The Philosophy of Self-Defense at Evolve Mixed Martial Arts in Singapore
Is it true that 90% of martial arts around the world are ineffective in real life self-defense situations? Is it true that there is more myth than reality to most martial arts? Is it true that most techniques taught at martial arts schools are complete junk? Unfortunately, yes, yes, and yes.
The cold, harsh truth is that most martial arts are simply useless in real life situations.
Before 1993, there was a healthy debate about which martial art was the most effective in real life situations. Any martial artist from any background could theorize why his/her art was the most effective and so forth. In 1993, the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) was born. Its organizers invited any and all martial artists from any background around the world to participate in a no-rules, real life tournament to answer the simple question, "which martial art is the most effective?" The goal of the organizers was to seek the truth. Instead of theorizing and debating which martial art was the best, they invited fighters to pit their knowledge against each other.
In the early years of this tournament, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu dominated without question. Every other martial art failed miserably, especially all the ones that were the most commonly practiced. (This article will not name which arts have been deemed useless, but you can watch the UFC tournaments from the last fifteen (15) years to see which ones completely failed).
Over the last fifteen (15) years of the UFC, a funny thing happened. Fighters and styles evolved (and continue to EVOLVE) to the no rules combat event. Only the very best arts survived in the cage. It was a true test of Darwinian Theory at work. Only the strongest survived the harsh conditions of a no-rules situation. Today, it is universally accepted (by fifteen (15) years of results in over a thousand (1000) matches in the UFC) that the most effective arts are Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Muay Thai, and Wrestling. In fact, 100% of professional fighters in the UFC have knowledge of all three (3) martial arts. In other words, professional fighters today (who risk their lives fighting under very limited rules in a cage) choose to learn these three (3) disciplines in order to protect themselves.
Is it a fluke? If you look at UFC World Champions like Georges St Pierre and Anderson Silva, it is hard to argue that it is a fluke that the three (3) arts survived. St Pierre and Silva are considered to be the two (2) best mixed martial artists in the whole world. Georges St Pierre is a Black Belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, trains in Muay Thai, and is an Olympic-caliber wrestler. Anderson Silva, who is widely regarded as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, is a Muay Thai striker with a Black Belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. If you study every other Champion in the UFC, he will have a core expertise in either BJJ, Muay Thai, or Wrestling and will be well-versed in the other two (2) arts.
Amazingly, there are still people in this world who refuse to accept this truth. They argue that Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) is a sport with rules. In the street, there are no rules. This argument is a fair one. However, to be sure, MMA is the closest thing to no-rules combat. The only things that are not allowed in MMA are hitting to the back of the head, gouging an opponent's eyes, and striking the groin. All other techniques are allowed. Additionally, a complete Mixed Martial Artist will be able to defend himself/herself in all four (4) ranges of combat - kicking range, punching range, clinch range, and on the ground. Of course, in the street, one has to worry about guns and knives too. In those cases, a physical confrontation is not advised unless you always carry a gun or knife too. Even then, the odds of survival are not good. The reality of most self-defense situations is that you will be unarmed and you will be fighting for your life. Rest assured that BJJ, Muay Thai, and Wrestling will improve your odds of survival in most situations. Unless you plan to carry a gun and knife at all times (as well as commit to training with those weapons a few times a week in real life situations), your odds of surviving a gun or knife attack are low. Nevertheless, the 3 arts can improve your odds of survival even in those extreme circumstances.
So is it an accident that Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Muay Thai, and Wrestling rose to the top of the food chain in no-rules combat situations? At Evolve, we do not believe that it was an accident. The 3 arts have a lot of things in common and these commonalities are what allowed the 3 arts to rise to the top. First, the underlying philosophy of BJJ, Muay Thai, and Wrestling is real-life application. They only focus techniques that work in actual combat and are constantly tested in live combat. (For example, in Thailand, there are live Muay Thai fights almost every day of the week and they are televised across the country). Second, these 3 arts have always been committed to EVOLVING by constantly throwing out techniques that do not work and by experimenting with new techniques. (Most martial arts are steeped in centuries of tradition/mysticism and are focused on repetition of that history. There is limited questioning of truth.) Third, the 3 martial arts have a focus on training in reality. Practice is as close to real competition as possible.
Evolve Mixed Martial Arts was founded on the simple truth of reality. We only teach what works in real life. The Evolve Instructor Team (recruited from Brazil, Thailand, the US, Japan, and Korea) has over 300 years of experience across BJJ, Muay Thai, Wrestling, and Boxing. Evolve Mixed Martial Arts is the #1 MMA gym in Southeast Asia and the only academy in Asia with authentic World Champions in both Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Muay Thai. For more information, please visit www.evolve-mma.com
Evolve Mixed Martial Arts. Achieve Greatness Within.
