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Why Aren't There More "TKD Lyoto Machidas" Out There? Is It Just a Matter of Time?

Before Lyoto Machida people didn’t give karate much of a chance in MMA. But, when Machida came on the scene and became one of the best fighters out there suddenly karate got more respect. When will it be Tae Kwon Do’s turn in MMA?

Now, before the TKD bashers get all nuts here look at these two TKD MMA fighters first: (Go to youtube and watch their highlights video)

1. Stephen Talipatu (Dutch ITF TKD/MMA fighter)
2, Lukasz Juras Jurkowski (Polish ITF TKD/MMA figher)

These two guys use their Tkd very well in MMA. They are definetly proof that Tkd can be blended into MMA very effectively.

I realize guys like: Bas Rutten, Anderson Silva, Mirko Cro Cop, Stephan Bonner, David Louisseau, etc. have black belts in Tkd and have used some of it’s kicks. But, all of those guys mainly use different kicking styles (like muay thai) for their main striking base not tkd. I am talking about like those two MMA fighters above who use tkd solely as a specialty for their striking system.

Why don’t we see more of these guys? Is it just a matter of time before one breaks out and become the next, "Tae Kwon Do Lyoto Machida?"

  1. nwohioguy
    July 9th, 2011 at 10:14 | #1
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    First off you should never use Tae Kwon Do when talking anything about Machida period. He is a Shotokan Master which is Karate. Secondly Machida is intelligent, respectful and one hell of a fighter. There are few that could equal him as a martial artist and so far none as a MMA fighter. I suggest that you rethink what you are stating as Machida would slap you in the face for using his name along side mcdojang Tae Kwon Do.

  2. mr x ~CFC~ KING ANCELOTTI
    July 9th, 2011 at 10:14 | #2
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    I never studied either, but are Tae Kwon Do and Karate not different? One is a Korean art and one is Japanese no?

    Anyway, Georges St. Pierre was here before Machida, and he’s got a 3rd-degree karate black belt.

    Frank Mir also has a Karate black belt, but he’s never shown it in a fight

    Chuck Liddell? Had ‘Kenpo’ tattooed on his shoulder

  3. Pig on a stack of money
    July 9th, 2011 at 10:14 | #3
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    I don’t want MMA, but I think I remember hearing that most of what Lyoto Machida uses in fights isn’t Karate, but other things he’s learnt

  4. samuraiwarrior_98
    July 9th, 2011 at 10:14 | #4
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    I don’t think so and I say this for a couple of reasons. First I will use the Condit-McDonald fight that happened earlier this year which is a good example I think. Condit comes from a more traditional training background studying martial arts first before he decided to try his hand at fighting. McDonald represents the new type of fighter in that he started with MMA and learning how to fight without any prior experience in a particular martial art unlike Condit. As time goes on there will be more fighters like McDonald I think without any significant change to the number of fighters like Machida or Condit.

    Secondly it takes years to develop your skills, knowledge, and understanding of various or several martial arts and be able to do what Machida is doing and has done. He is just over thirty and started studying and training in TMA as a child so basically he has studied all his life. Most practitioners by the time they have started and studied martial arts and reached that level are in their late 30′s or early 40′s and all but to old for fighting in the cage I think.

    I know a number of tough, old martial artists and fighters that could get in there and scrap and give a very good account of themselves and beat allot of the amateurs and even some inexperienced pros that I judge in MMA. It has taken them years to acquire that knowledge and ability though. Their bodies probably would not hold up to the training long term or handle the punishment of fighting as well as when they were younger but maybe did not have the knowledge and ability that they now have.

    So I think you will see some other fighters like Machida but I would not look for them in any great numbers or anymore that what you see now. McDonald and fighters like him represent and are the future of MMA for the most part I think.

  5. benny64theblast
    July 9th, 2011 at 10:14 | #5
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    any number of UFC guys started in tae kwon do, including GSP.

    If don’t think you can use tkd in the cage. The side stance and the back stance are both too open to a takedown.

    Side kicks and spin kicks sometimes work in UFC because guys are so used to seeing muay thai
    only.
    If tkd were used all the time, ppl. would except it.

    BTW Cung Le uses tkd-like kicks and spinning backfists.

  6. Vincent Van Vengeance
    July 9th, 2011 at 10:14 | #6
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    I believe that most TKD guys don’t use it much because the point of MMA is to Mix your Martial Arts and create an unique style that makes you feel more comfortable with fighting, with that being said the guys would try to mix around anything to get the victory, if you base your Gameplan on one style, it would be a bit hard to win considering the other fighter is forcing you to use another one. So my guess is that they don’t want to overuse the TKD and instead they just want to give out everything they can in order to be more unpredictable and to have more chances to win.

  7. Robert Fulton
    July 9th, 2011 at 10:14 | #7
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    The reason is because TKD isnt considered a martial art anymore, it is considered a sport, like mma, so TKD fighters like to stay in their own style. Another reason is that TKD is mostly kicking, while Shotokan Karate (the type of karate Lyoto Machida practices) has takedowns, grappling, striking, kicking, and counter-attacking, so Karate fighters go into MMA because it is similar. I hope this helped :)

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