Martial Arts that you've taken?

[I like Forums]

Muay Thai is helpful for training your elbow and knee strikes, as well as clinch fighting.

 

Boxing is great for learning foot work. Learning to get angles or change angles on your opponent when throwing punchs or combonations. Slipping punchs, head movement. Its good to know, but in terms of MMA I'd rather train in Muay Thai..... but then again I have already trained in boxing. Taught me how to throw a proper punch, bob and weave.

[RavishingRickRudo]

Yeah, angles are something that is rarely realized in fighting, but they're so important. Randy Couture talked about how Chuck Liddell changed his game in their second fight, and to the naked eye Liddell didn't seem to do that much different, but Couture said that Chuck changed his angles a lot more, made it more difficult to get a good fix on his position for the takedown. You just don't go in there, stand still, and punch. Things like southpaw/conventional stances and how a fighter moves in relation to that, their lead-in punch from that angle, etc. It's so complex and dynamic that, to me, boxing should be taken by anyone wanting to get into MMA on its own. Muay Thai is also important, and should be taken as well for a more well rounded stand up game, but the intricases of stand up fighting are probably better learned in boxing, since it is -as odd as this may sound- more limited. So you can focus on those x-factors more when you are just concerned about hand movement.

[I like Forums]

Good point Rudo. I agree.

I wouldn't consider entering into MMA competition until I understood from a boxing perspective and a Muay Thai perspective as well. It adds the dirty boxing elements such as clinching, elbow strikes, etc. That would be the bare bones to a decent MMA stand up game. I don't know what you would like to add on top of that though to round out your stand up.

 

How about slick ground games? Freestyle Wrestling, Jiu-jitsu, would be the basics. Wrestling to learn how to fight from the top and jiu-jitsu to learn how to fight from the bottom.

[Damaramu]

Well this is all far away after I get in better shape and get proper training. Then again it's really hard to do all of that while going full time to college and working.

 

I mean it's not like I can quit everything and dedicate my life to something as unsure as fighting.

[I like Forums]

Sure you can.

[RavishingRickRudo]

Pussy.

[Black Lushus]

you've got the size, big boy, now work on that technique...and the self esteem too, good lord!

[Damaramu]

Yeah but I'm going to school to be a sports journalist. What if fighting doesn't pan out? Being a journalist is something you have to start early with or else you're screwed...isn't it? Because I thought it was all about seniority. At least that's how it is around here.

And plus journalism is such a demanding job isn't it? I mean you're constantly on the go.

 

Or should I just become a camera man? haha.

[RavishingRickRudo]

Be a fighter and translate your experiences into a book.

[Your Paragon of Virtue]

I actually use BJJ to fight from the top. I never use wrestling on the ground, I just use wrestling to get the fight there and work from that. BJJ is good for positioning and control on top as well, it's just that since they don't teach you a lot about takedowns and the like, against a good wrestler you won't be able to get the top position. But if you have both you should be able to.

[Damaramu]

Well I can learn some good takedowns doing judo can't I?

[Highland]

Some TKD when I was a kid and later I took some Kenpo. I wouldn't mind learning Wing chun. Is it worthwhile?

[Slayer]

I thought Highland fell off the face of the earth

[Guest Agent of Oblivion]

There can be only one.