Japans top ninja's vs Chinas Shaolin Monks WWF style melee'. It would be like reality mortal combat. Id would pay good money to see that. Someone set it up.

This would ofcourse be the ultimate UFC fight, and yes, I would pay to see it:D

No need to watch any more action stuff, since this one fight to rule them all would encompass everything .... hopefully:D

What has Chuck Norris got to say about all this?

Erm..... I thought they were meant to spend their time practicing, meditating, eating rice and making badly dubbed movies... as well as other monkish stuff... not trolling internet forums looking for ninja wannabies to start fights with >80)

... as they don't mess with Uwe Boll!

I'd die happy if I saw that!

After having trained with Shaolin Monks, I *know* they they are properly hard!

Sagacious H

I'm not normally one for violence, nor for pay-per-view TV events (who the hell needs it these days when you have youtube and various other methods of getting things without paying? *winks*) but for an event like this I would quite happily shell out anything up to 50 quid to watch!

So many television programs try to depict people defending their honour or families honour but because naturally its on television you always take it with a pinch of salt even if it says its reality TV, but I feel a televised event like this hits the nail on the head for both entertainment and standing up for ones beliefs.

Although we try to move past it, violence and anger is in our nature, I say give people a legal way to settle their differences that can't be settled with words with nothing but their own person in a controlled environment. No guns, no weapons period, just what you were born with, THAT is honourable fighting, not being a coward by stabbing or shooting someone.

Well, he's just (way) above all this, right?

Chuck Norris dosen't need to say anything. Chuck Norris never dose. He only kills. :-)

...pirates could kick all their asses!

Nothing a hardy bunch of Pirates couldn't do.

He said "Don't **** with Chuck!"

Who thought monks could go ape-****?

and why are monks surfing web forums and getting in arguments with 12 year old trolls instead of spending their time more profitably by meditating for world peace and practicing moves from Jet Li movies?

What Chuck Norris would have to say is a mute point, he'd only have to look at the winner for them to drop dead from fright.

Miyamoto Musashi is the zenith of all fighting men. He was independant of thought, self taught and incredibly intelligent.

read a little about the history of this true warrior before chanting your chuck schmuck.

The shaolin and ninja are so far removed in skills that they cannot really be compared. Shaolin would destroy ninjas in a face to face empty handed brawl. However ninjas simply wouldn't not use weapons. They are masters of manipulation and stealth.

Both have huge commitment to there training and conditioning, but back in the day I would say that the ninja would kill off any they targeted, probably leaving no trace. But if it came to fisticuffs shaolin would likely mop the floor. If either decided to go after Miyamoto Musashi they would die at the end of his bokken

... and available for your viewing pleasure:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0199853/

Yes, it's Ninja vs Shaolin Guard! (also know as Guards of Shaolin in the US)

Unfortunately this doesn't presently form part of my collection, so I can't say who won.

This ninja-loving troll didn't go by the name Hamburger did he?

From the Ninja's point of view Dr Hatsumi is probably the most likely contender for head ninja....

Ahhh an internet discussion about martial arts. Where groups of imbeciles whose martial arts experience is limited to a red belt in Shotokan and having seen "Enter the Dragon" more than once argue about which quasi-fictional group has the best superpowers.

I'd wager that, despite some posts to the contrary, Hatsumi-sensei stands a chance in non-weapons combat against a Shaolin monk or two.

Musashi was neither a ninja or a monk.

He was a Ronin...

He once made a wooden sword out of an oar on the way to a duel and still won... Used to fight using two katana, one in each hand. He was a hefty chap...

My money's on Chuck Norris. The only man ever to play table tennis against a brick wall... AND WIN.

The whole Chinese nation should be offended? superb bring back the golden days of Japan vs. China over a spate from an internet troll! just brillant.

Not sure if they would be able to send the invite for the fight to the top ninja though am sure he probbarbly doesn't have a post-box...

You never know the ninja's may just pop around to the nearest Shaolin temple and give them a thumping but they better not cross the pirates...

The Single Ninja Theory (or SNT as it's known as) could well be the truth. Have a read of http://www.netjak.com/review.php/1199 to fully appreciate how likely SNT is.

See, religion would do a lot better in this world if it quit with the namby-pamby Ned Flanders crap and started kicking ass like proper monks, and getting the hump with Ninjas, atheists and false prophets. Run David Shaler, run!

Someone call Don King to sort out this bash... It would be a super cool row to watch and definitely worth paying for...

That said, as Brian Miller pointed out, no Ninja would ever come forward for this.

The Ninja 'fight' from the shadows; they don't come along and challenge people to duels.

Miyamoto Musashi was a Samurai. On the battefield or in duels they would use a sword (Musashi being famous for his skill in weilding two at a time, and later in life, taking people on armed only with a stick). In the event that a Samurai lost his sword, the un-armed Martial arts technique of the Samurai was Ju-Jitsu.

Ninja are not Samurai. Most Samurai would view them as little more than hired hitmen as opposed to martial artists with a code.

Chuck Norris does Shotokan Karate and moonlights as a Texas Ranger.

Steven Seagal does Aikido and Jujitsu and moonlights as a Navy cook.

Steven Segal?!?! I think Chuck Norris would certainly have something to say about that!

Besides, I thought that the Shaolin developed thier sytles as a form of excercise self defense when travelling with thier teachings - hardly about to pick a fight with a stranger wandering into the temple.

I do like your suggestion of a last man standing battle royale to settle it!

If the Shaolin won, plenty of cash for maintaining thier temple, if the ninja won, they can buy plenty more sneaky-kit!

For a moment I was wondering why you wanted Shaolin and Ninja to be fighing Pandas and other wildlife, then I remembered that the US entertainment industry forgot to check for other organizations of that name when they chose it for themselves.

