Video. How good was really bruce lee

My only issue here is that he's not really being pushed, maybe Dan Inosonato (if thats how you spell it) didn't want to shellack his teacher, but Bruce CLEARLY has a deep understanding of fighting technique, feints and counters especially - but I don't know if this would necessarily convince the haters.

I am surprised that this footage only surfaced as recently as it did.
 




Bruce Lee detractors are fuckin losers.
 
This was Bruce Lee sparring against his STUDENTS (Ted Wong and Taky Kimura). Not only were they his direct students, but they all loved him....so it would be pretty shitty if they were out to make a name for themselves by going 100% of their abilities and make Bruce Lee look bad even a little. Even if they could beat Bruce Lee, 1 out of 10 times, they wouldn't do that shit in front of all these people, especially in front of video cameras. I personally wouldn't do that to my main instructor of nearly 10 years, by beating him in front of a big crowd at a 50/50 chance....and I don't even have a close relationship w/him. I've even taken di

After Bruce Lee's death, most to all of these guys made their entire living/careers on Bruce Lee's name. It would make sense that they'd embellish the heck out of everything about him, like a superhero or something. But again, they all truly loved him also. And probably the worse thing that anyone who's in the Chopsocky for Life business could do is to dump on a dead guy, let alone....an iconic, dead guy who's loved by millions worldwide...that's just business suicide.

Even Wong Jack Man wouldn't dare talk about his past vs. Bruce Lee.....and he was the guy who had that controversial fight vs. Bruce Lee behind closed doors where both insisted that they had won. Wong even put an ad in the Chinese newspaper afterward, challenging Bruce Lee to a 2nd fight in a public venue to settle it, but Bruce Lee disappeared (which was very unusual as he was known for starting & accepting such fights).

IMO, this video is highly suspect and at best, inconclusive of Bruce Lee's alleged super skills.
 
Bruce Lee is a marketing tool. I am just sad people at 21st century does not recognise that. It is even worse than Gracie. At least Gracies fought, although mostly nobodies or not real challengers.

In order not to be a hater I try to recognise him more as a philosopher, rather than a fighter.
 
Bruce Lee is a marketing tool. I am just sad people at 21st century does not recognise that. It is even worse than Gracie. At least Gracies fought, although mostly nobodies or not real challengers.

In order not to be a hater I try to recognise him more as a philosopher, rather than a fighter.

What's interesting though, is that when Bruce Lee was a nobody in Chinatown, he went around looking for fights and starting shit with the Kung-Fu community in order to make a name for himself. This was during a time when Asians were pretty low on the social scale. Add in all the stories about him fighting in the streets of Hong Kong, it sounds logical that he's what we'd consider today to be a thug.

The Gracies did the same, but probably more legit as they fought a hell of a lot more people + video proof. And their art of BJJ being promoted, dominated MMA for a very long time and up to today, it's still an essential component for most to all accomplished MMA fighters. And for the grappling only and fitness crowd, it's enormous. You can probably find a local tournament in a metro area every month and it's like $60-100 entry fee. What happened to JKD other than being some myth that got clobbered those very few times it stepped up in the early days of MMA.
 
Last edited:
There two kinds of absolute idiots.

- those who seriously think that he was a superhero. A fighting god who could not be touched by anyone. Included todays pro fighters.

-those who says that he had no fighting skills because he was a actor who made silly kung fu movies.
 
There two kinds of absolute idiots.

- those who seriously think that he was a superhero. A fighting god who could not be touched by anyone. Included todays pro fighters.

-those who says that he had no fighting skills because he was a actor who made silly kung fu movies.

Read what James Demille, an army boxer who joined him wrote. He sounds completely duped. He said Bruce Lee would defeat anyone of any size and weight at any time
 
There two kinds of absolute idiots.

- those who seriously think that he was a superhero. A fighting god who could not be touched by anyone. Included todays pro fighters.

-those who says that he had no fighting skills because he was a actor who made silly kung fu movies.
I am not denying he had skills but he would probably lose to most pro or amy fighters who competed in an Olympic fight sport. Yet he is still glorified as a God mainly due to proper marketing and some fishy stuff going on with the entire Bruce Lee persona.
 
There two kinds of absolute idiots.

- those who seriously think that he was a superhero. A fighting god who could not be touched by anyone. Included todays pro fighters.

-those who says that he had no fighting skills because he was a actor who made silly kung fu movies.
My issue is people saying he invented MMA. He didn't, MMA came to what it is today because of the open rule format for early UFCs. People found what worked and it evolved to what it is today.
 
An interesting read would be, Bartisu, developed by a White guy in 1898 London.

Maybe Bruce Lee copied from this guy because he had all of the bases covered including weapons: boxing, wrestling, fencing, jujitsu, judo, savate, stilleto....

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bartitsu
 
My issue is people saying he invented MMA. He didn't, MMA came to what it is today because of the open rule format for early UFCs. People found what worked and it evolved to what it is today.
Yeah but he had a lot of ideas that were ahead of their time about being adaptive and learning/combining different arts and strategies; contrary to the rigid tma mindset. I know he wasn't the first with this mindset but he's the first who most have heard of.
 
Yeah but he had a lot of ideas that were ahead of their time about being adaptive and learning/combining different arts and strategies; contrary to the rigid tma mindset. I know he wasn't the first with this mindset but he's the first who most have heard of.
He had ideas himself yes, but MMA as what it is, developed and progressed not becasue of him. I just find it misleading when folks say he's the father of MMA

If I have an idea for a business model, then in parallel a company creates a similar model and becomes successful for the next decade, I don't get credit unless I was involved on their team
 
From what little tape there is you can discern he was both strong and fast.

That's all you need to whoop most people asses. Now getting into the would bruce be a ufc champion blah blah blah nonsense is another matter.
 
Mike Tyson on fighting Bruce Lee:


Could you have beaten Bruce Lee in your prime?

Hey listen, I don’t know about that stuff. Because Bruce Lee, he didn’t believe in fighting in tournaments and stuff. He basically believed in: “Let’s do it right now.” But Bruce Lee was really a street fighter, like an MMA fighter for real. No one talked about MMA before that, or grappling. He said, "I don’t believe in grappling, because I equate grappling with being on the floor and I equate being on the floor with being stomped." And they said, "What do you mean?" And he said, "One guy maybe, but I’m fighting five or six guys but I can't be on the floor, wrestling around."

Wow, I hadn't heard about him saying all that.

Is that deep or what? He’s thinking, "I’m fighting an army, man." That just totally opened my head! We talking about killing, not no championship. We not fighting to see who’s better, we fighting to see who survives.
----------------------------------

It appears Mike Tyson is pretty humble about it.
 
for how much someone like dekkers gets bashed here on the forums its amazing the same thing doesnt happen to bruce lee, bruce lee was a actor not a fighter, martial artist yes, good concepts and beliefs yes, did he have a few fights? i dunno but I am going to guess yes but as far as him being the best and all the othe nonsense that goes with it..........no. someone like dekkers or tyson would destory bruce lee. as would just about any top level thai, as would your average mma fighter today.
 
Ramon Dekkers was really talented. Why is he bashed around here? I had no idea. He was a trend setter for muay thai.
 
Interesting interview with Randy Couture's manager Sam Spira, who saw Bruce train with the best around at the time.
 
Ramon Dekkers was really talented. Why is he bashed around here? I had no idea. He was a trend setter for muay thai.
Usually bashed on by the more MT purists.

Something about not fighting the top talent, and lost to some of the not so hot talent.
 
The whole topic bores me because without seeing fights it's pretty impossible to say anything other than he could probably kick most people on the street's asses.
 
Back
Top