MUAY THAI: Ultimate Striking - Thailand (July 20)
Hosts Jason Chambers and Bill Duff journey to Bangkok, Thailand, home to one of the world's most distinctive and devastating fighting arts, Muay Thai. After witnessing beat downs and knockouts at legendary Lumpinee Stadium, they'll travel across the country perfecting the moves of the fighting style known as the Science of Eight Limbs. From ancient killing techniques in the jungles on the border of Burma to weapons training among the ruins of a Buddhist temple, they'll master all aspects of this centuries-old discipline in the hopes that one of them can survive a fight against an international Muay Thai champion.
ESKRIMA Stickfighting - Philippines (July 27)
Hosts Jason Chambers and Bill Duff travel to the island nation of the Philippines, where the indigenous fighting style, Eskrima, was formed. From ancient forts in Cebu City to a modern military base in Manila, our hosts will learn the stick and knife techniques that were used to kill famed Spanish explorer Ferdinand Magellan in the 16th century, battle the Japanese in WWII guerrilla raids and wage an ongoing struggle against the terrorist organization Abu Sayef in the jungles of Mindinao. Along the way, they'll attempt to take down a 2,000-pound water buffalo using techniques developed on the rice paddies at the foot of the Manalanga Mountains, and perfect their Eskrima stick-twirling techniques on rickety bamboo rafts beneath the waterfalls in the jungles of Badian. Finally, one of our hosts will enter a gritty cockfight ring for an Eskrima stick fight against a five-time world champion.
JUDO: Samurai Legacy - Japan
Our hosts, Jason Chambers and Bill Duff, are in Japan to explore the techniques and history of Japan's national art of hand-to-hand combat: Judo - the science of the Samurai. Derived from the bloody battlefields of feudal Japan and jujutsu fighting styles of the samurai, judo has an illustrious past of deadly skills and honor. Along their journey, our hosts travel through the towering metropolis of Tokyo and the Samurai capital of Kyoto. They'll train with an elite police force and journey to the mountaintop hideaway of legendary master, the descendent of a 400-year-old line of samurai Under the intense training of the masters, Jason and Bill quickly discover the spectacular throws, merciless pins and strangling chokeholds that are an integral part of this powerful combat art. Jason and Bill's journey eventually leads them to Tokai University, where one of them will muster the strength and newly acquired judo skills required to take on a world-class judo champion.
KARATE - Japan
Hosts Chambers and Duff travel to the island of Okinawa, Japan, the birthplace of one of the most deadly hand-to-hand combat arts in the world, Karate. Our hosts will journey across this legendary island, learning all aspects of the fighting art Okinawans created to help battle invading Samurai warriors over 400 years ago. After practicing the shocking techniques of Iron Body Training in a 600-year-old castle, mastering heart-stopping vital point strikes in an ancient temple and putting themselves through the rigorous training regiments of ancient Karate masters, one of the hosts will step onto the mat to face a black belt, and Okinawan Champion, in a true Karate battle.
SAVATE: Streetfighting - France
Hosts Jason Chambers and Bill Duff are in France, to study the combat art of Savate. Literally translated to mean "old boot," Savate developed through necessity. In the early 1800s, violent street gangs looking for trouble ruled the Parisian underground scene. Their prey was the aristocratic class who, to protect themselves, began taking self-defense classes. Over the years this training evolved into modern Savate - an exacting combat sport, and also the official hand-to-hand assault system of the French RAID police. On their mission to uncover Savate's distinct style, Jason and Bill navigate the dockyards of Marseille, roam the grounds of a 14th-century castle, and even breach a secret police training site to practice and perfect the painfully efficient kicks and punches that comprise this elegant yet ruthless art of combat. Finally, one of our hosts will enter the ring to take on a Savate heavyweight champion.
PANKRATION: The Original Martial Art - Greece
Hosts Jason Chambers and Bill Duff plunge into the cradle of civilization, Athens, Greece, to explore what some thing is the world's original mixed martial art. Literally translated as "all powers," Pankration is the ancient Greek art of hand-to-hand combat. Nearly four thousand years old and made famous by Spartans and ancient Olympians, Pankration has recently been revitalized as a modern sport. One that Jason and Bill will experience firsthand. From back alley gyms to the oldest standing fortress in all of Greece, our hosts immerse themselves in the origins of wrestling, boxing, grappling and kickboxing and come to understand why Pankration has inspired art and literature and martial arts for centuries. At the end of their journey, one of them will face the ultimate test: a legal Pankration match with a World, European, and six-time national champion Pankration fighter - a true Human Weapon.
KRAV MAGA of the Israeli Commandos - Israel
Hosts Jason Chambers and Bill Duff travel to Israel to study one of the deadliest and most effective hand-to-hand combat systems in the world. Specifically designed for the Israeli Defense Forces in the 1940s, Krav Maga is a dirty, anything-goes fighting style that is used to disarm and destroy assailants carrying multiple weapons. Our hosts journey to some of the most sacred religious locations in the world as they learn to escape deadly chokes, deflect weapons, and perfect ruthless counterattacks in their quest to become true human weapons. Never before have our hosts learned a martial art that is not only physically demanding, but also a combative necessity in this war-torn country. Their journey ends with a fight against an entire unit of elite-level Krav Maga professionals. Israel
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