It's pretty pitiful that the monks got their robes in a wad over some Internet troll. As for who would win, I can state some things pretty clearly. In professional fighting, there are weight classes for a reason – in a fight between two skilled, in shape opponents – a guy who outweighs the other by 100lb will win every time. From the UFC, we have learned that wrestling/submission holds are critical – people who don't use them get them used against them (ironically, neither monks nor 'ninjas' wrestle). Lesson? Don't mess with big guys who can fight.

As for the use of weapons – Musashi (a big guy by all accounts) was credited with winning over 60 duels (many non fatal, because he used a boken). Audie Murphy (a tiny guy) had over 240 confirmed enemy kills, plus 6 tanks – all before he turned 21. Lesson? Gun beats a sword – every time.

Of course, we all know Chuck Norris once beat an entire Shaolin Temple and a flock of Ninjas, using only harsh language and his left pinky.......

I can't believe this news item got anywhere. Martial arts equivalent of "my dad's tougher than yours"

@Alex Cooksey et al wanting a celeb deathmatch. Dr Hatsumi is in his late 70s, and I'm guessing the top Shaolin monk is knocking on a bit. Sure, they'll both be in not bad form, but come on - if I want to watch a couple of geriatrics fight, I'll go down my local grannyfarm and throw £50 SAGA holiday voucher in the middle of the zimmers.

@Brian Miller - Musashi was without doubt one of the most talented budoka ever, and Go Rin No Sho is a classic (much better than Art of War IMHO, and thankfully never quoted on SciFi progs!). More than a few scholars have thought Musashi might even have *been* a ninja ;) For the surmise that shaolin would beat ninja in 1 on 1, hmmm....bit like saying America would always win a land war given it's up front power. And you obviously have a comic book idea of ninjutsu re: weapons etc. Try re-reading Musashi, regarding using an enemy's strength against him (classic tai-jutsu).

I can't believe I actually commented on this, but I never thought I'd see the Shaolin Temple or any serious martial artist fall for such juvenile drivel.

Steven Seagal for the coveted "Hardest Man Alive" crown??? Maybe if you could time travel back to the 80's it would have been a nice fight. These days Seagal is getting old and chunky. He would get his @$$ spanked.

Forget Ninja and Shaolin - Samaria did in fact take over the modern world, without most people even noticing.

The Samurai families of Toshiba, Yamaha, Matsushita (Panasonic), to name just 3, are pretty well known, even if their heritage is not.

You're all forgetting the most important thing - Bruce Lee would have kicked ALL their asses. ;-)

(btw funniest article in ages)

http://drmcninja.com/

This old chest-thumping argument again.

*rolls eyes*

On any given day, no matter who you are, no matter how good you are, there's *always* someone better.

Ninja v. Monk. v. Samurai v. whomever... Someone will will, and someone will not. And no one here knows who that would be.

Except Chuck, of course. Chuck knows all.

Stiff yes -- rigid even -- but not hard.

Reading through the comments as well as the article, so many groups and individuals have been posited as the hypothetical winner of some sort of ultimate showdown. Honestly, though I already know who would win; I have seen the video.

Watch and you will be amazed:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B85NYFFidIg

"...Steven Seagal, hard?!?..."

Well, yes... But mostly only his arteries.

Shi Yongxin is the top man in Shaolin, as he is the abbot of the Temple.

Hatsumi Masaaki is as close to being the top man you could get in Ninjutsu.

I'd say it would be an interesting fight between those two. Both, as far as I know, are still very active in their art. It would be an interesting match.

Oh, and either one of them would mow Segal down. No contest.

beta not show yer faces in castlemilk,or there will be big trouble. eh.

I've seen that on TV. It consists entirely of half-naked, sweaty men rolling around on the ground in vaguely erotic positions occasionally slapping at one another. It's quite a display of skill.

What percentage of computer nerds do you think own some sort of samurai sword or nunchucks? It's some sort of a trend I think.

Why didn't the shaolin monks send out robots and pirates? They could pretty much eradicate the ninjas, assuming the pirates and robots don't turn and fight each other.

"You have insulted me, you have insulted my family, and you have insulted the Temple of Shaolin; and for that, you must face a feeding frenzy of lawyers with no more knowledge of kung fu than that of a dung beetle..."

Sigh.

I think it's actually true though. Hatsumi's own sensei and pervious grandmaster Takamatsu won over 25 fights 17 to the death if memory serves me right at the temples in china in his youth, and served as a champion in one of them taking all comers on.

So let me get this straight... monks.... took the word of some snot nosed idiot and now they are suing him?

Is it just me or does this whole thing seem childish and a waste of time.

A punk from Bensonhurst with a cheap .22 would kill them all.

Mr. Bean would whup them all, and not even realize he did it.

My lawyer can beat your Ninjitsu Master. Put his dojo into administration...

And last, but certainly not least, just drop a pissed-off polar bear (if he wasn't pissed-off to begin with, he certainly would be by the time he hit the mat) in the ring and see how they make out.

Ain't the world a funny place?

I follow the way of the 45ACP*. I'd take the lot on two at a time.

* 0.45 inch calibre Automatic Colt Pistol.

Old Sweat

If the monks would train properly in internet battle arts they would know that a much better response than hiring a lawyer would have been "Pics or i never happened!".

I went to this place in China... and i was really disapointed to see that this place has become a another comercial and touristy place in China.

So, this people are just "protecting" the brand... in a really sad way.

I'll take your .45ACP and raise you a Beretta 9mm. Almost the same kinetic energy per round, bigger clip. So while you're reloading, I'm still firing away, 16 rounds to your 8. :D

And so began the legend of Pai Mei's five point palm exploding heart technique...