This question is frequently asked. My initial response is, “real fight against who?” In the realm of martial arts, sometimes the conflict is not just between fighters, but also within oneself, much like an artist who perfects their craft over time through dedication and practice.
Wing Chun can be effective in a real fight because it trains you not only in discipline but also to react instantly without thinking. It also teaches you how to deliver lightning fast, powerful straight punches and strikes at close range. This martial art also enhances your speed and reaction time. However, it may not be effective against trained full-contact fighters or tough street fighters who are bigger and stronger than you—unless you modify some of the techniques and training methods. Just as an artist hones their skill, if you master it, Wing Chun can be a powerful tool for self-defense, but it is useful to understand its limitations as well. There are techniques that include blocks which may need adaptation for different combat situations.
The first video above is of Emin Boztepe, a Wing Chun master who was one of Leung Ting’s top fighters. He is considered by many as the best fighter from the Leung Ting lineage, and he also invented the Leung Ting anti-grappling program at the request of Leung Ting, made when grappling arts started to become dominant around the world.
You can see that he is very fast, very powerful, and very skilled. With his speed and discipline, Emin is a “beast” who would kick practically anyone’s ass no matter which martial arts he trained in. His approach to Wing Chun can be likened to an artist perfecting a masterwork, blending precision and creativity in his every move.
One of my former sifus saw Emin in person in Germany. Emin did a demonstration where he had a really big guy the size and general shape of a refrigerator holding an extra big kick shield against his body. Emin stepped in and punched the shield, causing the big guy to be physically lifted off the ground into the air and then crash to the floor on his face. Such strikes highlight the effectiveness of Wing Chun in skilled hands. Probably what Emin can do has very little to do with what you (or I) can do, but it demonstrates that, for some people, Wing Chun can be a deadly weapon with the right discipline and training.
Between 2005 and 2019, I practiced Wing Chun almost continuously. At first, my learning process was slow and frustrating, but after about three or four years, I started to get good. I eventually finished the unarmed system, including the wooden dummy, and took several seminars on the long pole, and one seminar on the knives. For a time, I taught a small class at the school and had some private students. My journey in Wing Chun was much like an artist refining their technique through endless hours of dedication and practice.
I was always aware of the haters and naysayers, but for most of that time, I believed that my long and sometimes intense training would stand me in good stead if I ever had to use it against a typical attacker in a real street combat situation.
At one of my schools, there was one student who stood out. He had very powerful techniques. I remember I once held a pad while he slammed elbow after elbow into it, eventually causing me a severe headache from the impact.
After about a year and a half or two years of training, he had become a “beast” in the class, and he was planning on entering various full-contact competitions, first with a kick boxer, and then against a Muay Thai fighter. His skill development was akin to an artist —with each movement being an expression of his trained prowess.The Sifu, an athletic and very gifted practitioner and teacher who had full contact experience, gave him private lessons on how to apply his Wing Chun in the ring. He emphasized the importance of both defense and attack, and how to modify his strategy and tactics for the ring.
This student’s first and only full contact bout was against a kick boxer on Long Island, where he was knocked out in the first round. His training and inherent toughness failed him when he went up against an experiencd full-contact fighter.
Then there came a time when I was investigating other martial arts. I had a few classes at a Muay Thai gymnasium, which I found to be humbling. I learned that being in a class or even watching a live class is very different than watching videos on YouTube. In the class, I could see and hear the impact of the Thai kicks striking pads and bags. Even the female students could kick with tremendous power that I doubted I could handle. The intensity of the workout that every class started with, as well as the level of conditioning of the senior students and instructors, was off the chart. This rigorous regimen cultivates a well-rounded offense and helps maintain balance during high-pressure situations, preparing practitioners to both defend and attack effectively.
My next stop was a Judo school. In the class, I could see that the students who were thrown hit the mats with tremendous force. Some of the throws were executed by picking the opponent onto the shoulders and throwing him down from a height of up to five feet. l.
