If you had to pick just one fighting dicslipline

[Von Milash]

to be a bad-ass mofo, what would you choose and why? Only one choice!

I'm considering taking something...boxing, muay thai, jiu jitsu, karate, etc...but can't make up my mind. I'm looking for great self defence skills and the ability to kick ass when I need to bail out my drunk buddies in a barfight! But most of all I just want to get out of the house before the wife puts me to more work!

Thanks

[raleights]

Muay Thai is easily the best overall style of striking, although it's easier to be effective with jujitsu. But if you're confronted with a situation that involves you fighting more than 1 person, you really want Muay Thai over BJJ.

[Von Milash]

Thanks. Appreciate the feedback.

Let me play devil's advocate for a second here...just to learn something.

Whenever I see instructional books on muay thai vs other disciplines, it seems like the least scientific fighting style there is. Anyone can kick a gug in the leg, no? My personal feeling is that boxers are them most advanced strikers, but they're one dimentional. Muay Thai brings in the kicking, but they don't seem to be as skilled in kicking as karate or taekwondo guys?

Thoughts?

[raleights]

Theres not that many moves in Muay Thai, it's very very basic but absolutely lethal. Clinching and kneeing to the face, kicking to the leg, straight punching. All the fancy stuff you see in Tae Kwon Do is nice, I've done plenty of it and had loads of fun but when faced with a real situation I'm not dumb enough to use it, 360 crescents WILL get you hurt lol. Yes boxing is far more complex, using footwork to maximize punching power and hand speed. It just has to be modified a little bit when it comes to street fighting - can't go out there trying to win rounds. And I've seen on more than 1 occassion Muay Thai vs Tae Kwon Do, and it's never good for the TKD fighter.

These are all the weapons of Muay Thai:
http://www.thaiboxingsuit.com/article/weapon

Also when you're learning to bang Thai style, they deaden the nerves on your body so things don't hurt as bad (painful process). Those guys can take lots and lots of pain. Body hardening like a mother fucker

[oakleyno1]

id say go for karate, but for a street fight, you would have to choose a discipline of karate
there are many such as wadaroo (not sure how to spell) which is faster but less powerful style or shotocan karate which is more powerful with less speed, there are many more aswel;
hope this helps

[Prometheus]

For a street fight (assuming its a 1 on 1) go with either Jiu Jitsu or Muay Thai (both is highly recommended if you have the means). Stay away from any form of karate. The reasons for this are simple: 1) Both use gross motor skills (easy to learn) and 2) Both will train you with LIVE SPARRING in a real situation. So when the time come to really use them you are ready to rock and roll!

In a standing fight there is not a more simplistic or leathal art than Muay Thai. If you have to hit the ground, Jiu Jitsu will let you tear somebody up without taking much damage yourself.

[Heavy D]

In all honesty, boxing will serve you just fine in about 95% of street fights. Muay Thai is great, and probably superior in most fights, but its not too often youre going to run into a Muay Thai specialist in a bar thats lookin to rumble. Knees and elbows are great, and they hurt a LOT, but theyre also a great way to get sued, as they cause massive damage. While a knee to the head can fracture bones easily, and elbows will cause massive bleeding, a good left hook will usually just knock the guy out and leave him with a nasty headache when he gets up. He's looking to defend himself and help his buddies, not decimate people and lose all his personal wealth or spend time in jail for assault. The more you hurt someone above what you needed to stop them, the more likely you're gonna wind up losing everything, or spending some time in jail.

If it came to straight up fighting, I might even say Wing Chun, because those guys are hardcore when it comes to striking. Punching a guy in the throat, collapsing his windpipe, then gouging his eyes out is a great way to win a fight, but its also a great way to wind up in jail.

[raleights]

With a name like Heavy D he can't be wrong...

No sarcasm either.. Theres forms of fighting out there none of us know about that are insanely effective. They're not a secret, just not advertised and you have to look for them. Targetting the sensitive places like the throat, temple, meridian, eye gouge.. Of course I can't show you over the internet but theres a way you can grip your hands around ones ear, pull with 6 pounds of pressure and the ear comes off. I know guys who can literally turn a quarter into a weapon. All the knife throwing you see in movies, people can be that accurate and fast with a knife if they practice enough. Make no mistake theres people out there capable of crazy shit you'd never imagine - if the rest of the world only knew what was possible. All the things you can do to break someone down.... and when you hurt someone like that with a martial art background they won't hesitate to make an example out of you.

[Prometheus]

He's looking to defend himself and help his buddies, not decimate people and lose all his personal wealth or spend time in jail for assault. The more you hurt someone above what you needed to stop them, the more likely you're gonna wind up losing everything, or spending some time in jail.

I make my suggestions based on "no other way out" type situations. Believe me, I am the first person to walk away from a confrontation if at all possible, for the very reasons stated. 9.9 times out of 10, if you make all reasonable attempts to get out of a situation, but the other guy just won't let you (admit it guys, you've all known of situations like this), even if you slit him open with an elbow the cops will say it was self defense. It all boils down to being smart, and knowing your surroundings.

[Von Milash]

Thanks for the feedback guys!

Trust me, I like the idea of being a tough mofo a lot more than actually wanting to become one. Does that make sense? I just like mma and wouldn't mind learning something...but if I do that much I may as well go for as much bad-a$$-for-the-buck as I can!

[Mr.B]

Muay Thai without question. Generally, going to the ground in a street fight is not a good idea unless you're in the middle of a large empty space and there's nobody around but the guy you're fighting. Getting kicked in the head by your opponent's friends isn't fun.

So if ground fighting styles are not the best option, BJJ is out. Of the standup arts, Muay Thai has always proven to be the most effective style of the styles that train with any real form of sparring. It could be argued that other styles are more effective because they teach eye gouging, groin strikes, etc. But most of these styles do not train with aggressive sparring and IMO, there's nothing that prepares you for a fight like putting on a pair of gloves/pads and having someone try to knock the snot out of you. Not only that, but if you gouge out somebody's eyes, you're in trouble unless they're MUCH larger than you or they have a weapon.

[SalTheButcher]

definitley muay thai

[Prometheus]

The one thing I would suggest to you is to throw in some wrestling take down defense. If you're a stand up fighter, you better make sure that you know how to keep the fight standing!

[Sheps]

definitley muay thai

If u wanna be a pussy and use a kick in a fight then yeah go with muay thai.

as far as punching technique goes, they are crap and weak imo, well the british are. As far at the kids in Thailand that train since babies, now they are the real deal, still have relitivly weak punches but the elbows make up for that alot.

[SalTheButcher]

hey, if someone starts shit with you you can kick them in the groin and not be a pussy