Kung Fu is sometimes romanticized by martial arts aficionados yet often mocked by those in sport based martial arts (MMA, muay thai, etc.). The question is; is it an effective martial art for self-defense and is there any use for it in modern MMA competition? This YouTube video from the channel fightTIPS answers that question thoroughly.

According to the description,

“There are a lot of skeptics who say Kung Fu doesn’t work in a street fight. Since it is not widely used in MMA like Muay Thai and BJJ, many think it lacks practicality in a fist fight. Our guest Ando breaks down a Kung Fu side hammer fist punch combo and talks about why it DOES work in a street self defense situation.”

Kung Fu, which is actually an umbrella term for Chinese martial arts and often mistaken for a particular martial art itself, tends to use circular movements compared to a martial art like karate which is more linear in its attacks.

Basically what the guys are saying in this video that training Kung Fu can give you different looks and brings something extra to the table. I don’t think that hammer fist Ando shows has enough behind it to do much damage but it is often the strikes you don’t see coming that tend to knock you out so who knows. We are seeing more traditional martial arts techniques in MMA today – techniques like wheel kicks and crazy jumping kicks so maybe we will see start to see some Kung Fu as well.

If you have all your bases covered and know how to fight on the ground and have a solid understanding of muay thai and boxing, maybe Kung Fu can add something else to your arsenal. Like all martial arts though, it’s more about how you are training opposed to what specific art it is.

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ABOUT fightTIPS:

“fightTIPS teaches you how to fight with street fight and anti-bullying self defense, including martial art technique and fitness tutorials to win a fight and increase confidence. Avoid a fight at all costs, but when you can’t — avoid injury.”

[SOURCE: FightTips]