Wing Chun Actually Works?! 

Links to contributors: 1) Breakdown of Qi La La's fight on Fight Commentary Breakdowns: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-OVsJ5Cqy4iQ.html 2) Marco's fight and channel: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-WmXzdc_ojjM.html 3) Lion Martial Arts Academy: ru-vid.com/show-UCKwgPhHDdPSdj9wQAaFk9KQ

I'll never forget what my karate teacher used to tell me when I asked what are the techniques that work : "Everything works, provided that you train to make it work."

Great video, Rokas! Glad to be part of it!! Marco's videos have been shared with me too, so I will definitely feature him eventually too! I'll share this with Qi La La now!

I remember sparring a guy in his 50s who did Wing Chun and actually sparred. I was at a pretty good level with my Taekwondo at that point, but I absolutely got destroyed by this dude, because the weakness of Taekwondo is that when you get close to your opponent, you have no idea what you're doing, and coincidentally, that's where Wing Chun thrives

Qi La La is from Taiwan which I am as well. He practices not only Wing Chung but some internal systems(內家拳) too. What most impresses people is that he started martial art at his mid 30's.

This is what I've felt for a long time. It's not that martial arts are useless, it's that so many martial artists quite simply never train to actually fight. They don't spar, they don't ever do any training that would prepare them for an actual fight. It makes me appreciate how my Taekwondo instructor would teach us actual practical training along with our normal training. He was big into MMA and even encouraged us to go beyond just Taekwondo. He even taught us some grappling and ground fighting he learned doing MMA.

"Fancy shit works if you can back it up with solid skills" -Icy Mike (paraphrased)

Absolutely! Not all martial arts training is effective for combat. They can still have value but they should not be confused for combat arts.

I'm a wing chun student myself and I started out with karate when I was 5. I'm 29 now and all I really have to say about a lot of martial arts is that it all comes down to the person learning and then applying it to different situations. I believe practicing most legitimate martial arts creates a sound mind and is a great way to ultimately deescalate most situations. A lot of people practice martial arts and then find themselves freezing up if an altercation actually does occur. Having a sound mind and trying to deescalate situations in the first place is the best route to go. Ego is a big problem for a lot of people though. That and fear. I've been in a few fights... My first one, I was like "oh shit, I'm in a fight!" and the last 2 I was like, "well, I'm in a fight now, I'll do my very best to get out of this situation as quickly and effectively as I can". Big difference. People need to learn humiliation and quit ragging on other people's martial arts in general. It all mostly comes down to the individual themselves and a part of it is the art practiced. After all, a weapon isn't a part of an individual, it's an extension. In any martial art though, run from the knife always. Charge the gun.

Your honesty never ceases to amaze me, Rokas! I'm yet to meet someone who really intends to get to the bottom of these discussions as you do. Hats off to you, man! Much respect!

"What works, works," ABSOLUTELY!

Agree with this for sure, I did get some good skills from Wing Chun in terms of some techniques but we never sparred really. It did help me in my next martial art though but I feel what I do now is a lot more realistic. Good to see Wing Chun if trained the right way can deliver results.

Very interesting video. As a Wing Chun learner, I'm sad that so many schools don't properly spar. Guess I'm lucky to have found the teacher I have lol

This reinforces what I’ve long believed - that traditional MAs aren’t technically flawed or anything but they frequently are poorly trained and poorly understood, even by instructors in those arts. That’s been my experience.

this was pretty interesting, first time I see a wing chun guy use his style so well in practical application. I guess the problem really is the inadequate training methods, more sparring needed for most schools.