Finally, I spent almost two years studying Wing Chun in a small class located in a boxing gymnasium. The boxers were mostly young inner-city men. Many were built kind of like Mike Tyson or were less bulky but ripped.
Many punched with tremendous power, even though they were amateurs. One of the coaches was kind of a nutty but playful guy and would typically engage me in a few seconds of light sparring. I found that he was almost never able to block any kick or any Wing Chun technique. However, I doubted that I could survive any length of time against him in any real fight or in a real fight against any of the testosterone-laden amateur boxers. I could see that the power and fluidity of these boxers made them into formidable and dangerous adversaries.
Meanwhile, the few Wing Chun fighters who fought in the UFC and in other mixed martial arts competitions were quickly demolished, and to my knowledge, none has achieved any measure of success in K1, Glory, or any of the other major kickboxing full contact competitions. The few Wing Chun fighters who won matches in the small shows mostly used boxing and kickboxing techniques and did not look like Wing Chun fighters at all. Recently, a Wing Chun fighter was trounced by a one-armed opponent who strategically capitalized on the absence of balanced offense from his Wing Chun adversary, turning his attack into a decisive victory
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Why Wing Chun Does’t Work In The Ring
There are several reasons for Wing Chun’s poor results in the ring.Perhaps the main result is that the very high-level Wing Chun men are pretty much all sifus with their own schools, and Wing Chun is mostly marketed as being an unbeatable art. These sifus are afraid that if they entered a competition and lost, they might lose most of their students. Additionally, all of the lineages I have seen lack the fast explosive footwork you see in boxing or kickboxing, which is pivotal to maintaining balance and executing an effective offense. These missing aspects highlight the need for an all-encompassing approach in training.
In watching videos of Wing Chun fighters against non-Wing Chun fighters in full contact bouts is that even Wing Chun fighters who do relatively well and look halfway decent only use the style’s signature chain punch and front kick. The absence of a balanced and versatile offense is a glaring flaw when matched against diverse martial arts techniques. There is no pak sao, lap sao, sticking hands, or trapping. In martial arts, particularly in Wing Chun, the transition from knowing techniques to applying them effectively is a matter of dedicated practice. Aspects such as footwork and timing must be refined through consistent effort and repetition, enabling one to develop the skill necessary to execute movements effortlessly under pressure.
The second video above is an example of a Wing Chun fighter using the most basic technique, the chain punch, effectively against an opponent who is pretty good at a non-traditional martial art (kickboxing). The Wing Chun man has fast hands, effective footwork (which does not appear to be pure Wing Chun footwork), and he uses the Wing Chun strategy of going in aggressively and attacking nonstop. He is not afraid to close the distance with his opponent. At this point, one must appreciate the simplicity and effectiveness of these techniques, allowing the mind to focus on the strategy rather than becoming overwhelmed with complex maneuvers. Mastering these techniques often comes from continuous practice, transforming the basic movements into a refined skill set that encompasses crucial aspects of combat strategy.
However, I do not see him throwing any punches with knockout power, and he does not seem to have ever actually hurt the kick boxer, but he keeps him busy defending. If this fight took place with bare knuckles, the chain punches would probably have been much more effective, and at the very least, he would probably have cut the kick boxer up pretty badly. It is also hard to do trapping techniques with boxing gloves on. Addressing the aspects of impact and adaptation in different combat scenarios could enhance the effectiveness of Wing Chun techniques.
If Wing Chun doesn’t work in the ring, can it still work in the street?
The video above shows beginner students in the Leung Ting lineage going in full contact against each other. Some wear various protective gear, but IMHO the full power knees, elbows, and kicks to the head and spine are way too dangerous for training, even with protective equipment. Although their form isn’t that great, and they are using only basic techniques, the deadliness of the techniques and the ferocity of the fighters show that this style can work for tough and motivated students in a real-life self-defense situation. Developing such proficiency in Wing Chun not only comes from a disciplined practice routine but harnessing the skill to adapt these basic techniques effectively under high-stress scenarios, addressing both mental and physical aspects of martial arts training.
