Difference between JKD and MMA?

[AlwaysTraining]

I guess I simply don't understand what is the difference between JKD and MMA. It would seem to me that one who is skilled at a highly eclectic range of MMA would be doing, more or less, JKD. I know there is a difference, but damned if I can see it. Would someone please explain it to me?

 

[Andrew Green]

In some cases nothing, in others quite a bit.

JKD may in theory be MMA, but not everyone trains it that way. Some people follow what Bruce Lee did, others do what is essentially MMA.

JKD tends to take a more no rules approach, tossing in fouls, weapons, etc. Sometimes it has a strong Jun Fan / Wing Chun leaning, other times those are almost completely absent.

 

[AlwaysTraining]

In some cases nothing, in others quite a bit.

JKD may in theory be MMA, but not everyone trains it that way. Some people follow what Bruce Lee did, others do what is essentially MMA.

JKD tends to take a more no rules approach, tossing in fouls, weapons, etc. Sometimes it has a strong Jun Fan / Wing Chun leaning, other times those are almost completely absent.

Unfortunately, it is the differences that through me. I have absolutely no trouble with seeing it's similarities to MMA. It is how it differs that eludes me. What seperates the two? Here's a question to get this rolling: how is JKD using no way as a way, but MMA is not? That would be one question among many.

 

[Andrew Green]

JKD can mean a lot of things, thats why it is hard to answer.

But, many JKD schools will do Chi Sau, Lop sau drills, kali drills, etc. Not many MMA schools would. All MMA schools will do submission grappling, I believe some JKD schools don't do much of that at all.

 

[Flatlander]

There are indeed many similarities. One difference that comes to mind is the bil jee, or finger tip strike, generally aimed at the eyes. This is a strike that a competitive MMAer won't be training, as they don't want to use this in competition. MMAers generally won't train joint destructions, throat strikes, etc.

I'd say the fundamental difference is in the method of training. It's subtle, as there are many similarities.

 

[AlwaysTraining]

I've been thinking about this a lot lately. JKD seems to me to be, among other things, an expression of free will. One takes what he/she find to be useful and disregards the rest.

What JKD is also seems to be different with every practitioner. One's JKD would almost certainly be different from anothers'. These things being said, as long as the JKD practitioner is utilizing what he/she considers useful, why would it not be JKD?

 

[Flatlander]

These things being said, as long as the JKD practitioner is utilizing what he/she considers useful, why would it not be JKD?

The thing is, there's much more to the philosophy of JKD than simply utilizing what one considers useful. For example:

-One must be mindful of the principles of trapping, footwork, mobility, evasiveness, crispiness, the five ways of attack, closest weapon to nearest target, feinting, stop hits, economy of motion.
-One must maintain a proper mindset - calm, aware, and unfocused on the self. There should be no thought. You do not do - it happens.
-One should train to develop attributes - energy drills, aliveness, freedom, mechanics, intercepting, destructions, cadence.
-One should understand flow - move like water, fill the hole, let the opponent show you the way.
-One should be comfortable in all ranges of combat. There should be no preference, no predefined strategy, no imposition of assumptions. There should be no guesswork involved.

Without the implementation of these principles, it is not Jeet Kune Do. Simply utilizing what one sees as useful is not sufficient to meet the JKD standard.

 

[AlwaysTraining]

The presentation of those facts actually helps my understading of JKD quite a bit. Now, another question: what do you think of 'Jeet Kune Do' by Bruce Lee?

 

[DeLamar.J]

I guess I simply don't understand what is the difference between JKD and MMA. It would seem to me that one who is skilled at a highly eclectic range of MMA would be doing, more or less, JKD. I know there is a difference, but damned if I can see it. Would someone please explain it to me?

JKD is using what ever works for you.

 

[Makalakumu]

In my opinion, MMA is what Bruce Lee envisioned for JKD. I trained in Inosanto Blend for three years and we did a lot of muay thai, bjj, kali and some jun fan. Those three years really made me rethink my TMA practice, after I had formed it as a base art. Now, I work alot of those same principles into my TSD.