Originally Posted by
Jimbo
TBH, I’m not sure how much more traditional some “traditional” styles are than the 4 “accepted” styles of MMA. For example, modern Shotokan karate is probably no older than Gracie JJ/BJJ. Chuck Liddell had a considerable background in Kenpo karate, but I don’t know how “traditional” that is (and I used to be a Kenpo black belt, so this isn’t a knock on Kenpo). TKD was originally a Korean variation of Shotokan karate with a few more kicks added in (IIRC, Choi Hong-Hi has been a 2nd dan in Shotokan); TKD certainly did NOT have a history going back thousands of years in Korea, as some books written in the past by some Korean TKD teachers/authors claimed.
Where exactly is the line where “traditional” stops and “modern/non-traditional” begins? Muay Thai has a long history behind it, even if the vast majority of MMA fighters aren’t “pure” MT fighters. BJJ is basically a derivative of Kano’s judo, which itself is a synthesis of various older jujutsu styles. And of course, western boxing and wrestling have ancient roots.
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