Welcome to Kajukenbo

I have been looking for a martial art to study for a while, and had just about settled on Krav Maga when I stumbled across an episode of Fight Quest which featured an art I had never heard of called Kajukenbo. 


Kajukenbo is a Hawaiian/American mixed martial art which was founded in 1947 in Oahu, Hawaii by 5 experts in different fighting styles.  


The founders were Sijo ("Founder") Adriano Emperado (Kenpo and Escrima), Peter Young Yil Choo (Kenpo Karate (Tang Soo Do) and Western Boxing), Joe Holck (Judo), Frank Ordonez (Danzan Ryu Jujutsu) , and George Chang (Chu'an-Fa Chinese boxing).


The name Kajukenbo is an amalgamation of many of these fighting styles.


Ka - Karate
Ju - Jujitsu/Judo
Ken - Kenpo
Bo - Western Boxing/Chinese Boxing


I was interested in Kajukenbo (aka Kaju) from my very first exposure to it.  First and foremost I loved that it is a true mixed martial art.  Kaju trains standup, sweeps, throws, takedowns, BJJ-style joint locks, even stick fighting techniques.


It's a modern, practical art with real world applications, as a quick gander at the clip above from Fight Quest will let you know. (that's my Sigung Jeff Macalolooy about 22 seconds in).


It's a great workout, and I'm loving every step of it. 
So far we've worked on Judo style leg sweeps, and Boxing style footwork and  strikes. I can't wait for my next lesson!


For those interested, I'm studying at Dragons Den MMA in Union City