Matt Thornton
Amateur Fighter
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In response to the "What is the best kicking art?" thread, which completely overlooked Capoeira.
Now, before I go into it, just know that in my opinion, if you use an art like TKD or Capoeira, I really believe it should be added to a solid base of Muay Thai, Boxing, K-1 Style Kickboxing, San Shou/San Da, Kyuk Too Ki (Korean version of Muay Thai and San Shou), or other styles that are more prominent or adaptable in MMA. But of course, a lot of people will disagree with me on that, and that's okay.
While a lot of people immediately think about TKD as the kicking martial art, don't discount Capoeira. It has a lot of weird moves, but if you look into the history of it, it's not half bad for kicking.
I barely see any punches when I watch a Capoeira roda. A lot of it is gymnastics, but there is a great deal of kicking. It's such an elusive and unorthodox style, that some of its moves could probably be used pretty well.
Maybe have some boxing added to this, I'd like to see some of it used.
Here's a website that shows a lot of the Capoeira basic fighting moves, and the purpose behind them.
http://www.wu-wien.ac.at/usr/h96b/h9650297/cap-basics.html#chapacosta
Also, I have a 5 minute video of a Capoeira roda, which I put up through YouSendIt. If it gets popular enough, please put it up on RapidShare.
NOTE: If you watch the video, be aware that this is a roda; a non-contact event. Basically it's like dancing, where Capoeira artists get in the circle and "fight" without touching. From what I understand there really isn't a winner. It's like a hybrid between martial arts and just a dance party. Which IMO is pretty cool. The kicks and moves look lame and not dangerous because in a roda, the idea is to show what you can do and what you know, but without hurting each other. So they're intentionally going really light with some of those kicks. Capoeira in a fight would look much faster and harder.
CAPOEIRA RODA 2004
I just thought that was important to stress because if you watch this video thinking "This is what Capoeira would look like in MMA" you'd probably laugh. They're intentionally going light with those kicks.
One of the coolest things I think about Capoeira, is the concept of the Ginga. I haven't seen it in any martial art, but I think it's right up Bruce Lee's alley. The idea is to not keep a fixed stance, but to continually flow and move. It's distracting to your opponent, and because you're always moving your entire body, like a dance, you're unpredictable.
From the website I linked to:
"Ginga: the most basic movement of Capoeira. Instead of taking a fixed stance, you have to keep moving all the time; all the other moves derrive from this dance-like pattern. Ginga becomes soon second nature and provides great potential for unpredictable 3D movement and fake attacks."
Definitely check out some of the stuff like the negativa; it's comparable to an undercut (or cut kick) in Muay Thai, but more like a baseball slide. Sure to send your opponent crashing to the mat in a pretty unpleasant manner.
I could be totally wrong, but I think the ginga directly aids in Capoeira's effectiveness. If your opponent takes a more fixed stance, moves like jump-spinning kicks become more visible, because you're able to watch his body. But if you're constantly moving, and I don't mean small movements, I mean FLOWING, your opponent can't really tell what the hell you're doing. So it allows for more complicated and spectacular kicks because to be good at Capoeira you have to learn how to be totally unpredictable.
I think that a good Muay Thai fighter would probably beat a Capoeira artist. But adding Capoeira to Muay Thai or boxing, that would be a really cool combo. Using the ginga when you're outside of kicking or takedown range, and then moving in either with a Capoeira attack or with boxing.
Now, before I go into it, just know that in my opinion, if you use an art like TKD or Capoeira, I really believe it should be added to a solid base of Muay Thai, Boxing, K-1 Style Kickboxing, San Shou/San Da, Kyuk Too Ki (Korean version of Muay Thai and San Shou), or other styles that are more prominent or adaptable in MMA. But of course, a lot of people will disagree with me on that, and that's okay.
While a lot of people immediately think about TKD as the kicking martial art, don't discount Capoeira. It has a lot of weird moves, but if you look into the history of it, it's not half bad for kicking.
I barely see any punches when I watch a Capoeira roda. A lot of it is gymnastics, but there is a great deal of kicking. It's such an elusive and unorthodox style, that some of its moves could probably be used pretty well.
Maybe have some boxing added to this, I'd like to see some of it used.
Here's a website that shows a lot of the Capoeira basic fighting moves, and the purpose behind them.
http://www.wu-wien.ac.at/usr/h96b/h9650297/cap-basics.html#chapacosta
Also, I have a 5 minute video of a Capoeira roda, which I put up through YouSendIt. If it gets popular enough, please put it up on RapidShare.
NOTE: If you watch the video, be aware that this is a roda; a non-contact event. Basically it's like dancing, where Capoeira artists get in the circle and "fight" without touching. From what I understand there really isn't a winner. It's like a hybrid between martial arts and just a dance party. Which IMO is pretty cool. The kicks and moves look lame and not dangerous because in a roda, the idea is to show what you can do and what you know, but without hurting each other. So they're intentionally going really light with some of those kicks. Capoeira in a fight would look much faster and harder.
CAPOEIRA RODA 2004
I just thought that was important to stress because if you watch this video thinking "This is what Capoeira would look like in MMA" you'd probably laugh. They're intentionally going light with those kicks.
One of the coolest things I think about Capoeira, is the concept of the Ginga. I haven't seen it in any martial art, but I think it's right up Bruce Lee's alley. The idea is to not keep a fixed stance, but to continually flow and move. It's distracting to your opponent, and because you're always moving your entire body, like a dance, you're unpredictable.
From the website I linked to:
"Ginga: the most basic movement of Capoeira. Instead of taking a fixed stance, you have to keep moving all the time; all the other moves derrive from this dance-like pattern. Ginga becomes soon second nature and provides great potential for unpredictable 3D movement and fake attacks."
Definitely check out some of the stuff like the negativa; it's comparable to an undercut (or cut kick) in Muay Thai, but more like a baseball slide. Sure to send your opponent crashing to the mat in a pretty unpleasant manner.
I could be totally wrong, but I think the ginga directly aids in Capoeira's effectiveness. If your opponent takes a more fixed stance, moves like jump-spinning kicks become more visible, because you're able to watch his body. But if you're constantly moving, and I don't mean small movements, I mean FLOWING, your opponent can't really tell what the hell you're doing. So it allows for more complicated and spectacular kicks because to be good at Capoeira you have to learn how to be totally unpredictable.
I think that a good Muay Thai fighter would probably beat a Capoeira artist. But adding Capoeira to Muay Thai or boxing, that would be a really cool combo. Using the ginga when you're outside of kicking or takedown range, and then moving in either with a Capoeira attack or with boxing.
