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Originally Posted by NousDefionsDoc
Welcome aboard. I have some questions:
What does MACP stand for?
How are you rationalizing mixing H2H with sport competitions?
Is it true that combatives are now BJJ-oriented? If so, why?
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Sir,
First, thank you, great to be here.
1) MACP - Modern Army Combatives Program
2) A look at the history of combatives systems reveals two fundamental mistakes, both of which are related to competition. The first mistake is having no form of competition. This is generally done due to the misguided thought that the techniques are “too dangerous” to be done competitively. While many techniques are too dangerous to be executed during live competition; there are great benefits to be gained by competing even in a limited set of techniques. The boxer is a better puncher than the traditional martial artist not because of the mechanics of punching but because his technique has been refined in the crucible of competition. The feel for an enemy’s body movement of most high school wrestlers is superior to most traditional martial artists for this very same reason.
For military units there are many other reasons that a competitive form is useful. The problem of developing a strong unit program is really the problem of how to motivate subordinate unit leaders to emphasize the training. Competitions can be useful for this in several ways. Competitions are also a very good way to encourage the pursuit of excellence in soldiers. A great example of this is with SF. Just recently, the JFK team won the All-Army Combatives Tourney down in Fort Benning, GA. Since that time, many of the teams are using this as an opportunity to get the soldiers into Level I and Level II classes, rather than doing any type of LINES training. Soldiers see the benifit of the training and want to train.
The other mistake is that once you have decided on a method of competition, training will naturally become focused on winning at competition rather than on winning in combat. Over time, the system changes until it bears only a slight resemblance to the original combat art. This is evident in almost every combatives system. Boxers do not concern themselves with how to defend against takedowns. Wrestlers do not concern themselves with defending against chokes.
The dilemma then is how to garner the benefits from competition without falling into the trap of a competitive focus. The answer is to have a graduated system of competition rules. In this way there will not be a competitive advantage to training specifically for competitions. Those who do will find themselves unprepared for the additional techniques that are allowed at the next level of competition. This also allows for a very safe subset of techniques to be used at the lower levels without losing the combat focus. In the MAC system, the ladder matches and smaller competitions are all modified BJJ style rules. Once the soldiers get to the Semi-Final rounds, the rules move to Pancrase and then the finals with modified MMA rules.
I know some of the info goes to another direction for a bit, but hopefully it answers the question. Most of the info is right from the Level I class.
3) BJJ, Wrestling, and Sambo are the "Base" of the ground fighting in the MAC system. Orginally, a group of Rangers took the Gracie Jiu-Jitsu system, and with their combat experience as a guide, made modifications to meet the needs of the Army, focusing the training on the battlefield. The reasons we train the ground fighting first are because it is easiest to learn and we can train it at 100%, without serious concern for injury.
Once you progress in the system, you train more in Judo and Wrestling for takedowns and closing the distance, and then more in to Muay Thai, Boxing, Kali, and San Shou for Clinch, Striking, and weapons transitions. In the end, while we are giving soldiers a lot of information at each position, the most important thing we can ask for is for the soldier to remember the basic fight strategy for the battlefield, which is A) Close the Distance with the enemy B) Gain a dominant position, and C) Finish the Fight.