In regard to martial arts, many people who are searching for a martial art to learn want to know what are the best martial arts for street fighting.
Naturally, there is a lot of debate surrounding this question.
Before I give my answer, it is appropriate to understand the most important principles for winning a street fight.
In my own opinion, the two most important principles are 1) hit first and 2) hit hard.
Once you understand the basic principles for winning a street fight, it’s important to understand the characteristics of a typical fight.
Consider these…
- Street fights rarely occur where there are just two people fighting alone… there is usually a crowd, and one or both combatants likely have friends nearby.
- One or both combatants, or one of the friends nearby are often armed.
- Your body will go through significant physiological changes when faced with a confrontation… in particular a massive dump of adrenaline.
With these principles and characteristics in mind what is the best martial art for a street fight?
Characteristics of the best martial art for street fighting
Many martial arts schools will try to tell you that one style is better than another for such and such a reason, mainly to attract students and keep them there.
Years ago, I had a discussion with a friend who had been training at Brazilian jiu jitsu for a bit. They felt that this was the best art because they were told that 90% of street fights go to the ground.
Let me tell you something… the last place you want to end up in a street fight is on the ground.
Most street fights do not occur where the two combatants are fighting alone in a dark alley.
Most occur in a bar or where there are multiple people present. That means one or both combatants have friends nearby.
If you take your opponent to the ground in effort to ground and pound or get to them to submit, you are vulnerable to attack by a bystander. And, that bystander may have a weapon.
Tae Kwon Do is an art that emphasizes kicking, and those who practice this art focus on the abiity to kick high.
However, Tae Kwon Do is more of a sport, and these schools focus more on competition than street fighting.
Most of these competitions involve point sparring, where you score a point if you can quickly land a kick or punch on your opponent.
However, unless protective gear is worn, no shots are allowed to the head and groin.
In a street fight, anything goes. And, the ability to land a kick to the head is not going to be worth much in a fight conducted on uneven terrain or a slippery surface.
This is especially true when your legs are shaking due to the adrenaline dump.
Speaking of that adrenaline dump, how many fancy techniques will you remember when you are under substantial stress?
You literally have to train for decades before many of these techniques require no thought.
With this in mind, the characteristics of the best martial art for a street fight are as follows:
- It is well rounded in that you learn how to strike, kick and grapple
- It is simple… there are few techniques to learn
- The techniques involve big muscle movements rather than fine motor skills
- It focuses more attention on developing the proper mindset to deal with a confrontation than on learning hundreds of techniques
So what is this martial art?
In one word… Combatives.
Combatives training is as close as you can get to a real street fighting situation or criminal assault.
Krav Maga is probably the most similar “art” to combatives. Designed for use by the Israeli military, it is probably the fastest growing martial art, at least in the U.S.
However, it has become more commercialized to attract students in a similar manner to other types of martial arts schools.
Further, few schools conduct the type of simulation and scenario training that you will find in legitimate combatives type training.
Combatives
Combatives are rooted in the actual training given to commando troops in World War II.
The training had to be simple and effective, because the troops were learning over a relatively short period of time.
W.E. Fairbairn is recognized as the father of modern combatives.
Born in England, Fairbairn joined the Shanghai Police in 1907 and reportedly engaged in many fights over the course of his twenty year career there.
He ultimately trained an anti-riot squad for the force based on his experience.
After he had joined the Shanghai police, Fairbairn studied a variety of martial arts such as judo, boxing, wrestling, etc. Based on his studies, he developed his own system of fighting which he named “Defendu.”
He was then recruited by the British Secret Service during World War II to train commando forces along with Eric Sykes.
In more modern times, combatives instructors such as Carl Cestari, Lee Morrison, Tony Blauer and Kelly McCann have expanded on the Defendu system to develop systems that are more relevant for current society.
Most such instructors have also studied a variety of martial arts similar to Fairbairn, and then have effectively taken what they feel works best for them.
They’ve then put this material together in their own systems that allowed them to become among the most respected instructors in the world.
Final Thoughts
The best martial art for a street fight is one that keeps things simple and can adapt to any situation. It focuses on a few basic principles, rather than hundreds of techniques.
Most martial arts are extremely helpful in developing skills and athleticism. However, most people train in martial arts as a hobby. Therefore, they tend to freeze up during an actual altercation.
Combatives training focuses more on the basic principles needed to win a street fight or to prevail during any type of assault.
With this in mind, if you are searching for a martial arts school near you, look for instructors that also offer combatives training as part of their curriculum.
My Practical Kung Fu training program provides a good foundation of both kung fu and combatives that can be a companion to other training you may be receiving. You can check it out here… Practical Kung Fu.
