Bruce Lee and modern fighters?

Question

I'm a huge Bruce Lee fan, and I'm sure this question has run through the minds of all of you. If Bruce Lee was in his prime today, what would be the outcome of a fight b/w him and these modern day Ultimate Fighters? I know it's hard to compare the two, but what do you think?

Answer 1

I think he'd do amazingly well. For those who don't know, Bruce was probably the first famous mixed martial artist and light years ahead of his time. First of all, his work ethic was unblievable. His training regimen was just about as brutal as you can get. On top of that, Bruce lee was an outstanding western boxer. He was well decorated in Hong Kong and before he came to the U.S. and he was an accomplished fencer as well. Bruce's stand up was considered by many martial arts experts and critics as being unbelievable. many boxing critics and commentators believed that bruce could walk right into professional boxing and dominate his weight division and at least be in the top three in his weight in the world. They came to this conclusion from watching his hand speed, power delivery, footwork, head movement and coordination. As for his ground game, Bruce definitly knew the importance of ground fighting and dominant position for "ground and pound" (which is how he defeated a number of challengers, and he did get in a lot of fights). He studied judo and jiu-jitsu as well and can be seen applying submissions, such as armbars, in some of his coreography. So, yes. bruce lee would do incredibly well. And, the thing about him is that if he were to fight in mma and loose a single match, he would study it and adapt. he lived a whole philosphy behind his martial arts. He beleived in formless fighting, adaptation, and innovation. And to be honest, there are few today that have the natural athleticism, talent, spirit, and intelligence (he was a very intelligent guy and a martial arts genius). And just curious, but how does fighting become outdated? A punch is a punch, and a kick is a kick. Its the same thing. Bruce lee knew how to sprawl, shoot, mount, submit etc. People need to realize that these techniques have been around forever. I have seen a picture of a chinese guy doing chin na on the ground. He was submitting an opponent with an armbar. The funny thing is that the pic is is from the 1930's. These techniques have existed forever. Just because the UFC didn't exist 20 years ago, dont think that before that the gracies were the only ones that understood ground fighting. They just popularized it. Bottom line, techniques don't just become outdated. Strategies may not work for the strategy of your opponent, but people use the same techniques.

NOTE: Those who say Bruce did not have a ground game are simply wrong. Read the Tao of Jeet Kune Do. He clearly addresses the need for ground fighting (and fighting at all ranges) and goes into detail of addressing bridging the gap, clinch fighting, take downs and ground fighting. On the ground, he has two or three pages of jiu-jitsu and judo submissions and dominant positions. He did study these arts and incorporate them into his actual fighting. Most people have not read any of Bruce lee's works and don't really have any idea of what he was trying to accomplish, or his philosophy and approach to fighting.

Answer 2

These questions do seem strange to ask, but they are so amusing to answer. I would bet on Bruce Lee, but I know that like the child's game of rock, paper, and scisors, none is superior in all ways, and each in turn, defeats another. Eventually, Bruce Lee would have been defeated by someone that we never expected, because no one is the greatest.
Chuck Norris, who is often called the best, admitted that Bruce Lee was the best fighter he'd ever met, after they were in a movie together.
Jackie Chan hasn't spoken about his part in a movie with Lee, probably because he's killed within the first few seconds.
However, I remain a Bruce Lee supporter and admire him for so many reasons, and it disappoints me to see people calling him a has-been or nobody, because there's a single picture I want people to see.

I hope it works, if not, you'll see it eventually.
http://s232.photobucket.com/albums/ee7/ShaolinWhiteTiger/Bruce%20Lee/?action=view¤t=BOUT_MY_ONE_INCH.jpg

Answer 3

I'm also a big Bruce Lee fan and to answer your question i think it depends if the UFC fighter gets hold of Bruce and than i think the UFC fighter will have the advantage.

Answer 4

Chuck Norris, who before he was an actor was Middleweight Karate champion for 6 years, said in an interview that Bruce would have handed him his *** in a real fight.
Now, some would say that Chuck was just being nice, and he IS a nice guy BTW, to the memory of his dead friend.
Some would point to the YEARS of intensive training that Bruce had in nearly every Martial Art, and his obvious speed and skill.
And some would say that Guys like Chuck, Bruce, Seagal (traditional Aikido Master before he was an actor), Van Damme (14-1 record as a full-contact middle weight, with 14 knockouts) are either A) "Just Actors" or B) wouldn't be able to last 10 seconds with "modern" MMA fighters. but those people are Idiots.

Answer 5

i think he would do well against guys his size, 130-145 or so. his athletic ability was phenominal, and he was a well rounded martial artist, as for the people who say he was an actor, i dont really agree when he developed his martial art to be effective in fights and not dependant on style, which is what modern mma is doing now. i dont think he would have been dominant or anything, but he would have been very good, and also i think he would end up looking very much like a modern mma fighter in terms of style if he was in competition today.

Answer 6

I guess it really depends on Bruce. Today's MMA fighters need to be skilled in a wide variety of martial arts, and other various fighting techniques to be successful. Sure Bruce Lee was one of a kind back in his day, but i truly believe that if he only stuck to what he knew (and what we saw he was capable of), then he wouldn't be much more than an average fighter for his weight class. On the other hand, if he expanded his skill set .................................now that's scary!

Answer 7

The only UFC fighter in my opinion that could compare to Bruce would be Hoyce Gracie

Answer 8

Chuck Norris said BL would beat him in a real fight because he is humble and a true gentleman, in respect for the dead.

I don't believe BL could beat CN.

There is no video showing BL having an advantage over anyone. Most of the people who go around saying BL was the best were born 20+ years after he died and do not have a solid foundation in any real MA.

BL knew very little real MA.

You cannot speak about how good a steak is unless you eat it.

If he did not learn alot... which he didn't... how could he speak about classical MA being useless? He had nothing to base his claims on.

One person (BL), says classical MA's are useless, millions of others use classical MA's successfully. What makes sense to you? Are you that ignorant?

Answer 9

he would get pwned. They all know ground fighting and stuff much better than him and these new aged techniques. Bruce's fighting is outdated.

Answer 10

If he worked on his ground game he would be dangerous, otherwise, any decent MMA fighter would beat him.