I have also seen some MMA fighters finding success using the Wing Chun low side kick and oblique kick in bouts. The precision and control required for these techniques make them particularly effective in causing knee injuries. In fact, they have been so successful in causing knee injury that there is talk about banning the oblique kick because, even if it is delivered above the knee joint and not directly to the knee joint, it can hyperextend the knee joint and cause serious and possibly permanent injury to anyone who is on the receiving end.
Some MMA fighters seem to be experimenting with trapping hand techniques, and it turns out that eye jabs (while mostly accidental) are effective in the ring, so much so that the UFC is working on developing new gloves to prevent them. The adaptability of fighters to use such unorthodox techniques demonstrates the dynamic nature of the sport. This adaptability requires a focused mind and a willingness to incorporate various elements of different fighting styles. It’s the consistent practice that hones their skill, allowing fighters to innovate and include unexpected techniques successfully, which can potentially surprise anyone in the ring.
There was a time in Hong Kong when there were a lot of gangs, and Wing Chun became so popular among gang members that it was called “gangster fist”. The gangs liked it because they could learn it relatively quickly and it was devoid of fancy, impractical techniques. This point in time highlights the practical application of Wing Chun as a straightforward and effective fighting style within various social contexts. For anyone engaged in such environments, the practice of Wing Chun provided a reliable skill set that offered both efficiency and effectiveness in combat situations.
However, these gangsters were using Wing Chun mostly against untrained opponents, or possibly against opponents who trained mostly impractical styles of Kung Fu, and were not facing the challenges of fighting against Muay Thai, kickboxing, western boxing, or wrestling. The effectiveness of Wing Chun, including the quick reflexes and rapid movement required for its application, was therefore not put to the test against these more modern and competitive fighting styles.
Nowadays, some of the haters at least concede that Wing Chun can work on the street against an untrained and unarmed opponent. I agree, except that on the street it is more likely that you will be confronting either an armed attacker or multiple attackers. Wing Chun does not work against a knife, but to be fair, neither does any other martial art. The adaptability of Wing Chun techniques, especially its reflexes and movement dynamics, in the face of diverse and realistic threats is often questioned in these scenarios that anyone may encounter in real-life situations.
Wing Chun also does not work well on the street against single attackers who are wrestlers, grapplers, decent boxers, or even against a street fighter without any formal training, who is much bigger and stronger, or who is very aggressive and has a granite chin. The precise balance of reflexes and movement, while effective in traditional Wing Chun practice, may not suffice in these challenging street encounters.
The reasons for this include the fact that Wing Chun fighters don’t train to develop knockout power, tend to be “nerds” who have never been in a real fight, never do full contact sparring, and only train to fight against other Wing Chun fighters. They also lack the mobile footwork necessary to survive encounters with multiple attackers, which requires both nimble reflexes and agile movement.
On the other hand, much of the theory and many of the principles of Wing Chun, such as attacking the center line, using bone alignment, keeping a strong structure, and optimizing for efficiency are quite valid. Drills that increase sensitivity do allow practitioners the ability to fight instinctively, without having to think. This precise approach to defense can be highly effective in controlled environments, allowing practitioners to rely on reflexes and movement for swift reactions.
What Can Be Done To Make Wing Chun More Effective?
First of all, you can do more training for power. Wong Shun Leung schools often emphasize drills for power, and some use the heavy bag in addition to the traditional wall bag. The long pole is another traditional way of developing power, and there are modern methods such as plyometrics and even isometrics, which Bruce Lee used a lot. It is also possible to modify the Wing Chun chain punch by incorporating a very quick and short rotation of the waist. You can also incorporate additional footwork from boxing or kickboxing. I believe it is an excellent idea for a serious Wing Chun student to train for six months or more in a boxing gym, enhancing precision, reflexes, movement, control, and adaptability in their techniques.
