What do you consider as the best martial art in the world?

Originally posted by thehumbleone

Originally posted by Straight Razor
The best martial arts in the world is Smith & Wesson.

lol I second that.

Or a Glock .22

Naw...you guys should see the AR-15 I'm building. Stops trouble from 500 yards away!

reply to post by BlackOps719

Fancy Bruce Lee kicks? They were just for effect in the movies. Jeet Kune Do is a very efficient direct martial art - no wasted motion or energy. Probably Krava Maga took the philosophy of JKD and made it's own unique style. Both in my opinion are very good, though I have never studied Krav, I have a few years of JKD along with Karate, Wing Chun and Lau Gar Kung fu. JKD is the only martial art that I felt I actually learned something in the very first class. No standing in straight lines punching up and down hall ways...


And I believe the American Special forces/navy seals used Paul Vanuk to train them (A JKD Instructor) - I could be wrong though

There is NO best martial art.

Any martial art is simply a tool.
the user of that tool and their level of discipline determines whether the tools they use are effective or not.

I can have the "best gun", but not have a clue how to shoot it.

Since no martial artist can claim total knowledge of their craft, asking a question like "which is better" is the wrong question to ask.

If you were to discipline yourself to the maximum of your capabilities, any martial art can be as effective as the other.

Personally I have found that when cornered and crying, the Tasmanian spinning windmill is virtually impenetrable. The key is to close the eyes while keeping the head down and think of the hands as razor sharp chopping blades of death.

reply to post by nirbid


What is a real ninja's first response to an attack.

They run and hide.

Good plan. No kidding.

Do you practice this?

reply to post by runetang


Intereting clips, but I know what real Fa-Jing or Fa-jin is and those guys are not even close.

Consider the top exponent of Wang Tai Ji, Chen Xiao Wang:



However, even Wang admits that it is not very useful in a fight, except for maybe a standing start on an unsuspecting individual.

It's not a combat technique but a result of years of practice of silk-reeling and instant power generation.

The top American exponent of this art, Ryan Parker, actually competed in the UFC, but was quickly defeated by a Judo player Remco Pardoel.

Google Video Link

Again, if the art is practiced solo or without a resisting opponent, it lacks 'aliveness' and is not functionalized for the street.




[edit on 18-6-2008 by Badge01]

reply to post by 5ealchris


Why not argue my points rather than beef about an attitude. Actually I've been studying MA since 1969 and have studied with a variety of instructors, including Dan Inosanto, Jorge Lastra (Arnis Lastra-filipino stickfighting), Mat Marinas, and a GJJ blackbelt, as well as studied boxing and kickboxing and competed in a number of amateur gym competitions in college.

My point is that any art which does not spar with a resisting opponent is not going to be functional in the street. It's all about the method of practice, which must be unrehearsed, and not pre-arranged.

Doe your art have such practice? If so then good for you. If not, continue to look for better methods.

2 cents.


[edit on 18-6-2008 by Badge01]

This thread is border line funny.. You are all discussing a topic that another great martial artist figured out many years ago. Not any one Martial Art's form is superior, but combinations of all when used in their areas of strength can be superior if the fighter is skilled in each area. That person was Bruce Lee, and yes he took all the best from many different forms and created JKD..

I myself did the TKD thing, but in close it's no match for many other forms..

My kids are now training under a friend of Royce Gracies, Maurcio Zingano, and I really like the results. They are not eager to cause a problem, have great respect and can defend themselves when confronted in normal situations... They are also way more aware of their surroundings all the time..

All forms have their strengths and weaknesses and none are good against someone with experience and a firearm...

As others have stated, it depends on what you are looking for.

In a street fight, where the consequences of a loss are potentially fatal, Krav Maga is the way to go. Traditional martial arts do not teach with the intent to maim or kill. Krav Maga is specifically designed for this.

If you are looking to get into competition, such as MMA, then there are three aspects of the fight to consider:

Standup
Clinch/Takedowns
Ground

Every fight starts on the feet, and Muay Thai is probably the way to go. They use all eight points of contact in their striking system (hands, elbows, knees, feet/shins) and involves both fighting from the outside and inside (Thai Clinch/Plume).

Fights generally move from standup striking to the clinch/takedown. Greco-Roman Wrestling and Judo are your best bets here, as they emphasize upper body throws/takedowns. Freestyle wrestling is also good, but since you are shooting in on your opponents legs from the outside, you may become vulnerable to counter-attacks (ie. knee to the head).

Once on the ground, by far, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. This is a system that was designed for the smaller man to beat the bigger man....and if you ARE the bigger man, well shoot. The emphasis on leverage and technique to force submission, as well as defend against submissions and strikes, are unparalleled. BJJ sparked the new trend of MMA and with good reason.

