Why do some people say that ONE martial arts is the best? Especially for street fighting?

I'm sure that back in the Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan days, everyone said the best martial arts to learn was kung fu. Now a lot of people say brazilian jujitsu (probably cuz of that UFC guy, Royce Gracie) and several vacillate between kickboxing and muy thai.





Me personally, I am a blackbelt in Tae Kwon Do, and while I don't think it's THE best, I enjoy it very much and I believe it would be a very effective tool in combat, if you know how to use it. The Korean Marines trained in TKD extensively, and they were renowned for their hand-to-hand combat skills in the Vietnam War.


Not meaning to discredit the effectiveness of throws and submission holds, though. I've already learned a few and I will look into taking jujitsu/akido classes or something similar, as soon as I can afford it.





But point is, why say that ONE martial arts is the best? They all focus on different things and qualities. I think it really depends on the person. And besides, martial arts wasn't about... (read on)

Why do some people say that ONE martial arts is the best? Especially for street fighting?
Tae kwon do can be a good martial art, true, but it depends on the instructor, really. Part of the problem with modern TKD is that it is an olympic sport, so most of the traditional values have been lost.





Now there is no PERFECT martial art, but there is a type of martial arts that are the best, no matter what. these are the mixed martial arts, ones where the founders have implemented techniques from many varying styles to forge a truly dominate style.





Grappling styles like aikido and ju-jitsu, while effective, they usually only teach the students how to get the opponent to the ground, what to do next?





Striking styles like Muay Thai are very vulnerable to the grappling styles, or most scenarios they havent been in before.





Karates (and most TKD dojos) would be the best type to learn. The style I do, Seido Karate, implements techniques from Shotokan, Goju-ryu, Kyokushin, amd in some ways Aikido. punches, kicks, blocks, stances, breathing techniques, footwork, throws, joint locks, ground fighting, scenarios for fights, sparring, physical training and conditioning, weapons :-D, and traditional values. not that this is the only school like that. Shotokan, goju-ryu, shito-ryu, kyokushin, they are all great styles. The main reason why Karate and TKD are the best styles is like what you said: they give real life scenarios for self-defense, so that you can apply them. although most of the pressure would be on the student to take in all the valuable information.
Reply:...however, I don't agree that TKD is THE best. And I would probably train in several established styles before I try MMA. Report It

Reply:I am a devout disciple of gun fu, with a 3rd degree in run fool!
Reply:As a professional soldier, I've always been of the persuasion to never get close enough to even consider the use of hand to hand combat techniques.





If I have to remove a sentry? Its done quietly, silently, efficently, and permantly- that kung fu crap makes too much noise.
Reply:Look i completely agree. the only style that is the best style is the one you (the studying student) likes to studying the most. it is only through the enjoyment of the style will someone devote themselves to the style enough to get what they were essentially after to begin with, the knowledge of how to fight. an though many styles due spend focus on the mental aspects, no style was discovered that wasn't effective in some way on the battle field. FYI.
Reply:You actually make the point that I try to convey whenever I feel like answering the bi-weekly question of which martial arts is best for the street!


I would say that the reason most people tend to think there is one system or combination of systems that is better than all others is due to ignorance. What is best for one may not be best for another. Essentially, it boils down to "my dog is better than your dog" or "my dad can beat up your dad" methodology. Ego plays a big factor.


It is also unfortunate that somebody who should know better would refer to any other system as "crap" too, larry the orc
Reply:Really I think you could say that krav maga is the best for street fighting. It teaches you strikes that will disable your opponent, "submissions" that break joints instead of submitting people, how to use handy objects as weapons, and how to take out someone quickly. In a true street fight (especially if unprovoked by you) you want to disable someone, period. No rules, no quarter, just win. Like strike to the groin, throw, arm break or shoulder dislocate. That should be fight over. If you are throwing high kicks or anything fancy you are going to get knocked out. Other than that BJJ (brazilian jiu jitsu) is favored by many because it allows a significantly smaller fighter to overpower a larger fighter through technique and leverage. Again, in a real street fight the submission techniques would be used to break or dislocate a joint or bone. Any martial art package (MMA) training is best because it teaches a variety of techniques, but the bottom line is that without full contact sparring, you will never know what it is like to get punched in the face or hurt, which is extremely important. You might be right about one not necessarily being "the best" but obviously some are better than others, especially when it comes to practical street use.
Reply:Muay Thai and BJJ have proved their strengths in street fighting and practical aplications. ITs great if you can do all the flashy leg work because thats what makes it an art. But Muay Thai and BJJ have proven very effective I myself learn and teach kung-fu Tiger pal to be exact and prefer usign that if i have to fight but iknow if i tried using purified kung-fu in a fight ide get the crap beaten out of me if i fine tuned it for practical fighting it would be fine. But thats the problem no ones willing to learn a bunch of impractical things and adapt it. Thats why Muay Thai and BJJ are treasured they are very practical. K hope i clarified things bye
Reply:Why should any one art be the best ????????


