11Foreword
Action is a genre that almost everyone can enjoy; a touch of adrenaline and a glimmer of excitement is all anyone really needs to escape from mundane reality. Let's face it; we human beings have destruction in our blood, hence the popularity of contact sports and simulated bloodbaths. It also explains the rising inclusion of martial arts in action martial arts.
Now when I mention martial arts, what comes to mind? Ten years ago, perhaps it would've been Chow Yang Fat gliding over tree-tops and cleaving through stone. Twenty years ago it might've been one of the many Bruce-Lee copies one-inch punching random stuntmen with bad haircuts. Back in those days, it was adequate to stick a vaguely Asian protagonist into the middle of a fancy choreograph, throw in some mumbo-jumbo mysticism and call it martial arts. Some people still believe that is adequate. Thankfully, however, the rest of the world has moved on to slightly more realistic expectations.
We live in the era of Jason Bourne and Mixed Martial Arts, an age where fighting forms are techniques designed to incapacitate one's opponent any way one can. Forget fair fights, forget flashy moves, now is the time of pure unadulterated brawling.
There is the old maxim "write what you know." What about those of us who don't know about martial arts in general? Those of you have integrity and commitment to your art, who don't want to feign expertise where there is none? You want a realistic up-close fisticuff but don't know how to pull off the "realistic" part? Well, that's where I come in.
As a current member of the Singapore Armed Forces, I was a Mixed Martial Arts student of three years. I have hand hands on lessons in integrated fighting styles as well as more tradition Chinese martial arts.
Here is your comprehensive guide to modern martial arts techniques from all over the world. You will not find any acrobatics, chi-breathing, or animal-oriented fighting styles. You will not find lengthy expositions on philosophies or histories. Here, you will be presented with the stark analysis of modern combat-oriented self-defense and military unarmed combat techniques. Their strengths, their weaknesses, and anything else unique about the art in itself.
I am not perfect, so feel free to correct me if I'm wrong. Without further ado, let's begin. Welcome to the world of unarmed combat.