How tough was Bruce Lee?

[EmptyneSs]

i agree that real fighting and mma arent the same at all. i notice most young guys walkin around nowdays all carry a pocket knife. that factor alone changes alot of things.

btw i hope u werent serious about the homosexual mma fighter thing,, cause thats rediculous. i doubt a guy would want to take hits and risk being hurt just to be able to roll around with a sweaty guy longer. i dont think any sexual thoughts will be going through anyones head while someone is trying to knock them out cold or choke them out.

and true, alot of them are all on roids n shit.

[revolverjgw]

Thanks for the replies, some of them were quite informative... and exactly what I expected. The historical context thing...

I'm a big hockey fan, there's always discussion about how the legends of yesteryear would fare against modern competition. It's a hard thing to gauge, indeed. For hockey (and the same probably goes for martial arts), the guys are a LOT bigger than they used to be, bigger than guys that played in the '50s/'60s. And of course there's the better nutrition, better training methods... better knowledge. Hockey plays and styles have been perfected over the years, and I'm sure there's been advances in specific Martial Arts over the years, as well. I was reading how Bruce had trouble blocking a particular Chuck Norris kick during a spar... but soon learned from Chuck that stepping out of the way was the better option. Common knowledge now, but back then...

So Bruce Lee's situation kind of reminds me of Wayne Gretzky's... he's another undersized guy that dominated his profession, but he was in his prime 2 decades ago, when equipment was smaller, guys were smaller and not as fit, etc... how would he fare against today's 6'5'', 240 pounders? It's tough to say, but obviously he'd reap the benefits of the modernization of the sport as well... Wayne was only 170 pounds soaking wet during his playing days, but now, he'd probably train much harder, and get ripped, might get up to 200. It'd put him on an even playing field with today's ''superior'' athletes. Bruce would have a lot more to work with today as well...

And of course you could factor in intelligence... Bruce seemed like a bit of a visionary to me, his interviews have some nice insights, he seemed really intelligent, I guess his MIND alone helped Martial Arts forge ahead... and Wayne was probably the most purely INTELLECTUAL athlete I can think of, he totally dominated guys twice his size using literally just his brain (though I think some sports lend themselves towards mental strategies like that more than others). These guys would find a way to be competitive now, for sure! Whether or not Bruce could beat the biggest, baddest Marital Artist on the planet today may be a moot point, considering his contributions... they transcend that.

(by the way, who IS the most respected Martial Artist going right now? If there is one... the Gretzky/Ruth/Jordan of Martial Arts, if you will)

Anyway, thanks for the input. It's all about context... that's the way it is for every sport, and I was pretty sure it would be the same way for Martial Arts.

[Mr. Gordo]

Seriously, I think Bruce would have kicked alot of ass at K-1 in his weight division.

[Tom Yum]

As opposed to wins by what...corner stool? 12-gauge?? Divine intervention???

no, no, no.....jello pudding pop eating...jj.

I meant that Bruce would be a great stand up NHB fighter and win most of his fights in stand up or clinch.

[Chilly Dog]

I would have to agree with you. If Bruce lived in this era, I think he'd be a noteable fighter, but not the best. Most of his wins would be by KO or decision from his speed.

As opposed to wins by what...corner stool? 12-gauge?? Divine intervention???

[EmptyneSs]

bruce lee was extremely skilled. yeah he is idolized alot, but he had skill. the speed and power he could generate was insane for a person of his size. i think he would decimate people in his weight division if he was to compete in mma. if this dude could generate so much power in his 1 inch punch, i would think a full powered punch by him would cause absolute devastation. bruce lee acheived skills that most of us never will. i aint a bruce lee worshiper or anything, but from what ive read about him, and from the footage ive seen of him at seminars and whatnot, its evident that bruce had extreme skills that most of us will never have.

[squidd]

Sort of a weird question, maybe absurdly n00bish. I know nothing about Martial Arts except what I learned in Tae Kwon Do about 10 years ago, when I was 11. I know he's respected as an innovator and a pioneer, a sort of Renaissance Man, but could he kick my ass?

Was he truly feared as a fighter, or was it all kind of aesthetic? Did he ever have any sort of competitive fights? Can he genuinely be considered one of the toughest SOBs, and how would he stack up against modern Martial Arts champions?

hi,
i think fighters must be gauged not only according to skill but also the time frame within which they had that skill. i remember in the late 80's that some people were unimpressed over tyson's romp over the heavyweight division because the popular opinion is that there were no fighters that are the same caliber as an ali, foreman, holmes, etc.

it would be very hard and maybe even unfair to transpose an old legend into modern times because of 1) the great progress in martial arts in recent years and 2) bruce lee could very well benefit from the more progressive martial arts environment.

but i understand that it is really a nice fantasy to have athlete from different eras compete with each other. in fact this is one of the attractions of the ea sports bestseller NBA live. having the 90's bulls compete with the 70's lakers for example. but i digress.

going back to the fantasy, for one, i think if bruce were around today, he would not be as lean as he was. with great training avialable to a wide range of people today, bruce would have probably been smart enough to see that, all things being equal, the big skilled fighter has an advantage over the smaller skilled fighter.

[SweepEm]

mentioning dancing,
an interesting note of trivia;

I read in one of Bruce Lee's bios that he was a national dance champion in the cha cha...

[Tom Yum]

If he lived in this era with his appreciation of cross training he may have been competative in an mma arena, but I don't think he would have dominated. Just an opinion, one that from the previous posts you can tell will most likely make me a hated man on this forum for a while.

I would have to agree with you. If Bruce lived in this era, I think he'd be a noteable fighter, but not the best. Most of his wins would be by KO or decision from his speed.

[tigrtclaw]

Bruce Lee

Ask yourself honestly: How good were the computers and televisions and everything that was part of the world of the 60's early 70's?

Bruce Lee was way ahead of his time. It was an era of dark ages as far as the Martial Arts knowledge of today. He trained very hard and always searched on his own to improve himself. He was very tough by the standards of those day's and would have of course been way ahead had he lived today.

[Uber_Tap]

It seems as if Karma dictates someone asking the Bruce question every month or so.

To answer your question, Bruce was supposed to be very talented and was supposed to have fought a lot of street fights in China, and they say he took open challenges from guys even after becoming Bruce Almighty

Bruce of the 60's and 70's gets his ass beat by mma fighters of today. If he lived in this era with his appreciation of cross training he may have been competative in an mma arena, but I don't think he would have dominated. Just an opinion, one that from the previous posts you can tell will most likely make me a hated man on this forum for a while.

[Mr. Gordo]

Damn....school house rock....you've checkmated me!

[Tom Yum]

What about School House Rock ?

[Mr. Gordo]

Oh, sure...interject some logic in this thread now.

[Tom Yum]

Bruce Lee couldn't beat a true master of Jailhouse Rock.

Yeah. He hasn't been training for a while.