I agree





Let me tell you it is all in the moment many years ago I had a knife pulled on me twice as a doorman (security) the first time i took it off them the second time i ran WHY i dont know it was my job to stop them. The first time i had to be pulled off the guy but strangley enough the second guy was smaller posed less threat but i still ran.





There are so many factors in your own mental state before you consider your training as a factor, it is easy to win a tournament or sit in front of your computor and talk up your drills/ skills.





But to be faced with reality is a differant matter.





Most of the stlyes people discuss are sport because there is vidieo proof of somone being knocked out (i come from these)





But this proves nothing on the streets.





NOTHING WORKS EVERYTHING WORKS





It all depends on the circumstances, situation and your state of mind





if they all come together with your training you still may lose but at least you had a go.





If not you get beaten or run.





instinct is the best form of combat you need to train for many years for instinct is evolution





you can evolve in your life time to allow your matial arts to become instinct but sadly this is not ranked ie by being a black belt.





There is no 1 art just instinct and if an art becomes your instinct no matter what it is it is the best!!!!!!
Reply:jeet-kun-do. pay attention %26amp; you'll see why.
Reply:Absolute best for street fighting is MMA. Hands down!!!! Its the only stlye i know you train in actual stand up and ground contact to its fullest. Like the saying goes tap out or pass out if not break it. I train in Vegas doing MMA. I also did TKD. TKD does nothing in a real fight. Have you ever seen a grandmaster get their butt kick by a MMA student.
Reply:You're right. o say that ONE martial art is the best for all aspects of street fighting is wrong. Here is how I've answered the question in the past.





There are three stages of a real life fight that you have to consider. There is a different martial art that is good for each of these stages.


Stage 1 - Avoiding the attacker and ending the situation without an attack, only with defense.


Aikido - throws and locks designed to immobilize an opponent by using his weight and momentum against him.


Stage 2 - Defend and attack. Ending the situation by using blocks and attacks.


Karate - Uses blocking and attacking to end a situation by taking out the opponent before things get out of control.


Stage 3 - Ground Work. The fight gets out of your control and goes to the ground.


Brazilian Ju-Jitsu - There is no better ground fighting technique than Gracie BJJ. Lets you lock, hold and break opponent. Sort of like wrestling but without the rules.





There is one art that is supperior to all others in the hand to hand combat area (quick military kill, not street fighting) and that is Krav Maga.





Hope this answers your question.
Reply:People will almost always believe that the style they are taking is the best, otherwise, why would they be taking it. The truth of the matter is that there is not single style that is better or worse than any other style, it depends on the individual, and the instructor.





Personally, I studied JKD and found it to be very effective. But that is because JKD is not its own style like Karate, TKD, or Judo, but a blending of many different martial arts. JKD is more of a philosophy than a seperate martial art. Te philosophy is to learn as much as you can from any and every style and incorporate what works into creating your own unique fighting style.





It all depends on the type of person you are, where you are comfortable, and what your physical abilities will allow. For me, I am a big guy. Fancy kicks like those used in TKD are just not practical for me. On the other hand, I am fairly strong and have decent hand speed, so I incorporate alot of boxing and MT Kickboxing into my style.
Reply:I agree, I am also a black belt in TaeKwonDo and enjoy very much. People don't understand how effective TKD really is. But for all those people who say jujitsu or kungfu is the best, Their are people who take taekwondo after that stuff and say they didn't know any self defense until they started tkd.