Interesting topic. When I practiced Wing Chun, I could see why our sifu did not allow sparring. We were taught fights were dangerous, anything could happen. He said, Try not to get into a fight, but if you do, get out of it as quickly as possible. As a result, we were taught to incapacitate our opponent with strikes to the eyes, solar plexus, groin, etc. If that’s your goal, kind of hard to spar. Chi sau did pay off for me. I have been victorious in several street fights. What amazed me was how automatic the moves came to me. It was just like that Karate Kid movie. In one, a guy threw a punch. I blocked it automatically and was mesmerized at my reflexes. What I had failed to notice was that as I blocked the punch, I simultaneously punched the guy in the face. I looked over and he was on the ground. So the practice has its value. However, years later when I wished once again to study wing chun, I wanted sparring. I agree with you that there is no substitute for actual fighting. I could not find a wc school with sparring. The schools that I did find were so wrapped up in tradition that they appeared almost cult like (I’m sure not every school is like that, but the ones in my geographic region were). I ended up taking a karate class with my kid. Lots of sparring. Not only did the sparring help me acclimate to somewhat real fighting situations, but it also helped me adjust to my own body movements and speed during a fight. Of course, Bruce Lee had his own criticisms of Wing chun. I think anyone learning to fight should be schooled on punching, kicking and grappling from whichever school they can. And sparring is a must.

I'm currently in a school where the older instructor was dangling "sparring" as this big carrot but in reality it was more about just doing chi sao and learning new combinations. The instructor (much younger) that came after he retired decided to ramp up the conditioning and strength training, footwork and timing drills, and I soon found out why: he wants to do high intensity chi sao first and then let people get into bouts. My lessons changed pretty much overnight, from static drills and chi sao with all the partners, to conditioning, then forms, and chi sao drills (with extra pushups and focus mitts in between), then the chi sao drills transition into kind of "here's a problem, use what you have to solve it" testing, where the partner just starts from a specific spot but it can develop all kinds of ways. Point of those being to learn to recompose and relax quickly and not let your brain go into panic. The instructor I have now has also trained other MAs and sees the fun in just getting into bouts and making students solve their problems cleanly. Needless to say, the amount of bruises and punches to the face is now a thousand times more than what I received during the older instructor.

Super glad you talked to Jerry. Also, the "Canadian Geometry" saying has roots in a statement made by one of the Machado brothers. He said that if an armlock is used by a Japanese jujutsu practitioner is different, varied, or the same as a Greek pancration armbar....and it works.....it's just grappling...and should be used by all grapplers in their system regardless of origin.... because it works. No matter what your system or style is, you have to adapt. Your outcome in conflict should matter more than your adherence to style

As a wing chun practitioner, I'm glad that most of them agree with your points. A significant chunk of wing chun schools are not good. The best ones always have cross training elements and sparring

You have a great channel! You have SAVED many people from wasting time, and HELPED many people discover truth. Thank you.

Great vid! Thx for the upload.

That's basically what Bruce Lee said--" When you understand , a kick is a kick, a punch is a punch"...

Hi Rokas, I am a 67yr old guy who has been training martial arts consistently since I was 16. I did wing chun for 15yrs, TKD reaching 3rd dan and now train in Shotokan I have only had to defend myself once when a guy attacked me in the street. He ran at me with his right fist clenched and threw a right hook at me. Without thinking I reacted with Wing Chun, stepping into him whilst blocking with a left hand tan sau at the same time throwing a right hand punch (With an upward twist at the end of the punch, a technique Joseph Cheng taught me that I have never seen in other W,.C, schools). It worked, I knocked him out. Incidentally, an 8th dan TKD master once told me that all martial arts are 90% the same, the 10% differences are the techniques of the individual art, the 90% sameness is relaxation and breathing and I get that!

Honestly, I am not MMA and Martial Artist. My relatives is. Your explanation about how Marco and Qi La La (the Chinese MMA Wingchun, sorry if I type it wrong) do pressure test and asking for tips from the other fighter different from Wing Chun is totally right. Yours makes me remember how my relatives often told me that She, the other student, and her teacher sometimes went to different martial art dojos to do some exchange. She was in Pencak Silat. They went to Karate, Tae Kwon Do, or other different style to do sparring and exchanging tips for practical use. Thank you for explaining this. Hope you find what you really need Sir. Have a nice and safe journey

