselves. Their knowledge of martial arts begins and ends at the ogtagon. Most people that actually train, like MMA fighter, will tell you that the way you train is far more importent then what you train.

Answer 4

It's not the best.  No martial art is the best.  There's always pros and cons to each style.  Muay Thai is just popular for it's brutality and probably ease of learning.

Answer 5

because of its promotion and success in mixed martial arts.

it IS an effective striking art. of that there is no doubt.

it is also fairly early on when compared to other arts to pick up the basics AND it has a regular "self checking" mechanism for quality as there is an outlet for realistic striking competitions- this IMO- helps keeps gyms honest as they are measured against a standard.

so gyms are very much more likely than not to provide good and realistic training. the "not" tends to be programs not geared for fighting that are blatantly obvious like "executive muai thai" at balleys gym or something, and just plain crappy coaches.

mt has a very realistic training methodology which is the key.

Answer 6

...because it's been proven over the years in the UFC ring (Anderson Silva). To me its like dirty boxing w/out the gloves & using your elbows/knees (most brutal way to deliver strikes).

Answer 7

alot of people who say that dont have any experience in any other martial arts.

not a slight on muay thai, it kicks *ss...literally.

but how many times you heard someone on here ask "whats the best martial art?"....and some 11 year old kid says "ohhhhh take taekwondo its the best!!!" ...its the same thing

what IS so good about muay thai? no forms, no kata, no nonesense...just hardcore kickboxing that works. its live training, and hard sparring. and produces great results alot faster than any karate or kung fu system. that isnt to say its better.

if you want to learn to fight quickly...muay thai is hard to beat in striking range.

another reason its so popular is because it isnt ONLY striking...but leads right into clinching as well. which most striking arts dont.

Answer 8

A few reasons why it is an effective martial art (in no particular order):

- little or no emphasis on forms, high emphasis on sparring

- ring proven

- complete as a stand up art (elbows, knees, shins, as well as hands and feet

- outstanding clinch work and basic throws

- high emphasis on conditioning

- can be picked up fairly quickly

- emphasis on 'aliveness' in training

- does not require amazing flexibility

- powerful and distinctive kicks (no chambering)

- hand techniques heavily influenced by western boxing (which has also done its proof in the ring)

- strong record of Thai fighters against other martial artists (statistical evidence)

- defensively very sound (no emphasis on lightningly fast reflexes, just good covering up)

- competitive rule set favoring relatively realistic training

- suits most body types

There are other stand-up martial arts that stand their ground well against muay thai (sanda, kyokushin karate, and -to a lesser extent perhaps- western boxing), but you cannot go very wrong with any of these...

Answer 9

IDK, to me it's just another kickboxing style. It's a very good art, but it's no better than Chung Do Kwan or any other kickboxing style.