The best martial art
Many have asked 'What is the best martial art'? and in this article we attempt to answer that the best we can.
"What is the best martial art?" you ask. This is a question that almost every martial arts enthusiast or complete novice will almost definitely ask at some point during their martial arts journey. It's natural to start wondering if you're studying the right martial art. Many martial artists claim that their styles are the best martial art out there, but how could this be proven? Or what kind of tournaments could be set up to test this? MMA or UFC are to some extent just that; pitting fighters against each other from various martial arts backgrounds and styles. Yet arguably there has been no conclusive style listed as 'the best'.
The best martial art relies on the person using it
It's fairly 'slap in the face' obvious that the physical condition the martial artist is in will influence how effective the martial arts style is. But, the amount of years practiced and the level of dedication the martial artist has, will undoubtedly influence how good the best martial art is too. Basically, just how good a martial art is, directly relates to how good the fighter is; the best martial arts are created through the best martial artists. Take Bruce Lee for a prime example of a martial artist who took martial arts very seriously and was one of the best fighters of his time.
Because martial arts can only exist where spiritually embraced by a fighter, if a martial artist does not put in enough dedication to their art or keep up their fitness so they are in strong - fighting condition, then they are limiting how good the martial art can be. Two incredibly similar people people can learn the same martial art and one of those people is insanely better at using it than the other - you can't say it's the best style with that kind of variation. Asking which martial arts style is the best is kind of like asking "Which gun shoots the best"? They all fire a bullet, sure - the old flintlock rifle might be less accurate and slower than today's .50 calibre sniper rifle but at the end of the day, it's very much up to who's firing it.
Okay so, what is the best martial arts style?
Enough already, which one is it!? Okay, okay, so it's... really still a matter of debate. What you're actually using the martial art for is kind of important too. The best martial arts style for self-defence is probably quite different from the best martial arts style for competitive fighting or for you personally.
Within the history of martial arts, many styles have dominated at some point in time. The Gracie family branch of Jui Jutsu being one of the most famous, but before that - various styles of Kung Fu such as Hung Gar were world renowned as the best. If you look at things from the perspective of, which martial arts style has won the most tournaments, Gracie Jujutsu would be one of the top martial arts on that list, but does that make it 'the best martial art'?
All martial arts were created with the intention of effectively defending yourself and some of those martial arts were created due to learning from mistakes of other martial arts, so there are likely some martial arts that are in a general sense better for how much they've evolved.
In the end, it's a matter of personal choice
You can only really find out for yourself what the best martial art is, you just have to get out there and try them, see what you like. The most effective street defence might be Wing Chun, Krav Maga or Jujutsu. But then again, what if you personally don't enjoy learning any of those martial arts? What if you love Tai Chi, and practice it so much and for so long that you become incredibly powerful and skilled at that, then effectively you're learning the best martial art - for you. The truth is, there is no best martial art, they all have their strengths and weaknesses, some of those are limited to you. The best martial art is defined by the best martial artist.
