Want to take Wing Chun to the competition ring

[daedelus4]

I have gotten fed up basically with everyone saying that wing chun cannot compete with arts such as muai thai, the various forms of karate and other styles and am looking for advice or aid if available for transforming my wing chun into a competition art. Initially I will try point fighting then work my way up to k-1 type of events (screw UFC) but specifically does anyopne know the rules for/against stop-hitting or trapping? I know that in some competitions that my fellow WC players have entered the judges would not allow stop-hits or pak sao which is basically a slapping hand defense but am basically unsure of what the typical rules are. Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

[ravenzoom]

One thing's sure you should really practice some grappling and ground fighting before entering such tournaments. You may be the best wing chunner in the world, but you can always get grappled to the ground. Anyways good luck to you, and tell us how it goes if you ever decide to go forward.

[daedelus4]

ravenzoom, I refer you to the rule of "the side of the page" I have extensive experience in budishin jujitsu which teaches a lot of submissions as well as takedown defenses. I am quite comfy on the mat. But, I dont intend to go to matches like UFC. To me UFC is like WWE. Obviously, UFC is real but what I mean is that it has become nothing but wrestling--this is off the topic but has anyone else noticed this? Good TKD-ers, thai fighters, etc give up their style it seems when it comes to UFC and instead play the grapple game only. Thanks for the input hopwever, raven

[ravenzoom]

No problem, I was just not aware of the style you just mentioned, I had no clue what it was.

[daedelus4]

And yet, most of the time they do. I am familiar with most of the people on your list and what respective styles they have--and I did not imply that they never strike, obviously you have to--but most strikers have the ability to end the fight while standing and yet it usually ends in a ground and pound situation. Mixed martial arts should mean just that I think---mix it up. Dont get me wrong, on the ground the guys seem extremely proficient but I have been in quite a few fights myself (not tourny fights) and only one of them have ever been to the ground. And then my ground fighting skills actually played no role because their were several people who then commenced to kicking the h*ll out of me, so it is not really realistic fighting to simply charge and try to get the opponent on the ground. I am just waiting for the so called real fighting event such as the UFC, particularly because it is my favorite, to showcase martial arts in a real fighting environment. But back to the main question, since I do not intend to enter the UFC or any grappling/submission events, do you have experience in tournament fighting? Have any advice to offer?

[daedelus4]

No problem, I was just not aware of the style you just mentioned, I had no clue what it was.

raven, it is essentially small circle jujitsu combined with the budo principles and even some aikidoand judo looking techniques. Kinda like a mma for jujitsu techniques. You should be able to do a search on the web and find more info if you are interested. Not a bad start if you are interested in submission and grappling styles of fighting. Its of particular interest if you practice a style that is lacking in ground fighting

[White Warlock]

daedelus, you're going to find the same problem many others bump into. Competitions are geared towards one or another fighting style, and so the rules provide inherent advantages to particular styles of fighting. For example, the tae kwon do competitions encourage actions that tkd practitioners would emphasize, and discourages or outright restricts actions that are not in their repertoire.

This, you'll find, is across-the-board. I entered a variety of different competitions in the 80's and was thoroughly frustrated, even got disqualified twice because i couldn't stay within the tight baggage of rules. I've been watching competitions since, and while some have become more free-form, rules still exist that provide inherent advantages. In the greater competitions, like K-1, UFC, Pride, etc, the rules exist to encourage particular types of fighting that would be more 'entertaining' to the audience, and not necessarily more effective in a 'real life' scene.

So, in my straight-out opinion, the best one can do about the naysayers, is to ignore them. In order to prove wing chun's effectiveness, you'll have to jump through thier narrowly defined hoops... and wing chun, like san soo and others, is simply too big. It will get stuck in the rim.

[daedelus4]

daedelus, you're going to find the same problem many others bump into. Competitions are geared towards one or another fighting style, and so the rules provide inherent advantages to particular styles of fighting. For example, the tae kwon do competitions encourage actions that tkd practitioners would emphasize, and discourages or outright restricts actions that are not in their repertoire.

This, you'll find, is across-the-board. I entered a variety of different competitions in the 80's and was thoroughly frustrated, even got disqualified twice because i couldn't stay within the tight baggage of rules. I've been watching competitions since, and while some have become more free-form, rules still exist that provide inherent advantages. In the greater competitions, like K-1, UFC, Pride, etc, the rules exist to encourage particular types of fighting that would be more 'entertaining' to the audience, and not necessarily more effective in a 'real life' scene.

So, in my straight-out opinion, the best one can do about the naysayers, is to ignore them. In order to prove wing chun's effectiveness, you'll have to jump through thier narrowly defined hoops... and wing chun, like san soo and others, is simply too big. It will get stuck in the rim.

White Warlock:

Thank you for your straightforward-ness and no-holds barred honesty. I like to think that I give people the same attitude of honesty and it is nice to get it from others. Unfortunately however, I think I agree with you. I say unfortunately because I was really getting excited about the possibility of competition, I am a really competitive person, but I think you are right and the constraints on competitions will probably prove too restrictive. As it is now, I basically train as if I will be in a competition anyhow so that wont change but, It would have been nice to disprove some of the things that I have heard about WC.

Again thank you for your thoughts

[supergalactic]

daedelus4, It sounds like you want to do NHB fighting but you want to avoid going to the ground, so I would say a K-1 style fight would suite you well. In my opinion I do think you are simplifying the talent in the UFC. I don't think people give up their skills, I think they add to them. To be a great NHB fighter you have to have it all. Stand up and ground game. And to compare the UFC to WWE is well, a bad comparison. If you want to test your skills then what better way to do it then NHB, try to get into King of the Cage, or Rage on The Rocks. That in my eyes is the best way to see if your style can defeat what is in front of you.

[daedelus4]

ok, ok, ok, I admit it! Perhaps I was remiss in my comparison of UFC to WWE--sheesh! (smile) I am finding out more and more that sarcasm does NOT translate well over the net. For all of you fans of UFC, I apologize. I only meant that like in WWE, even though you know somes strikes will be made, the match ant over until someone gets pinned--and yes, I know wrestling is fake but, I think it is still good tv besides, you know the talent those guys must have to do what they do? I would be willing to bet that most of them have a martial arts or traditional greco-wrestling background--if nothing else to learn how to land properly.

Anyhoo, I did not intend to offend. Thanks for the tip though supergalactic, I am currently checking out som NHB events in my area.