Who do you think is/was better than Bruce Lee?

[Guest]

My teacher (CCMA) was/is better than Lee.

What are you using as a frame of reference for that claim?

[FLMKane]

Easier said than proven...such a claim is not impossible, but how many people can punch faster than 1/24th a second?

[Tant01]

Draw!

Easier said than proven...such a claim is not impossible, but how many people can punch faster than 1/24th a second?

I can draw, aim and fire my handgun (on target) in 1/4 sec.

I'm not exactly record book material but that's damn fast...

I think I could take him...

[FLMKane]

Ya THINK!?

[Laura]

No one; there's no comparison, why even do threads like this? People have their talents but Bruce was more than just a martial artist: he lived the life, he walked the walked and changed forever how people viewed martial arts and trained. No one had his impact and no one else will be able to say that, especially given the obstacles he had to overcome in his lifetime. That's like asking who's the better cyclist than Lance Armstrong - again no one. Unless your riding with a damn near terminal illness, sick the whole time your riding, and doing what he did - I don't see it.

[Ghost]

Yes but bruce didnt fight anyone, lance armstrong has won things.

[Guest]

No one had his impact and no one else will be able to

Look at Royce and Rorian Gracie. The UFC is now the second biggest commercial sport in the USA, second only to the NFL. That is huge. Martial arts never acheived anywhere near that kind of exposure or success from Bruce Lee. You can't turn around these days without seeing an MMA gym, or switch on the TV without seeing multi-million dollar PPV events. Love it or hate it, UFC has redefined what people consider martial arts to be.

Look at Guro Dan Inosanto. For the last 35 years he has travelled the world 48 weekends of the year teaching in every country on the planet. He has hundreds of world class instructors, teaching tens of thousands of students, in a range of arts - many of them not heard of in the public domain before him. Guro Inosanto is credited with the worldwide popularisation of Kali, Silat, Shootwrestling, Muay Thai in the US (with Master Chai) and he was one of the very first to embrace and push the Gracie Jui Jitsu, he even helped bring them to the USA.

Those are two examples from the top of my head. Now before you say it, there is of course a strong chain there back to Bruce Lee, I am not dismissing what he did before he passed. But you can't just credit everything back to one person, or every guitar player would be just a Robert Johnson or Muddy Waters rip off. Things evolve, people break through and change the world in their own right, and I don't think Bruce Lee was the beginning and end of that at all.

[HERQ454]

But Bruce was one of the first (But not the first,eg.many Karateka took Judo and vice versa)
to meld techniques/methods across the 'Ranges' of combat.'Mixed' martial arts.

I think we've all seen videos of Interviews of his students discussing how he did this.I think Dan Inosanto commented how he did this and 'Got away with it' in this period and how traditionalists frowned at this approach.

But I agree with Michael Wright,there were many others who also changed the landscape of martial arts and who's efforts should be recognised

[Ghost]

But Bruce was one of the first (But not the first,eg.many Karateka took Judo and vice versa)
to meld techniques/methods across the 'Ranges' of combat.'Mixed' martial arts.

I think we've all seen videos of Interviews of his students discussing how he did this.I think Dan Inosanto commented how he did this and 'Got away with it' in this period and how traditionalists frowned at this approach.

But I agree with Michael Wright,there were many others who also changed the landscape of martial arts and who's efforts should be recognised

no he wasnt, we have this so many times, mixing styles has been around for about 2000 years.
Bruce just brought it to the media again after a drop off in popularity.

One example, pankration, a mix of boxing and wrestling.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pankration

there are many more examples all over the world, including the uk etc. American soldiers competed in MMA after ww2 against the japanese. there are lots of examples and entire systems dedicated to mixing.

[HERQ454]

Read what I wrote.
Some styles had techniques that were specific to there style.
Did he put them into combinations not seen before?

[Ghost]

Read what I wrote.
Some styles had techniques that were specific to there style.
Did he put them into combinations not seen before?

yeah i read it you said mix ranges, thats what pankration did, it mixed stand up with ground fighting.
am i missing something?

[HERQ454]

He melded techniques/methods across the 'Ranges' of combat.
I didnt say he just mixed the 'ranges'.Techniques from one style creating a moment to employ a different technique depending on what range/position they happened to flow into.

Lets say a fight started with both having a bit of distance between them.Bruce would have first probably thrown side kicks or 'Bil Gee-finger jabs' strikes as a probing attack.The fight could have moved to 'western boxing',then clinch range occurs and Bruce would employ Trapping,similar to wing chun.The opponent backs out and Bruce employs a Savate style stomp kick to the knee.Bruce jams in and follows again with Trapping attack and the opportunity comes out for a headlock.Opponent gets lucky and slips out of headlock but is finished with a knee similar to one from Muay Thai.

Is stand up limited to just strikes?What about Muay thai clinch or Greco-Roman clich(ie Underhooks).Is grappling limited to just Locks and chokes?

Also I wrote he was one of the first,Not the first for the time period.

[FLMKane]

Okay dude, too much flash. He'd have probably just kicked the guy in the balls and ripped his eyes out.

[Ghost]

like in those japanese cartoons

[FormlessMan]

Sijo Bruce told Sifu Jerry that he couldn't get near Yip Man. When Sifu Jerry asked was that at trapping range? Sijo Bruce replied no at any range!
Always respect the ones willing to pass on their knowledge!!