Is Krav Maga the Deadliest Martial Art?

You must be familiar with some martial arts and self-defense systems. You probably also know that Krav Maga is brutal and one of the most effective styles for self-defense. But is Krav Maga the deadliest martial art?

Krav Maga is the deadliest martial art in the world because it is a self-defense system that is devoid of any rules. Although Krav Maga is not officially recognized as a martial art, it is widely considered one.

Krav Maga is a military defense system that takes the most effective moves from other fighting styles (aikido, boxing, judo, and wrestling) to ensure your safety against attackers, robbers, or killers.

But where does Krav Maga come from and why is it so deadly?

A Brief History of Krav Maga

Krav Maga which means “Close Combat” in Hebrew is an Israeli martial art originally developed in the 1930s to help Jewish people protect themselves against violence at a time of rising anti-Semitism.

The Hungarian-Israeli founder, Imrich Lichtenfeld, (a wrestling and boxing champion) took the fighting to the streets to defend his Jewish community against the increasing violence in Europe.

When he moved to what is now known as Isreal, he officially invented Krav Maga for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), and the Israeli Security Forces.

Note: Although Krav Maga is often lumped in with other martial arts, it is neither a martial art nor a combat sport. It is not a traditional martial arts system but simply a self-defense system built for survival.

However, despite the non-recognition of Krav Maga as a martial art, it is still widely regarded as the deadliest martial art in the world.

Why Is Krav Maga So Deadly?

Krav Maga is so deadly because it is a self-defense system that does not recognize any rules in the application of its brutal techniques.

Although Krav Maga like most martial arts encourages its students and practitioners to avoid physical confrontation.

Where it however becomes impossible or unsafe to avoid a fight, it emphasizes finishing a fight as quickly and aggressively as possible.

Its philosophy is that you must do anything it takes to save your life and see another day.

Krav Maga launches attacks at the most vulnerable points in the body as its training techniques are so vicious and capable of causing great injury or even death to opponents.

The art trains students to defend and counterattack as quickly and effectively as possible. 

Some of the combat and training principles in Krav Maga include;

•  Simultaneous attack and defense
• Use of easy and simple repeatable strike techniques
• Development of physical aggression (it is believed that this is a very important component in a fight)
• Use of any available object to hit an opponent
• The continuous striking of an opponent until he feels incapacitated
• Use of natural responses and reactions
• Development of muscle memory for quick fight reaction
• preemptively attack, or counter-attack as soon as possible
• Targeting attacks on the most vulnerable points of the body such as; the throat, face, eyes, foot, knee, liver, groin, etc.
• Having awareness of the surroundings even during a fight. This enables them to scan for the next threat, fighting objects, or possible escape route.
• Disengage as quickly as possible
• There are no rules in survival

Some of the common techniques in Krav Maga as inspired by aikido, boxing, judo, and wrestling include;

• Strikes- boxing and karate
• Groundwork- wrestling and judo
• Take-downs and throws- aikido, judo, and wrestling
• Empty-hand weapon defenses- aikido
• Escapes from chokes and holds –, aikido, judo, and wrestling

With this understanding of Krav Maga, it should not be surprising that the world’s most dangerous and effective form of self-defense is also the deadliest martial art in the world.

What Is the Number 1 Deadliest Martial Art?

The number 1 deadliest martial art is Krav Maga because it is devoid of any rules. Krav Maga is however not recognized as a martial art but is now widely considered as one.

Krav maga was not created for martial arts sports competitions.

It’s a fighting style designed to inflict as much pain as possible on a target.

The style is aggressive, fast-paced, and often uses techniques that can end a person’s life intentionally.

Unlike many other forms of combat, Krav Maga does not have a set of clear rules.

There is only one goal, which is to neutralize the enemy.

Is Silat the Deadliest Martial Art?

Silat is not the deadliest martial art. However, it is considered one of the most deadly martial art in the world due to its focus on violence.

Any lover of the Silat martial art would hardly believe that there is a more deadly martial art than Silat.

This is due to its vicious nature and extreme focus on violence, unlike most martial arts that focus on spirituality and self-perfection.

The main goal of Silat martial art is to exploit the enemy’s weaknesses and incapacitate him as quickly as possible.

The goal is to cause great pain to the opponent.

Silas’ style emphasizes quick, close combat, allowing you to break an opponent in a few seconds and then render him unconscious with a powerful blow to the throat, face, liver, and even crotch. That’s right, the testicles.

There is no fame, no honor, just dirty, nasty punches.

As part of the curriculum, students bend metal bars around their necks and watch as someone breaks bricks stacked on their ribs.

The “Kris/Keris” which is a dagger is also used by Silat to stab an opponent quickly.

Typically, this dagger contains poison that can kill an opponent within just a few seconds of being hit.

See: Is Silat the Deadliest Martial Art?

What Is the Dirtiest Martial Art?

Silat is the dirtiest martial art in the world as it involves dirty everything from strikes to joint manipulation.

A dirty martial art allows the fight to go sour or ugly when things go bad whether it’s in a ring, a bar, or even during a war.

Some common dirty martial art moves include;

• A finger in the eye or a kick in the groin
• Elbow in the back of the neck
• Throat punch
• Knee to the face
• Stomp to the face
• The fish hook
• Dim Mak (also known as the death touch)

Interestingly, most of these moves are adopted by the Silat martial art, therefore, making them the dirtiest and nastiest martial art in the world (excluding krav maga).

Since Krav maga has no rules, it would have easily taken the first spot.

However, due to its non-recognition as a combat sport or as a martial art, the dirtiest martial award goes to Silat.

Ever heard of the term “dirty boxing”?  Well if you haven’t, now you do.

Traditionally, Silat sparring sessions are done with no protection at all and almost always involve one fighter walking away injured.

Speaking of nasty, another art to look at is Lua which is an ancient Hawaiian martial art.

Lua is based on throws, strikes, bone breaking, joint locks, pressure point manipulation, battlefield strategy, open ocean warfare, usage of various weapons as well as the usage of introduced firearms from the Europeans.

Despite my pick, you must note however that “the dirtiest form of fighting is fighting without honor.”

This could come by way of surprisingly attacking someone from behind rather than upfront asking them to get ready for a physical confrontation.

During combat, it could also mean the use of techniques that are disallowed in the rules.

This is why a fight for self-defense such as (Krav maga) doesn’t have rules other than survival.