Dojo Challengers

[P.A.L]

i think in traditional martial art , if you lose a challenge you should give up the dojo to the challenger , in a traditional way a challenger should fight everyone in the dojo from lowest rank till they get to the master, even , if he wins all the fights by the time he challenges the sensei there is no energy left.

[bushido_man96]

i think in traditional martial art , if you lose a challenge you should give up the dojo to the challenger , in a traditional way a challenger should fight everyone in the dojo from lowest rank till they get to the master, even , if he wins all the fights by the time he challenges the sensei there is no energy left.

Better hope no one like Mike Tyson, Bob Sapp, or maybe a hundred other professional fighters decides to challenge you for you dojo.

[jaymac]

Nobody has come to our school to challenge our instructor. He wouldn't allow it anyways. It is childish. However, a few years ago, a guy came in and tried a couple weeks of classes. He bragged on and on how he had trained for years in some style and that he was a high ranking black belt. I think he wanted my instructor to recognize him as a black belt. He did not. Anyways, all he kept talking about was getting into the ring and showing everyone what he could do. First time in, he lost. Second time in, lost again. Third time, lost badly. He was not thrown in with higher ranking students, but we also didn't put new students in there either, for fear he may purposly try to hurt someone. He didn't come back after that night.

[bushido_man96]

Nobody has come to our school to challenge our instructor. He wouldn't allow it anyways. It is childish. However, a few years ago, a guy came in and tried a couple weeks of classes. He bragged on and on how he had trained for years in some style and that he was a high ranking black belt. I think he wanted my instructor to recognize him as a black belt. He did not. Anyways, all he kept talking about was getting into the ring and showing everyone what he could do. First time in, he lost. Second time in, lost again. Third time, lost badly. He was not thrown in with higher ranking students, but we also didn't put new students in there either, for fear he may purposly try to hurt someone. He didn't come back after that night.

There are a lot of people who try to do things like that. They claim they are high rank, and want to come to your sparring class or something. They want to boost their egos. Nothing is more rewarding than watching them get drilled.

Years ago, at my old school, there was a black belt there that quit. A few years later, he asked if he could come back in one night a week to spar with the instructor and a few black belts. The instructor knew him, and said ok. However, he just tried to bang on people; he got his bell rung, and did not come back.

[kivikala]

We encountered our first and last challenge many years ago. Those days it was expected that some miscreant would come in off the street and try to trash the school. In our case, three guys from the local (and rather nasty) biker gang decided to express their dominion over our school. After ten minutes, the dust settled, all three saw the light, got religion, and joined the school. No one ever bothered the school since and 36 years later, one of them still calls me sensei.

[patusai]

I think this is a childish action, and egotistical as well. That's what tournaments are for, and the MMA's.

I agree.

[mtheiss]

It is wrong for a new person to walk in and in a manner of a short time challege the insitution to a sparring match. I think that is a very wrong and a very irresponsible way of acting. If you care to deal with the combative aspects of martial arts, I am sure topics such as tournaments or the occasional class vs class sparring challenges one hears of would sound better. Me personally, I have my own views.

[mtheiss]

Nobody has come to our school to challenge our instructor. He wouldn't allow it anyways. It is childish. However, a few years ago, a guy came in and tried a couple weeks of classes. He bragged on and on how he had trained for years in some style and that he was a high ranking black belt. I think he wanted my instructor to recognize him as a black belt. He did not. Anyways, all he kept talking about was getting into the ring and showing everyone what he could do. First time in, he lost. Second time in, lost again. Third time, lost badly. He was not thrown in with higher ranking students, but we also didn't put new students in there either, for fear he may purposly try to hurt someone. He didn't come back after that night.

Stupid idea. Very stupid. Instructors are "gods". Want to challenge someone? Find the instructor to quietly ask a new student if he or she wants a challenge. NEVER GO TO THE DOJO SIMPLY TO CHALLENGE INSTRUCTOR! Rude and a very insensitive action in my opinion.

[ps1]

It was mentioned earlier that this is very common in BJJ. I've been in classes before and when they learned I study BJJ, they actually challenged me! I must accept since I am their guest. I usually suggest we do it after class. It's funny how no one ever thinks a fight can go to the ground so fast.

BJJ instructors encourage others to come into their school and challenge them. It's always a friendly match (as this is the nature of the arts tradition) but it rarely ends as a stand fighter would expect. Understand, this story is coming from a person who has spent the last 20 years studying Shotokan and Chuan Fa.

It's not childish as long as it is in the spirit of perfecting technique. There are many famous books by ancient masters who boast about challenging others to a duel. I realize these are not ancient times, but you are dabbling in ancient ways. Some of that past will always be retained.

[Anbu Alex]

question im not trying to be rude but do some martial art schools encourage ppl to go out and challenge other dojo's or are these ppl just bad practitioners cause there are lots or ppl when we do randori (sparring) that come after me (and i always look at my sensei to make sure i got the go ahead to kill his ego before he hurts someone) because i got a BB in japan