How would Bruce Lee do in the Ultimate Fighting Championships?

Question

I've always been a Bruce Lee fan. I read some posts about Bruce compared to Chuck Norris. I'm wondering how Bruce, or even Chuck, would fare in the octogon against today's ultimate fighters. The closest I've seen to old school, traditional martial arts is Royce Gracie, and he couldn't stand up to the ground and pound grappling of Matt Hughes. Part of me thinks Bruce would easily win, but I thought the same of Gracie.

Answer 1

Bruce Lee will win

Answer 2

Roy B - Let people have their own opinions. Chuck had won countless karate tournaments before he even met Bruce, so don't make out like Bruce taught him all he knows. When you make out you are the font of all knowledge it gets a little tedious.

Also, I've read that Bruce had done some groundwork but never read anywhere that he was 'phenomenal' on the ground. Cite your sources before shooting people down saying you're disgusted with how little they know. If Bruce was so 'awesome' then why wasn't there a definitive account of what happened against Wong Jack Man?

As for my opinion, I don't think Bruce would beat any of the much bigger guys easily but still think it could go either way. Shootfighters miss the legs frequently and Bruce's footwork was a hell of a lot quicker than most of these bigger guys'. Then again, if someone caught him with one big hit, who knows what would happen...

Answer 3

Everyone can be beaten, including the legendary Bruce Lee. Dispite what the legend says, he was not as spectacular at real fighting as some people might think. But the truth is that Lee basically layed the foundation for mixed martial arts as it is today, or at least he helped tremendously. You've got to understand the guys determination and work ethic, also. He would have been one of the people that continues to get better and better each time he fights, and he would have been more than competitive in the light-weight division, to say the least. In the UFC or boxing(fighting with rules), Lee would be annihilated by someone larger than him. But on the streets, he would be incredibly hard to connect with, and you can count on him fighting extremely dirty. Think of how fast some of the maximum security inmates can slice someone... Then think of a much faster strike. This is how fast Lee would go for your vulnerable points on the streets. Tenchu, your a tard. The kid is talking about Lee in his prime. And its unwise to conclude that Lee wouldn't work on his ground skill if he were to begin competiting. As far as Lee being taken down by someone in a street fight, well he would either bite, pinch, eye gouge, grab the balls, or something else that would make the opponent think twice about grappling TOO close. As far as cage combat goes... I think it is safe to say that he would have been one of those people that is extremely hard to take down. His incredible speed and size would help him to develop an untouchable takedown defense. He would probably be similar to Liddel in the sense that he forces his opponents to stand and scrap.

Answer 4

Bruce Lee is the ultimate martial arts fighter. Chuck Norris doesn't even compare. The thing about Lee was his unorthodox fighting style. It was not the traditional style and it pissed off many of the masters of the art.
Lee felt that you mixed it up to destroy your opponent in the least amount of time. If Lee were to go all out short of killing the person today's fighters would not stand a chance.

Answer 5

Bruce Lee may have been only 5'9'' 135lbs but...
it's not the size of the dog in the fight, but the size of the fight in the dog.
Bruce Lee's striking speed from 60cm (24 inches) away was five hundredths of a second.
Bruce did one-hand push ups using only 2 fingers.
Bruce was able to break a 70 kg (154 lbs) bag with a sidekick.
Bruce's famous "One Inch Punch" was able to knock back and off balance a 200lb man into a chair, using only 1 inch of striking distance. The target stands with their feet squared and is unable to turn to a sideways stance because of the chair being in the way, thus being knocked off balance.

He was a very smart man, and the greatest fighter ever, in my opionion.

http://www.metacafe.com/watch/23744/bruce_lee_lost_interview/

Answer 6

I think it depends. If he can finish off a guy quick (which in most instances he COULD, with lightning fast punches and kicks), then 9 times out of 10 i think he'd win.
BUT, if a guy like Royce Gracie got him tangles up and took him to the floor, i think he'd be in trouble.
Bruce Lee was , what? 105 pounds?
If some of these animals get Lee to the ground, i think Bruce loses.

Answer 7

I'm chinese AND a die hard Bruce fan. But I wouldn't dream of him inside the UFC ring coming out a champion.
Bruce is both fast and strong but he would not stand up to some of the brawling grapplers in the UFC.
In his own weight class, he would do well against the karate, taekwondo or even a thai kick boxer. Beyond that, sorry, I would not be putting my money on Bruce in the UFC.

Answer 8

Bruce would be able to hold his own for a little while, but I think the sport has evolved so much since his day that the would undoubtedly be defeated. Bruce lee fought in tournament style fights,karate style matches that were not involving grappling and wrestling. The fight he had that was most like UFC fight he got his back broken, so I think in the end he would get his *** handed to him.

Answer 9

Bruce would defeat most, just like he did on the street. People need to remember that he would have been a lightweight, and even though skinny, would have been stronger than MOST in that weightclass. Put that together with his INHUMAN speed and he would be a very dangerous fighter ANYWHERE.

Ninedemon, you are a fool. Bruce incorporated ALL styles, that is the point of JKD. If you think his speed and power were not incredible, you are aslo foolish. Bruce Lee DESTROYED a brand new 100 lb bag one of his disciples had with one half-@ssed kick.

Answer 10

Whoa there, slow down. Let's not confuse today's UFC with the original.

This is a totally different product. The current rules are made for TV and profit.

In case you do not remember UFC 1

No time limits. No weight restrictions.

There were three rules.
1. No Biting
2. No Groin attacks
3. No eye gouging

Everything else was fair game. And I disagree with you. Under those rules Royce would have tapped out Matt Hughes.

I would bet if asked, Matt would agree.

As far as Bruce and Chuck are concerned. They would have lost in the first version of the UFC and they would lose in its current form.

Karate is right up there with yoga as far as I am concened.

You young fans should buy the boxed set of the first thirteen UFC tournaments.

It will change your view of our sport forever.

Answer 11

bruce lee would get destroyed and humiliated in less than a minuite.

Why? The bruce lee of his prime would not have been able to deal with ground fighting as it wasn't as popular back then. He would essentially have virtually no defence against a takedown, he would be trying to straight punch the opponent and would be on the ground in a second thus nullifying any skill he has/had at stand up.

If bruce lee had lived? Well we can presume he would have trained groundfighting to some degree to be able to defend against a shoot however this bruce lee would be a man in his 60's competing against younger, quicker fighters (he would have lost his speed with age, it happens to all of us, bruce doesn't defy the laws of science and aging) and he wouldn't have the physical ability to compete with the younger fighters.