Who or what influenced your chosen style?

[John Matao]

here's mine:

(1)TKD - this guy I knew at school who did TKD. A real psychopath, at the time I knew nothing about martial arts, so I decided TKD would be a great start. Only thing was, as I progressed at TKD I began to realise that my friend was a real exception....

(2)JUDO - Gene LeBelle of course! There's the link with Bruce Lee too. Besides, Lebelle has achieved so much in his life, yet is'nt half as arrogant as some certain BJJ pioneers...

(3)KICKBOXING - ok....... I'll admit it. The movie Kickboxer.... inititally anyway. I'm also very impressed by Danny Steele. And Tyson, but wait a minute...

(4)AIKIDO - Steven Seagal. Only thing was, as I progressed in it I could'nt help but feel conned... it really was'nt anything at all like what Seagal did in his movies....

(5)Kenpo - Ed Parker! This guy was incredible, a true modern day warrior.

well, that's all that I can think of for now...

[YeLLa-TiGeR]

TKD-Cause I am korean, promotes cultural pride, according to my mother.

Later in my teens this particular forum attracted me after I was watching UFC 18. I discovered BJJ, MMA and of course MUAY THAI!! I discovered the truth behind the grappler and the striker. I learned the true effectiveness of wrestling and boxing.

Muay Thai-HEAVILY influenced by you people, I cant thank you guys enough for opening my eyes. Thank you.

[Evilution]

I think I was 15 or so when I picked up The Tao of Jeet Kuno Do. I was highly influenced by it and trained what was pretty much JKD kickboxing. After seeing the UFC's and learning about wrestling and submissions I started training MMA. But my base in JKD heavily influenced the way I fight. So did a lot of good boxers.

[Underdog]

TKD= I hated it, ever tought if would have never worked on the streets, but at the time it was the only MA other than Judo, in my town, so I signed up.

RUAS VALE TUDO=I really knew nothing about NHB or MMA, but at the time I was left by my girlfriend, and saw an ad where I readed "No rules fighting"; so I signed up hoping that someone would sent me into a coma...

It never worked, but I got a lot of fun and some friends...

GRAPPLING=I really hate grappling, but I view it as brushing teeths: boring, but you must do it...

[gungfuhero]

Jun Fan/JKD concepts:Bruce Lee and a host of very talented JKDC guys who I ran into in the beggining of my TKD training. They also exposed my to BJJ, Muay Thai and BJJ.

TKD:It sounded good 6 years ago and I still benefit form the training. My brother was exposed to it in high school and I was intrigued.

Shooto:Eric Paulson's Shoot wrestling demo on WCC was incredible.

[WhiteSon]

Why is everyone dumping on Tae Kwon Do? TKD is the real thing. But I'm kinda confused. In my experience, I've seen two totally different martial arts both called Tae Kwon Do. I've come to understand that my school teaches an older, more traditional style, while the vast majority of modern schools teach something else, an updated version tailored for tournament fighting and getting points by simply touching your opponent. I tried this new style briefly and didn't like it. They don't even punch! When they end up close in, they just tie up each other's arms, because apparently tournament rules don't allow punches to the head. It looks so funny when two people end up face to face. I'm thinking, "Elbow, club him over the head, knee him, do something!" but they just stand there and hold onto each other's arms until they can back off enough to kick again. In the Tae Kwon Do I know and love, you get that close and somebody gets knocked out. Is anyone else aware of these two different TKDs?

[Ryu (non-working password]

protect someone...realistically

[Shimora]

Ryu that PSR stuff is deadly. Great style.

I first studied Ninjutsu because my father taught it to me.
Later I studied various styles from Japan and the Philipines. I found that the Japanese based Jutsu's offered great unarmed techniques whilst the Filipino stuff was better for weapons techniques.

[PassiveGuy]

TKD: The Ninja Turtles, when I was 7 I was a HUGE fan so I started "karate"!

Boxing: A few years after I quite TKD I decided to really learn to fight, unfortunately all I got was a trainer who only let me hit the bag and pads, no sparring.

Muay Thai: Loved the full contact and hardcore training, also it's an amazing standup art.

judo: Out of the simple need to learn to grapple, I figured out that you must have ground skills to stand a chance in NHB. Plus the throws are badass!!!

[gungfuhero]

I to have made the observation of the two distinctly different TKD styles. I still practice TKD and couldn't care less about the point fighting aspect. It's not my thing. I know some competitors who are very talented, but the prefered method evolved with the very specific rules (ie: no head punching, low kicks or close range fighting). There are so many MMArtists who judge the art's merit only on what they know about the point fighting. There are some TKD schools who train realistically for fighting. They are few and far between and I consider myself blessed to a member of one.

[Ryu (non-working password]

Isn't it though?

[Shimora]

Ryu,


Yup

[Martial Artist]

BJJ-UFC 4.I watched it and was like what the hell.But,I guess to answer your question its Royce Gracie.

[Bau13]

Bruce Lee...when I was in grade school all I would do was rent out his movies...I'd copy the movements etc..

I took up TKD after that...got my black belt ...stopped

started watching UFC's ...took up Muay Thai and learned alot of grappling moves just by watching those fights..

Its really surprising how much you can pick up by just watching!

I pretty much go with the "take what is usefull and discard what isn't" theory..

[Ryan The Bad]

BJJ: Royce Gracie in UFC #1-4.