I wanted to write an article about which elements of JKD translate well to combat sports and which don’t, so I started interviewing one of the amateur fighters I worked with who became a 2x Muay Thai champion (I’m not trying to take any credit for that), and now coaches. Here are some things he said which I thought were interesting.
Mike:
“Does the Muay Thai structure work better in the ring because it’s more balanced offense/defense or does it just conserve energy vs bouncing around in the JKD stance?”
Isaac:
“Yes, Muay Thai seems to be the style that works best in the ring with a balance of tools both offensive and defensive. It does also offer a steadier stance, a march or cadence as opposed to the JKD ‘bounce’. The Muay Thai stance feels durable and impenetrable if performed well. Blending the two gives you more opportunity. The Muay Thai style puts emphasis on utilizing 8 limbs/clinch/sweeps, so you have more tools to play and work with when fighting. More options to troubleshoot.”
Note: The ‘bounce’ refers to staying on the balls of both feet and in constant motion, vs the ‘cadence’ he gets with Muay Thai.
But here’s what stood out to me right away… “more tools”. The clinch and sweeps. When we teach ‘Old School JKD’ in the Wednesday Night Group, we are consciously leaving out things which other schools/systems offer by default because they are always trying to advance their art, not preserve the art as we do with JKD. We always come from a mindset of trying to protect what was there in the past so it doesn’t become lost. They have the freedom of not worrying about that and can always find something new to offer the students technique-wise. We have to be extra clever and figure out new ways of training the same things.
A question to investigate: Would an older fighter embrace daily decrease to a greater degree than a younger fighter? Would the veteran require less tools, having more knowledge of how to apply them against different opponents? Or are a greater number of options still ideal?
A couple more of his answers…
Mike:
“Off the top of your head, can you think of any elements of JKD that translate very easily to combat sports? What has helped you the most?”
Isaac:
“Before, During and After helped me with understanding the timing for an attack/counter.”
Mike:
“Have you found any use for quick, snappy lead leg kicks like the hook kick in JKD? You’re launching everything from a Muay Thai structure, so does that make those kicks more or less useful?”
Isaac:
“Yes, having a quick snap to your kicks is a good way to utilize your kicks, in addition to the “chop” or a Dutch style kick. The inside leg kick is still one of my favorite tools, maybe 2nd to the jab. It’s great for finding your range, disrupting rhythm, breaking the guard/stance, and for offensive attack.”
Mike:
“In your early Muay Thai fights, you utilized the jab extremely well and often and relied heavily on footwork and outmaneuvering your opponent. How has your style changed since then? What updates have you made to your approach?”
Isaac:
“I have more tools to use. I still favor my jab and footwork, but if my jab doesn’t work then I’m okay with cycling through my other tools to have more success with engaging and disengaging. My style works well when I stick and move – Muay Thai has taught me to stand my ground. It’s still “hit and don’t get hit” but I’m more comfortable sitting near the fire now, staying in range to hit (and potentially be hit), and relying on my eyes, reflexes, defense and offense. Overall, I’d say my movements are more intentional.”
Something Bob Bremer said in an interview was that with the old school JKD approach, you run the risk of learning too little. However, he also questioned how far Bruce had really intended for it to go off in any one direction while investigating other arts. I like the way it’s been described that Bruce ‘drew out the essence’ of other arts while maintaining a single structure or platform. The challenge then becomes finding the right balance for the sport format.
Isaac teaches at Manifest MMA in La Habra, CA.
Originally published in the JKD Talk Facebook group.