Army uses MMA as training requirement

[Tom Yum]

http://www.theleafchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050606/NEWS01/506060304/1002

Sergeants mix martial arts

By CHANTAL ESCOTO
The Leaf-Chronicle
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



Chantal Escoto/The Leaf-Chronicle


Army sergeants and hand-to-hand combatant instructors Stephen Whorf, left, and Francisco Portillo demonstrate a hip-throw technique at the Clarksville Mixed Martial Arts Academy. The 101st Airborne Division teams that practice the mixed martial arts recently placed first, second and third in a tournament at Fort Campbell's Week of the Eagles.


The U.S. Army's new hand-to-hand combat training not only is good for close encounters with the enemy — it also helps soldiers win tournaments.

Three of the teams that practice the mixed martial arts techniques placed tops in the recent Week of the Eagles combatant tournament.

Army combatant instructors sergeants Stephen Whorf and Francisco Portillo say the winnings are just proof that using the best parts of all close-contact fighting styles — like jujitsu, karate, tae kwon do, kick-boxing and wrestling — is the most effective.

"This right here is reality fighting," said Whorf, who is assigned to 2nd Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment and has been doing martial arts his whole life. "The great thing about this is you're not punching a bag, but we're here wrestling with another person. Because we train here 100 percent, that pays off."

Whorf said he knows from experience how well the techniques work when he was in Nashville recently and said he got jumped by five men and stabbed. He credits his mixed martial arts training with saving his life by using a knee in the head and a foot sweep to knock them off their feet.

"I did exactly what I learned here. After that, I became a firm believer in this," he said.

The Department of the Army has ordered that every soldier be trained and certified at least on the first level of the mixed martial arts techniques by October. The order is part of the Army's transformation for more realistic training and to give soldiers the true warrior mentality. They have found it to be effective from experiences for the Rangers at Fort Benning, Ga., and it expanded for all soldiers to be trained in the mixed martial arts.

Portillo, combatant instructor for 3rd Brigade, said the goal of the hand-to-hand combat training is to be able to control your fear and commit yourself to the Army's warrior doctrine that says engage the enemy and finish the task at hand.

"That basically means kill-or-be-killed. We teach that the one time they'll need it, they'll have it at hand," said Portillo, who has studied martial arts since he was a child.

Portillo said this type of fighting is particularly important to the 101st Airborne Division, whose soldiers do house-to-house searches under dangerous circumstances.

"Sometimes an Iraqi will jump on their back and they will have to respond," Portillo said. "It's a fluid situation and you're closing the distance under fire."

Clarksville Mixed Martial Arts Academy owner and instructor John Renken said his school specializes in these varied techniques and it seems to be working for the ones who train there.

Renken has been hired by the Army to teach mixed martial arts to the soldiers at Fort Campbell and has the only school in the area to certify Modern Army Combatives to Level 3, the highest level available.

"Truth is found in combat," Renken said. "If your guys can't fight and can't win, then there's something wrong."

[unclejoe357]

Sounds awesome.

Im leaving for basic training next week, hopefully I'll encounter this program.

[Shaolin Bushido]

Hopefully you stay as motivated and don't get hooked up with the cigarette smoking and complaining element ... they're there, believe me.

They'll waste their time in the Army and yours too, if you don't watch em.

Good luck and keep that adventurous and excited outlook on your Army experience ... even when some of the "newness" wears off!

[Tant01]

How funny.... So the Army Rangers do GJJ/BJJ grappling and now the regular infantry is jumping on the MMA band wagon.


Whatever... It's more about instilling the "killer" instinct than attaining a level of mastery in some MA.

[unclejoe357]

Thanks shaolin. When did you serve? What MOS?

Im leaving for Benning on Tuesday, I cant wait! Ive been training my whole life for this career.

tant01- Nobody is talking about mastery. The Army just wants its soldiers to be proficient at h2h combat. Regular Army has used the GJJ for some time as well, the Rangers just do more of it.

Soldiers, just like everybody else cant kill everybody everytime. If a prisoner needs to be taken, you take a bar brawl 101 class, or your drunken buddy comes at you cant just kill them.

They need to start training in full combat gear as well. A real eye-opener.

[LoneHusky]

I wonder what other military branches use. anybody?

[Shaolin Bushido]

Thanks shaolin. When did you serve? What MOS?

Heh, heh, I hate you. Naw, I served in the Corps, 82-86. I was a 2531, Field Radio Operator. Communications. Battery operated grunt.

I think it is called the Signal Corps, in the Army or informally, Commo.

[unclejoe357]

Marine Corps has their own martial arts system, complete with colored belt ranks. Its a combination of many different techniques. Its referred to as "Marine Corp matial arts" and "LINE"

Naval special warfare employs Close Quarters Defence(CQD)

Just like civilian martial arts training, what is tought varies by instructor(s) The systems themselves are constantly changing.

Usually soldiers seek out training in a variety of different systems on their own time. The reaity based fighting systems are very popular(Krav Maga, DCM, CQD)

These systems also cover prisoner control, weaps use/retention/defence, how to react to diferent threats in a variety of environments and so forth.

Just because a system is good for the military dosent mean its good for competition, civilian or Law Enforcement use.

[Shaolin Bushido]

LINE actually preceded the system they use now.(MCMAP) I understand they stopped using it because of the high incidence of injury during training and the fact that it was based on incapacitating the aggressor rather than controlling him. Most of their finishes were something along the lines of "stomp his gourd to mush" or something or other.

I DID read somewhere that some parts of it were kept and merged into the current system.

My neighbor who's also a Marine was a LINE instructor. He's now a policeman.

[goojitsu]

I can tell you from personal experience that the Army is not at all concerned with how well you can fight hand to hand, even in the infantry. I have been in the infantry for three years and can count on one hand the amount of times I've done organized hand to hand training of any kind. You do it for one whole day in basic and might get an extra day to box if you're lucky. As for when you get to your unit, your commanders are usually too scared of injuries to schedule any sort of combatives. As for the LINE training - the way I've seen it applied is complete bullshit. It is all scripted sequences of moves that the opponent needs to cooperate with in order for them to work. And yes, the primary finishing move is bringing your heel down on the head of your prone opponent who is just lying there. On the other hand, I have used my grappeling experience several times in "combat" handling detainees and civilians. The most you'll need to do is take a guy down and zip-tie him which isn't very difficult - they don't resist very often. My advice to you is to learn how to shoot - that's all that matters. I could go on for days but I'll cut it off there unless anyone has questions!