Thank you. You're videos are first class and your sincerity/honesty is beyond question. I have trained in a classical martial art for many years and have concluded that: 1. Ability is much more about the individual than the style. I am sure that some styles are more effective than others, but in my experience an able/effective individual will succeed whatever style she/he practices. Furthermore, I have trained with many senior blackbelts I could blow over and with many novices off the street who could probably do the same to me. I think an individual's experience in life, relentlessness, attitude, endurance, genetic ability, IQ etc are at least as important as the style she/he trains in. 2. I have no doubt that some "martial arts" (boxing, muay thai, wrestling, BJJ etc) are more effective in skilled combat, particularly in the ring or cage, than others. However, I wouldn't dismiss the effectiveness of classical martial arts (including aiki-do & karate) in the self-defence scenario against idiots and drunks, provided commonsense, situational awareness and a lack of false ego are incorporated. 3. We live in an age in which training in many different martial arts is easily available to all. When I was young you were lucky to find any sort of martial arts dojo hosted by a quality teacher nearby. I would encourage all martial artists to cross train in as many styles (within reason!) as possible provided the teachers and schools feel right. I think the ideal for those of us who do martial arts on a recreational basis is to focus on a single art but to supplement with skills from others. Just my opinion of course. 4. Effective techniques are the simplest techniques and usually those which depend upon gross motor control rather than detailed, complex, precise techniques. Of course, highly trained individuals might be able to master the latter but most mere mortals under conditions of stress are much more likely to succeed using the former. Apologies for the longish self-indulgence here. I think I am trying to say that I am happy that you are not dismissing some classical arts including wing chung. As I said it depends upon the individual and her/his ability to excel by being open minded and incorporating techniques from other styles. Please keep up the superb work. ATVB.

loved the blurred cameo by Master Wong

Chi Sao, sticky hands is about training your touch sensitivity and reflex. It's not a fighting technique, it trains you to fight by touch alone and how to move once contact is established.

I came here the first time and im back again. Im glad you made this video about Wing Chun. I believe it's functional, but there are some feuds between schools that are just the worst. It's good to see my martial art be vindicated in your eyes and im glad you are doing this awesome content.

Most honest review I've seen 👊

I'm relieved that you actually found stuff about Wing Chun on the internet. I was trying to figure out how to make one of my own. A lot of people shit on it a lot but then praise Bruce Lee who practiced it along with other arts. I was on that part of my journey when I was 14 when I thought that Wing Chun was the best and Karate sucked and I was ignorant about it and spreading hate like I knew. I didn't think I needed to spar even when my Sifu insisted. But when him and the MMA instructor decided to do a cross spar for a couple days, I realized that I was really good at fighting people within the same art, but I'm just ok compared someone who spars all the time. Then I realized that it's good to cross train and spar. And the instructors made sure that if we had any ego that it was wiped away. I realised Wing Chun wasn't the best art, it was just the best for me, it felt natural to me and that's what any martial artist should strive for. Find something that fits you and that you enjoy but kerp an open mind that, it's not the same for everyone. From that day on when it came time to do drills, I would tell my partner to really try to hit me and sometimes tell them to come at me like a boxer would. If you practice with just one art, then you only know how to fight again that one art. I had to get literally punched in the face (and more) to learn that. I still strictly practice Wing Chun but I open my mind to the rest of the world and incorporate it into my style. My Sifu tried to teach me something that sometimes can't be taught with words. This is my journey, and I hope that it helps with yours.

I definitely agree with you. When I started studying TKD in the 80's, we were taught to condition the body, we had sparring and our strikes were to connect under pressure training. I was knocked out once during such training from a back fist to my temple which followed through his rear spinning kick which I avoided. Shame I didn't see his follow through. I didn't see it or feel it. I woke up on the floor. And that KO taught me better.

really like how you are so willing to learn and study. you are a true martial artist

Hi ! Just want to congratulate you for your humbleness. You are a true martial artist. Thanks for your videos. Keep practicing martial arts keep the fire in your journey because your journey have been a blessing for those who seek answers in martial arts.

Speaking of Wing Chun, I used some trapping in my sparring and it actually worked. Not full trapping though. Just basic trapping and then right back to kickboxing

Really glad you pointed out the "Wing Chun" aspects of the style. Too many people focus on singular techniques instead of the system as a whole, and how the guard stance influences the footwork influences the punching influences the clinching etc.

I really appreciate this video, there’s a big problem in WC with the lack of hard sparring and pressure testing. I believe that WC has a lot to offer MMA and other combat sports. I think WC needs to develop its own full contact fighting rules/format that can help to cultivate real WC fighters who could transition to MMA

Thanks so much . I love your way of analysis; as it does clearly make sense.

