This Chinese fighting pattern is known all around the world but in the world of MMA, not many people are aware of Kung fu in the field. As many MMA fighters tend to lean on other fighting martial arts rather than relying on kung fu.
The proper answer to the question that has been raised here would be in the form of yes or no. Kung fu’s fighting pattern can be seen in all other martial art forms. You can clearly say most of the martial arts available today that many fighters learn throughout their career all serve from the ancient art of kung fu.
Why kung fu is not in the UFC?
The core principle of Kung Fu doesn’t match the intensity of the MMA field. Some people might have a misconception of what kung fu is all about. Depending on the media coverage one might see Kung fu as an extreme art built to handle combat-oriented context. While some of the kung fu is about that, much of it has to do with personal self-improvement and knowledge. It is more to do with helping people to build a balance in their life.
The usage of kung fu can be seen in every form of martial arts. A big percentage of martial arts skills are connected to the teaching of Shaolin temples.
The methods that are used in martial arts are widely inspired by Kungfu. There are plenty of studies and articles that have been written linking the martial arts to the teachings of kung fu. But you will never see the art of kung fu applied directly in MMA. There are plenty of theories built around that, this article will touch every one of them so you will get a clear view of both sides of the argument.
The debate surrounding this subject has been going on far longer than anything else. Some MMA fans see the area of martial art linked to kungfu and others decline that it has any influence on the MMA world. The arguments both sides make are somewhat valid to a point.
Is Kung Fu ineffective in MMA?
This ancient fighting style is said to be a more traditional way of fighting than any other martial art technique available now in the world. The old techniques and fighting are not suited for the insanity of the newer martial arts round.
The majority of MMA fans believe this to be the case on why we are not seeing so many Kung Fu fighters in the world of MMA. The old techniques and the traditional view on fighting are what is holding them back from the big league. Staying true to their core principle is the reason why kung fu is less prominent in the world of martial arts.
While other martial arts make the fighter switch stances properly, throw effective strikings at their opponent. The whole message of kung fu translates to a different understanding of the match than focusing entirely on the physical element of it.
Kung Fu Training Efficiency on MMA
Kung fu is hard to train with, while with other martial arts you can train with a live partner to better yourself and learn a lot about the fighting pattern.
Kung Fu training rarely involves any fighting partners. Missing the live partner component is what hurts the fighter the most, as they will never get to know how good they are in this fighting style if they don’t have anybody to use it against.
Even if you do get a sparring partner, they will allow you to practice your moves without any pushback at all. They offer less resistance as they will help you do all of your kung fu techniques without any defense.
Most sparring sessions will have the partner attack you in slow motion, so you will know where the move is coming from and how to defect it. This is all good, but it never advances to the next session.
Can you fight with kung fu in UFC?
MMA is known to have plenty of rules that are very protective for the fighters. Back in the days, where there were fewer rules and regulations applied to the ring.
Fighters were allowed to do basically everything to win the match. But time has changed the industry a lot, under the new management MMA world saw different rules and guidelines that made sure the fighters are safe from permanent injuries.
Kung Fu has moves that will be considered illegal in the world of MMA. For example, elbow to the face punches to the neck, attacks on the eye, groin strikes, and many more.
These moves are highly illegal and it will make the contender disqualified easily. Using most of these moves will go against everything MMA builds up to be. If any fighter uses one of these Kung Fu techniques it will be a career-ending event. These moves are considered very bad for business.
Some kung fu moves will make permanent injury if put into practice, stomp kicks, low kicks to the groin, and more that will put the entire body at risk. This is one of the reasons why you are less likely to see a Kung Fu fighter in the ring of MMA. Most big promotions will not take fighters that are seen as bad for business.
Kung Fu vs MMA Techiniques
The message behind Kung Fu doesn’t translate well into the world of MMA. The purpose of Kung fu is meant to teach people how to self-defense and help people to live a better life.
It is never designed to deliver perfect blows to knock out the opponent in the ring of MMA. The teachings of kung fu differ from what you will see in other variations of martial art.
The teachings matter a lot when you are in the ring with another fighter, it is the teaching that will help you put a great offense-defense in the ring without getting harmed.
The teaching patterns in Kung Fu focus on different aspects of fighting style that help the other martial arts patterns rather than improving or adding anything to them.
The majority of kung fu teaches people to stay calm in panic situations and think with a free mind. These calm behavioral patterns are difficult for anyone to acquire without some particle.
The entire theme of kung fu is to teach people how to stay on their best behavior and think with a rational mind rather than relying on quick judgments. More time rushed judgment brings a lot of harm than any good at all.
Principle that you can learn from Kung fu
- It teaches people to learn forms, sequence to deal with combat scenarios. It also provides basic education to the body to get better at it.
- The sparring session has a different goal in mind rather than focusing the entire energy on teaching people to get ready for the martial art event. The goal of sparring has always been to implement the inner value of Kung fu.
- Better protection to the body comes in the form of illegal action movies.
- The principle and techniques differ a lot from the modern martial arts pattern, each form of kung fu stays true to its originals rather than betraying any value of the original message.
Principles of Kung fu that can be apllied to MMA
Some core principles of kung fu moves do translate well into the world of MMA. But much of it stays hidden from the surface due to a variety of reasons. Kung fu is necessarily called a traditional sport for a reason, it does pay its highest priority to the old moves and patterns than benign its way to modern martial art. Mainstream media overtly popularized kung fu as a violent action movie that is only used to take down the enemy in seconds.
But in reality, you will see a completely different picture of what kung fu is all about.
Many kung fu masters see Kung Fu as a way to achieve discipline and skills through hard work and practice.
Many forms of Kung Fu focus on discipline and healthy life rather than taking down an opponent within a 25 minute round. Kung fu is not built to carry the process of other mainstream martial arts. It sticks to its own originality, variations of kung fu also focus on the traditional value of the main martial arts. It is always about teaching people discipline and skills and brain balance to life.
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Conclusion
Kung fu will never discard its traditional values to adapt to the more common martial arts of today. The traditional aspect of kung fu focuses much more on the mental strength of the fighter than bossing their physical power. The practice of kung fu has always been to make the fighter mentally ready. Even different variations of kung fu teach rationality and calm behavior in the end. This is why you will never see kung fu fighters sharing the stage with other martial artists in the octagon. The value and the movement, attacks are different from what would be considered legal or fair in the MMA arena.