I also have to mention Combat Sambo as being a very good system. They incorporate striking, judo, and submissions in their system and it is a very complete fighting system.

Finally a topic I can sink my teeth into, Teeth Fu. I think if you look at all the arts around today they have a root in the culture and the situations of that part of the world. The question, should have been not what is the best art in the world but the best art for me or you. I am large guy, 6'4 245 and so I am not going to do very well in something that is rooted in kicking techniques due to the stress that it puts on my legs and joints. That said, I have studied Chinese, Japanese, Russian and Thai arts and they all have great strengths and if you can understand the art of each and not just the 100 moves that can kill an enemy then they are all fantastic.

That said, there are Martial arts and Martial Sciences. If you have 6 months to learn how to defend yourself you want to stay away from a art with a long term (art) approach.

The one thing I have learned is there is so much out there to learn you can spend life times and only scratch the surface.

A lot like cooking in that the food is made that tastes good based on the ingredients and culture of an area, but the basis of cooking is very similar.

shaolin kung fu makes you quick ,fast and fitter and san shao (zanda as it is also know as)powerful form of kickboxing with a difference

reply to post by Badge01

Oh sorry about beefing with your attidude. I was just kind of annoyed at that point.

But personally as I stated before the best teacher is experince.
So if you've been in a lot of fights you'll know which moves are effective and which moves arnt. And the fighting style I have developed over the years after studing a few martial arts(systema, sambo, boxing and kickboxing if your interested) and getting in a few fights and such, I just refer to It as systema because in systema your supposed to develope your own style through sparring and such.

opps double post

[edit on 18-6-2008 by 5ealchris]

reply to post by GrndLkNatv


You can synthesize all those martial arts into a style if you like but you will not be a competent fighter by practicing them in your basement alone.

It requires some form of competition and a resisting opponent.

Imagine a BJJ practitioner who spent all their time training alone with a grappling dummy.

It sounds silly in that context, but the same is true of traditional martial arts. It's just that they've always trained with cooperating opponents using three-step semi-contact sparring, so it's harder to see the truth due to their dogma.


[edit on 18-6-2008 by Badge01]

reply to post by Badge01


of course evasion is crucial. may it be 2ft or 10 yrds. the aim is surviving not proving anything to anyone.



[edit on 18-6-2008 by nirbid]

reply to post by 5ealchris


By getting into fights, what you are doing is 'functionalizing' your martial technique. You learn what works against a resisting opponent.

It's easier in arts like BJJ and wrestling where you are in contact with your opponent and can go essentially 90-100% full power without harming each other (you just tap, instead). Getting the experience in real fights will work, but the chances are risky and the opportunities are infrequent. That's why arts like bjj, wrestling, boxing, judo and MT are effective. You get nearly the same experience as a real fight but without the high potential for injury (and arrest).

Boxing is also good, but due to the pugilistic nature, you can only go about 60-70%, and have to wear gear and pads and gloves. However, the transfer factor is very high.

It's a good idea to include a type of stand up fighting along with the ability to do takedowns and trips, and finally to be able to finish the fight by taking the opponent (not necessarily yourself) to the ground and applying a submission or joint destruction or a choke.

However as the Gracies and others have shown, a rudimentary standup ability will suffice if you have excellent ground grappling capability, honed through doing a lot of rolling and maybe even competing.

IMO judo is one of the best to study, because it gives you good take down training, and it's very inexpensive and ubiquitous. They also practice newaza (ground fighting), and now days, they are training it more like BJJ players.

I find it preferable to be able to defeat an opponent by de-escalation and by talking them out of fighting. In the end the goal is not really to win, but to go home at night. Thus the ability to do a take-down and choke out is preferable because it does not have to damage the opponent if done correctly. In fact just getting a good double leg takedown onto the grass will often take the fight right out of an aggressor.

For more information look at these links:

www.aesopian.com...

www.bullshido.net...

Google Video Link

HTH.



[edit on 18-6-2008 by Badge01]

reply to post by Badge01


While studying with Danny Inosanto did you by chance ever encounter a man named Michael Echanis? He was a very interesting person, he studied and was proficient at wrang-do.

respectfully

reluctantpawn

reply to post by Badge01


Why should I study Judo if I have already studied sambo?

Isnt the only differnce is that sambo allows leg locks while judo doesnt?

reply to post by Jazzyguy


Muay Thai combined with american boxing. Unbeatable.

I have taken many martial arts, Jeet Kune Do, Escrima, Karate, Judo, Thai Boxing, Savate and Boxing. For all around self defense on the street I consider Boxing the simplest form of fighting and in general the best Martial Art for the common man to learn. Hell even Bruce Lees idol was Muhammad Ali. Boxing is what everyone should have as a base for Self Defense.