Posted by: cronin
Bas Rutten interview from T-Nation - 05/05/06 10:56 AM
You guys have probably seen this article, (if so, then you know where some KM schools have his quote as part of the testimonial), but I figured for those of you who haven’t, there’s an interesting section regarding Krav Maga. (I pasted the part so you wouldn’t have to scroll down in the interview). For those of you who haven’t heard of Bas Rutten, he’s an MMA legend/pioneer: 3 x King of Pancrase and former UFC champion. Before MMA, Bas was a Thaiboxer in Holland (for those of you who follow Thaiboxing, those Dutch Thaiboxers are no joke.) And if you guys ever heard him as a commentator, he’s quite a character.
Just thought I’d share as it was a pretty nice read; Bas also discusses on Krav being an open/evolving system. Enjoy!
http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do?id=460148
T-Nation:
When we met in California, you were giving the seminar with the Krav Maga guys. How'd you get hooked up with them?
BR:
Amir Perets, one of the instructors, is very talented. I think he was 19 or 20 when he was a Navy Seal Instructor in Israel [IDF Naval Commando Unit, the Israeli equivalent to the U.S Navy SEALS]. So with that said, you’ve got to be a hell of a [censored] guy. Normally those are people who are 45 or 50, and who know everything, have been through everything. But they made him an instructor at 20 years of age, so the guy is phenomenal. He's really that good. I found out when I checked him out.
I first met him in a bar. He knew everything, my whole Pancrase career, everything. And then he came to my class and was really into it. One day he brought a plastic gun to class, a pellet gun, and he says: "Do you want to know what I do?" I said, "Yeah, what do you do?" He said he did the self-defense thing and I told him I was very skeptical about that stuff.
He loads up the gun, gives it to me and says, "Shoot me when you see me move." I said, okay. VOOM, VOOM, BANG, BANG! And it goes out of my hand! What the [censored]! I want to do it one more time and he got me again. Every time, the gun was gone.
This was the real stuff; I was so impressed.
T-Nation:
Do you agree with most of Krav Maga's ideas?
BR:
They did the striking a little bit different than me. Everybody stands on one line, but I stand real square. I explained why I stand real square to them, because you get a lot more power in the left kicks and punches, and they started adapting. They're really open to new things. That’s the good thing about Krav Maga; it’s not like a self-defense system that was made up 200 years ago. It doesn’t stay the same like Kung Fu or Karate. No, they evolve, they see something better, they take it and use it.
You got to evolve. You got to go with it. One time the Krav Maga guys asked me what I'd do if choked from behind. I said, "Choke me." I showed them this thing I made up when I was a bouncer. They look at me and say, "From now on this is in Krav Maga."
I like these people. They give you the tools that could save your life. If you’re standing there and there’s a guy who's already shot two people and he’s pointing the gun at you, you're gonna’ die. This guy isn't going to let you live because he doesn’t want to end up in court with you pointing the finger at him. You don’t do anything, you die. You try, you increase your odds 50% or more right away.
It’s bad to say, but if someone puts a gun to me and say, "Give me your wallet," I’m going to get the gun. For sure, I’m going to get it. He’s not going to get my wallet. He’d better shoot me right away.
Just thought I’d share as it was a pretty nice read; Bas also discusses on Krav being an open/evolving system. Enjoy!
http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do?id=460148
T-Nation:
When we met in California, you were giving the seminar with the Krav Maga guys. How'd you get hooked up with them?
BR:
Amir Perets, one of the instructors, is very talented. I think he was 19 or 20 when he was a Navy Seal Instructor in Israel [IDF Naval Commando Unit, the Israeli equivalent to the U.S Navy SEALS]. So with that said, you’ve got to be a hell of a [censored] guy. Normally those are people who are 45 or 50, and who know everything, have been through everything. But they made him an instructor at 20 years of age, so the guy is phenomenal. He's really that good. I found out when I checked him out.
I first met him in a bar. He knew everything, my whole Pancrase career, everything. And then he came to my class and was really into it. One day he brought a plastic gun to class, a pellet gun, and he says: "Do you want to know what I do?" I said, "Yeah, what do you do?" He said he did the self-defense thing and I told him I was very skeptical about that stuff.
He loads up the gun, gives it to me and says, "Shoot me when you see me move." I said, okay. VOOM, VOOM, BANG, BANG! And it goes out of my hand! What the [censored]! I want to do it one more time and he got me again. Every time, the gun was gone.
This was the real stuff; I was so impressed.
T-Nation:
Do you agree with most of Krav Maga's ideas?
BR:
They did the striking a little bit different than me. Everybody stands on one line, but I stand real square. I explained why I stand real square to them, because you get a lot more power in the left kicks and punches, and they started adapting. They're really open to new things. That’s the good thing about Krav Maga; it’s not like a self-defense system that was made up 200 years ago. It doesn’t stay the same like Kung Fu or Karate. No, they evolve, they see something better, they take it and use it.
You got to evolve. You got to go with it. One time the Krav Maga guys asked me what I'd do if choked from behind. I said, "Choke me." I showed them this thing I made up when I was a bouncer. They look at me and say, "From now on this is in Krav Maga."
I like these people. They give you the tools that could save your life. If you’re standing there and there’s a guy who's already shot two people and he’s pointing the gun at you, you're gonna’ die. This guy isn't going to let you live because he doesn’t want to end up in court with you pointing the finger at him. You don’t do anything, you die. You try, you increase your odds 50% or more right away.
It’s bad to say, but if someone puts a gun to me and say, "Give me your wallet," I’m going to get the gun. For sure, I’m going to get it. He’s not going to get my wallet. He’d better shoot me right away.