Capoeira

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Of all the martial arts styles out there I think Capoeira is by far the coolest and most challenging. Just the way these guys/girls move is unbelievable.

In Capoeira, there is little use of combative hand techniques. Some believe the reason is because the slaves had to fight with their hands chained up. Therefore, a big emphasis on foot and leg technique makes up the fighting style of capoeira.

During a capoeira "game" a type of playful capoeira sparring, capoeristas portray their skills by using dynamic movemoents such as cartwheels, spinning kicks, hand stands, and other phenominal acrobatics. Common moves to see in capoeira are, sweeps, kicks, acrobatics, evasions, and counterstrikes.

There are two main forms of Capoeira, Angola and Regional. Angola follows a slower system, focusing more on the rituals and traditions of capoeira. Many people consider it more of a freestyle form of capoeira. Regional, which was developed in the 1930's by Mestre Bimbe, is known for emphasizing on precise strategy, technique, and acrobatic play.

Both use evasion skills, extensive groundwork, sweeps, kicks, and headbutts as their primary strikes for combat.

Check out this cool Capoeira video vs. Muay Thai Fighter Tony Jaa!