I went to see “NoBoundaryFight” Muay Thai fights on Saturday in Melrose, MA. My good friend, Alma, and her team (Five Points Academy) brought the ruckus. They fought brilliantly, even if they didn’t all bring home the win. It was a fascinating thing to watch. It’s safe to say that Muay Thai is the most complete system of combative striking. You have a variety of body parts to strike with. It isn’t just limited to punches (far from it). They even have some very basic standup grappling. There is a lot of possibility with this martial art. I see even more possibility when you throw in wrestling.
I’m not criticizing Muay Thai. I have the utmost respect for the courage, intelligence and skillset of these warriors. I became intrigued when I watched the fights. Almost every fight, within the first round, went to the ground. One fighter would sweep or toss the other, and on the ground they would go. We would see the beginnings of side control or half-guard before the ref stood them back up. I almost wished we could have seen the full expression of the fight. Obviously, this would not have been Muay Thai then. There was even a fighter that night, with a background in MMA, who went for the single-leg takedown. It worked brilliantly, and the opponent was taken down to the ground. The ref didn’t see it, and they got stood back up. Had they not been stood back up then Jiu-Jitsu could have ended the fight decisively.
Jocko Willink in his book, Discipline equals Freedom: Field Manual, discusses which martial art to learn first. He believes one should learn Jiu-Jitsu first. Why would this be the first thing to learn? When we talk about self-defense the emphasis is on defense. It isn’t about attacking first. If someone begins striking you, you can run away. If somebody grabs you then you have to remove the control from the attacker. If you no longer have the option to run then you’re in big trouble. You need to know how to escape the attacker. Jiu-Jitsu is a skillset one can use to get away first. The submissions or attacks are the second part of Jiu-Jitsu. A choke is a great way to end a volatile conflict.
Muay Thai is a very effective system, but what happens when the fight hits the ground? Virtually every fight that night that went to the ground. So, what is one to do when this happens… Jiu-Jitsu. When we do sport, but think street, we need to consider Jiu-Jitsu the first stop on our journey. We don’t have to one-stop-shop! We can always keep developing new skills. If you want some bang for your buck, and are thinking self-defense; Jiu-Jitsu is a bargain!
Now, imagine combining Muay Thai, Jiu-Jitsu, wrestling and judo. Man, that’s a formidable person. Put in some weight lifting, calisthenics, rope-work, cycling and yoga. Now, we have a veritable superhero. We can always get more. We can always be better. These skills cannot be accessed unless we have the mindset to do so. So, that’s yet another thing to work. I was in awe of the mindset of these Muay Thai fighters I saw Saturday night. It was inspiring to see these folks fight with everything they had. The sportsmanship they displayed when the fight was over was equally as inspiring. If people have any misconceptions of what it is to fight then they need to see it in action. My Jiu-Jitsu is coming along, but now I got to get me some of that Muay Thai.