Circular versus Straight Centre

[Juggler]

Some styles of Kung Fu - such as Choy Li Fut - use long, circular punches, and others - such as Wing Chun - use short, straight, and centreline strikes. (Please correct me if I'm wrong :))

What are the exact pros and cons of each characteristic, and is there one that is better than the other?

Also, does it mean that style such as Choy Li Fut will have greater advantages against styles such as Tae Kwon Do, than shorter-ranged styles like Wing Chun?

Regards,
Juggler

[fgxpanzerz]

A straight line will always beat a circle to the punch. I hope this answers yor question.

[Barefoot Mantis]

I guess cos this ain't a 'political' thread (yet?!)then maybe I can answer it? (Sorry Si-Fu).

It my limited experience it ain't about lines and circles its about velocity, timing and a clear or obstructed path. Like, if the velocity of a curved path is greater then it can beat a lower velocity straight line even if the path of that straight line is shorter.

Fighting is about movement and position, playin' around is about settin up controlled situations which not bein' real are just too abstract to be reliable.

Straight always beatin' curved is a cliche, anyways how do you define 'curved' or straight'? Some hits I know of follow both paths in one execution i.e. the 'Tan-Choi' - springing punch (nicknamed the 'J' punch cos of its path) as taught by my Si-Fu from his Lion's Roar lineage.

The real good fighters that I've seen do what's right at the time the whole thing being interactive.

I know some guys who can power slap a wing-chun guys face from an open 'Hut-Yi-Sao' or beggars hand posture before they can get their chambered centre line hit half way off their startin' block!

It ain't a simple thing, straight v curved, unless we don't have experience or our thinking is way way too abstract man...

[fiercest tiger]

They both counter each other, same as foot work!

straight vs circular vs lateral?? same again!

depends on position and what guard you have up!!

...and a straight punch can be circular if you understand the basic punch(corkscrew)method. this can easily defeat a straight vertical fist, so what is staright may be circular. ykm has different types of straight punching, this all depends on the incoming strike too!

my 2 cents worth! :eek:

come & visit us!
http://home.iprimus.com.au/ykm
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[alecM]

It doesn't matter whether the punch is straight line or circular if there is nothing behind them both are useless.

Fear not the man who has learned one thousand kicks, fear the man who has practiced one kick a thousand times.

[PlasticSquirrel]

they counter eachother, similar to how qin na counters arm techniques. no one better or worse than the other.

to go out on a limb with my own theories, i think that every strong jin is done with either circular or spiralling jin. this is emphasized in chen taijiquan and also in shaolin, not to mention most every other style of gongfu i've seen.

for instance, xingyiquan operates mostly with circles and spirals. look at the pi quan form. circle, then cutting in a different direction with a spiral. even seemingly-straight punches contain spiralling energy.

[iron_silk]

Just as each method is dependant on it's use, it also dependant on it's user and how is applies to them.

[deelee]

I agree with iron_silk.it's impossible to say which type of punch is better than the other.surely it all depends on the situation and the strengths and weaknesses of the of the person throwing the punch and the fighting style of their opponent.
However my own personal opinion is that all techniques should be balanced containing both hard, soft, circular and linear motions. However this is only my personal opinion.
Danny Lee

[mysteri]

i believe danny lee best answered the question,"which is better?" there is no better, because dependant upon the situation, this always changes(common sense). there must be a blend of both linear and circular, hard and soft, short and long..if one has to go the distance and has no versatility, then he may be at a very big disadvantage and become too predictable. linear will counter circular and vice-versa: true. but linear may also intercept linear and circular can intercept circular. if u learn a few circular and linear techniques and learn how to attack and deflect from different angles, then your arsenal should be well-equipped... same as for kicks..eg. if 'a' throws a round kick at 'b', a wing chun thrust kick from 'b' can land before the round kick given appropriate conditions. and if 'a' threw a thrust kick at 'b', then a kwan gerk can surely redirect the kick. explore, train, and don't restrict urself.. my two cents.. good luck!

In a fight you should never stick to principles; they should stick to you!

[Crimson Phoenix]

Let me add some historical stuff here, it might bee interesting or not, you decide...it's about fencing, not punching, but still...
Back in the days in Europe, you had two big fencing schools: the spanish, and the italian...the spanish was the paradigm of circular motions, if the spanish school were to be CMA, they'd be bagua...the italian school was straight, direct, in line...for many years, the spanish were the terror and doom of the italian school...they couldn't cope with the circles...until one day, one guy came up with something: diagonal moves...it was still straight, but not straight forward...with that, theey were able to enter the spanish circles and cross the arcs of their steppings/techniques...they eventually got rid of the spanish school of fencing (which survived only in...the Fillipines)...the italians had been so shocked and traumatized by these years of spanish school domination that they eventually decided to get rid of every fencing habit that could recall or favor the spanish school...ever wondered why modern fencing uses a long and very narrow track? it was because the italian school which prevailed after created modern fencing, and such tracks were very fitted for italian fencing, wether it was impossible to practice spanish style on them...
Now it doesn't say that linear beats circular...to me it's more like "you need some yin in the yang" and vice-versa...in other words, you need straight lines in the circle, and curves in the line...however paradoxical that might sound, I guess it's a concept that many CMA practicionners heard (or might practice, since I believe in internal styles these schemes are emphasized)...

[whippinghand]

don't think style. Think appropriateness of technique.

[dooder]

A straight line isn't always reasonable. just like traveling over land. The key is to look the coolest while striking.