The concept of Human martial prowess, outside an organized military unit complete with ranged weaponry and plentiful ammunition, was laughable to the galaxy as a whole. They were squishy, fragile beings with endoskeletons that afforded them considerable strength, their size considered, and the ability to actively grow the amount of muscle in their body just by motivation and hard work. But fighters, they are not.
At least that was the general consensus until I wrote the first galactic news article on human "Martial arts" as they call it. I was doing some research on a particularly boring and tedious paper revolving around the subject of water collection through harvesting of naturally occurring moisture, without harming the environment in the long run. Truly boring stuff. But the Human liaison that was attached to me, invited me to a local "Martial arts qualifying tournament". apparently, this art of theirs was spread widely enough that almost every city had several studios or training centers for what I would later learn to be a plethora of styles, all designed to maximize effectiveness for minimal effort.
There was a style called "boxing" involving strictly punching with their extremities while having them covered in padded gloves. When I first observed it, I thought it was random and more based on luck than anything else. But as the fight progressed, it became clear that both "boxers" were using heavily practiced techniques that allowed them to incorporate the forces of physics into their attacks, adding the unrelenting laws of energy into the equation.
Another style called "judo" primarily focused on defense and letting the enemy attack you, only to turn their attack into a counter move that would end up with damage to the original attacker. this was achieved by using the movement and strength of the aggressor to lead and direct them into positions where the body's natural anatomy can be exploited to inflict excruciating pain without any real damage.
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There was one called "Krav Maga", a truly brutal way of fighting that focused on inflicting the most pain and damage, with a minimum of effort and movement, the objective being to neutralize the aggressor and move away from the situation in the shortest amount of time.
A small group practiced something called "Glima" a style of what they called "wrestling" practiced by the people of the Nordic regions of their homeworld. A strangely intimate way of fighting that involved grappling and throwing your opponent, going so far as to use your own body as the lever that forced your opponent to the ground. The goal seemed to be, having your opponent on the ground while you were standing.
A multitude of other styles of "martial art" was displayed, each of them distinctly unique and all of them extremely technical in their own way, the hundreds or thousands of years spent on perfecting them, making itself evident in the brutal efficiency of their use when employed correctly.
The galaxy used to think Humans couldn't fight. Now, it is the single most profitable gambling enterprise ever witnessed by any galactic empire. Attempts are even being made by so-called "Masters" and "Grandmasters" of these "martial arts" to develop basic styles and techniques for the other species, though this is seen as a truly laughable enterprise. It is this humble journalist's opinion that this is a gross miscalculation and that we will see more species adopt these "martial arts" in the years to come.