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 I tend to find that many 'traditional martial artist' view Western Boxing more as a sport than a method of self-defense. Millions of westerners have spent thousands of dollars in Asian martial arts in the hope that they will find the ultimate method of fighting. The irony is that in their very own backyard, down the road at their local YMCA, for a few Dollars a month can be found probably one of the best forms of fighting ever to be developed.
I tend to find that many ’traditional martial artist’ view Western Boxing more as a sport than a method of self-defense. Millions of westerners have spent thousands of dollars in Asian martial arts in the hope that they will find the ultimate method of fighting. The irony is that in their very own backyard, down the road at their local YMCA, for a few Dollars a month can be found probably one of the best forms of fighting ever to be developed. History in a paragraph
The recorded history of boxing began from about 2000 to 1500 B.C. Depicted during this time on the walls of tombs at Beni Hasan in Egypt. In 800 B.C Homer wrote about pugilism in his book "The Iliad", still considered one of the best literary pieces of Ancient Greece. The Greeks fought without regard for weight differentials and without interruption, a match ending only when a fighter lost consciousness or raised his hand in resignation. During these bouts boxers wound heavy strips of leather around their hands and wrists. Not so different to today’s no-holds-barred competitions. Under Roman rule, these leather strips (the caestus) were laced with metal, ensuring an abundance of blood. Statues of maimed boxers from late antiquity attest to the carnage. After the demise of the Olympics, boxing survived as a common sport. It persisted at local fairs and religious festivals throughout medieval Europe and was especially popular in the west and north of England, where it was often a combination of wrestling and street fighting. Still today in Gypsy fares bare-knuckle boxing can be witnessed.
Boxing disappeared as a practiced sport after the fall of Rome and resurfaced in England in the late 17th century. A London newspaper referred to a bout in 1681, and the Royal Theatre in London was the site of regularly scheduled matches in 1698.
The sport at that time was actually a mixture of wrestling and boxing. Although hitting with fists was emphasized, a boxer could grab and throw his opponent, then jump on him and hit him while he was down.
James Figg, who opened a boxing academy in London in 1719, introduced a measure of skill to the sport. Figg was an expert fencer as well as a boxer, and his academy was patterned after the fencing academies of the period. He taught parrying and counter-punching, just as fencing masters taught parries and ripostes to their students. Even today many fencing terms are use in boxing gyms around the world.
All the greatest NHB fighters today From Randy Corture to Tito Ortiz have spent time working boxing as well as using it to devastating effect in competition. Boxing is not only for the boxer. Boxing vs. traditional forms of martial arts
How many NHB fighters today do you see put their hand on their hip before they strike, or take up some obscure fighting stance and crane beak hand position. No matter what the fighter may call what he does all NHB fighters use boxing. A jab, cross and hook. No matter the petty argument by those who believe that putting your hand on or hip and so forth works, I don’t see anyone doing it. The proof is in the pudding. In an environment where fighting is real and in NHB it is real, you have to use elements of fighting that what works. And boxing is one of those elements.
Still there are people who teach the quick fix method. Just stick your fingers in his eyes or kick him in the groin. What happens if you miss the eyes or kick him in the groin and it does not work, what happens if this is all you know? You have no attributes; you don’t know how to move, to cope with the pressure of someone trying to tear your head off and what it is like to get hit. I guess you are in a world of trouble.
Boxing teaches you all of this and more. Besides I can teach a boxer in five minutes how to kick someone in the groin and stick his finger in someone’s eyes. But you cant teach someone who has been to a two day self-defense course and who only knows how to kick someone in the groin or stick his fingers in someone’s eyes how to box in five minutes (Which means to be able to hit someone, while he is hitting you and win).
Learning curve
It is not unusual to hear a martial arts instructor tell a prospective student that it is going to take years to master the art that he presents. Many years later, thousands of Dollars spent the student has endured countless rituals against imaginary opponents, semi contact sparring (Never actually hitting an opponent for real, only a pad or makiwara board that does not move or hit back), ten belts later and bowed to the hierarchy and does he now actually know how to defend himself or more importantly how to fight?
Well my answer would be no, but if you doubt yourself or me for that matter, go into any boxing gym, glove up and spar. You may find the answer via a knockout. I have personally seen boxers with several months experience take apart the preverbal sifu (Who was allowed to do what ever he liked, kick, elbow, yell, kia etc). It was one of the main reasons I took up boxing to the golden gloves level in the first place.
There is only one choice learn to box in 6 months, that is how long it will take, and don’t compromise. You wont be a Sugar Ray Leonard, but you will learn how to hit a moving target that hits back for real. The couch or the ring
The choice of getting in the ring to learn how to box is not an easy one. There are so many people who want to learn how to fight but don’t want to work for it. It is easy to believe that you can fight because you know twenty rare forms that are two thousand years old. It is easy to pretend that you know how to fight because you where top of your class after your two day self-defense seminar. It is easy to believe that you can fight because your instructor tells you the reason we don’t do any contact sparring in this style is because the techniques are so deadly.
You can believe what ever you want; you can be pissed off with my comments! But do yourself a favor go into a boxing gym, climb in the ring and tell me what it was like. - Rodney King
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