To punch or not to punch to the face?

CQC should say all that is needed. Good old Captain Chris out making more money from fools who sign on with him to become "deadly'.

I might suggest that rather than spewing that foolishness, he might just learn how to punch.

He could also learn to use a hammer fist, and a palm strike while he is at it.

I don't hurt my hand if I hit a brick.

there is a lot wrong with this guy. He is phony as they get.

Like some others have pointed out already, I think he isn't necessarily wrong, but he is indeed exaggerating the dangers of punching to the face.

Watch MMA fights, even the ones before gloves were worn and see how many fighters (at least the ones who didn't get taken down) punched to the face. Just about all the stand up fighters did, and usually without any serious side effects. What does that tell you? That means that, yes while the potential does exist to break your hand, it's not as common as this guy would have you believe.

Look at how many fights have been ended by a well placed punch to the face/jaw. In fact, I cannot think of anyone off of the top of my head, who broke his hand by successfully landing a well placed punch to the face (I do know a friend who broke his hand by attempting to punch someone in the fact, but the person moved out of the way and my friend ended up punching the concrete wall behind him... but I don't think that counts :))

Honestly, he's not wrong, but I wouldn't ever not punch in a fight. It is true that you can break your hand punching somebody in the fore head because that is were the most dense bones in the skull are. The reason you probably have broken it in the past was because you didn't hit somebody dead-center in the dome. The sides of the head are less reinforced, and the back has the least. The jaw and cheeks are also pretty vulnerable to hits. That being said, punching can be effective if you hit in the right place, but using a palm strike or hammer fist are good alternatives. I wouldn't suggest using a chop unless you're going for the neck because if you don't execute them properly you can seriously hurt your fingers.

I've seen this before and I can honestly tell you I think it is complete BS. Why? Think about how many people watch this video, then try to go and apply it on the street. Real fighting, I mean no rule fights, are brutal, unpredictable, and there is no formula to win. You just have to train your reactivity and to know when it's ideal to punch and where. You cannot just state "Because you're in a street fight, you should never punch the guy's face".

I think he, and many others, overestimate the dangers of punching to the head. Yes, you have to have proper striking form, and yes, you have to chose your target carefully, but when I've known people to break their hands, most of the time it's by punching something harder than a person: a brick wall, a steel support beam, etc.

There are places you want to avoid punching, like the mouth, or anywhere above the eye line. But the jaw and nose are good targets.

My coach talks about the Moro reflex, which basically states that primates under stress will make fists. We train open-hand strikes, but realize that under the stress of a fight, we'll probably reflexively ball up our fists.

its smart not to punch to the face or head if your gonna punch do it to the gut which is weaker and will have less damage on your hand its like the philosophy of the wing chun chain punch they rarely punch to the face like in this video of the chain punchhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6dHyIjMYdSQ

There are a few thing wrong with this video. Firstly, its titled " Do not punch in a street fight." That right there is incorrect. He is giving tips for a consenting fight. "Duking it out." That goes against martial arts period.

Secondly, only untrained people will punch the head. Martial arts target the eyes, mandible, temple, upper lip, etc. Not the forehead. So he speaks from an untrained perspective. Just my opinion.

We train for accuracy, as well as speed and power. A well placed, well executed punch to the face is a game ender.

He is an idiot.

Some people should not be making videos or teaching he is one of them