Jerry of Fight Commentary Breakdowns is really blowing up this week. People are mentioning him heavy left and right! :D

man of integrity i see

Perfect analysis and top video ❤

After practicing Karate, Tae kwon Do and Bujinkan Ninjutsu, Wing Chun is actually the martial art that I want to settle on. Not wanting to compete or anything like that, but I love the spiritual, and physical aspect of it, and being not completely useless in self defence is only a major bonus.

Be formless my friend.

"there is no Canadian geometry" That's a great saying, I'm definitely gonna use that!!!

Roka you are still remarkable young man. Continue on your journey to enlightenment.

You’re inspirational man. Your bravery to do what you’re doing now after Aikido makes you a hero in my book.

It's interesting, Wing Chun's front kick (its most used kick) is really similar to a teep kick. And there's clinchwork (which can also be found in the wooden dummy form). Trapping, on the otherhand, is not really the focus of WC as many think. When "trapping" happens it's to remove an obstacle in the way of a punch to the face, not to wrap up someone's arms for a minute or whatever

Newsflash: A Hard Punch To The Face Works!

Great commentary...thanks

Interesting mate, cool video

Looking forward to watch this

Chi Sao is really about having your hands to react to pressure without thinking.

Good stuff. Main thing I learned as a kid 50 plus years ago when taking Judo as a kid, you have to do live work or pressure testing to get it right.

I remember when this was an aikido channel. This mans journey of learning martial arts is incredible and mimics many people’s journey with religion in a lot of ways. OSS brother

Wing Chun has always worked in fights... well for those who have trained it for fights. As it’s been said you perform how you train.

The feels like a next chapter in Martial Arts Journey. This feels like a more into true critical thinking. Before it felt more like a replacement of Aikido with BJJ & MMA. Now it feels like you are actually why and not what ie why a style or system works/doesn't work and what would happen if it adjustments were made.

Nice video!

Very good video!! Apt analysis sir!! I train in Wing Chung and this is exactly true!!

Funny fact: Wing Chun and Naha-te descendent Karate Schools have roots on Fujian White Crane.

When a wing chun person says too dangerous for sparring, I roll my eyes. Practitioners back in the day fought on the roof tops of Hong Kong everyday. That's how various different kungfu schools hung out.

I have studied wing chun for a couple months now. We do mostly drills and such, but once you reach a certain level of skill, we do have sparring or "shadow fighting" as my sifu often calls it

You're so right! Totally agree!

"He did spar a lot with Thai fighters..." *imagining a guy punching out spacecraft for Kung Fury 2*

This is great! Hope to see more wing chun realness and some stuff from the other martial arts! And just to be clear: that's it, guys... not hard to "prove" your stuff works. No need to challange Rokas or anyone else... just show some good sparring or fights. As pointed in the comments... "what works, works"! Good luck, ya'll!

Great video though. Awesome.. glad you found your way .

I'm glad to see more videos about Wing Chun. I think it's a fascinating martial art. I of course respect all forms of martial arts but Wing Chun was always interesting to me.

I love the "there's no Canadian geometry" line! Genius! I've never heard that but it makes so much sense. I trained WSL wing chun under Jason Gowan in London and we did some pressure testing periodically - sometimes milling, sometimes more situational - eg 2 on 1 assaults. It was very enlightening and the main lessons I took from the 2 on one stuff was that you have to keep moving and if you don't you will get flanked and taken down - then you're really in trouble! The big focus in chi sao was in hitting cleanly - not so much on "chasing the hands" or "trapping". Eventually we started training in the ABMVT approach to wing chun with regular visits from Ernie Barrios - fantastic coach! (still very much in the WSL family) which was very interesting. The biomechanics were really well understood and the focus was on structure, hitting and footwork. We did a lot of pad work as well as the pressure testing and were building up to sparring. As we developed it was feeling more and more like boxing and kickboxing, but with wing chun structures - ie vertical punching - facing and centreline focus. I left when I had my daughter as it was on the other side of town but I think it was really on to something good. The biggest thing missing though at the point I left was more familiarity with range and movement outside of contact. I was training at a boxing club in Kings Cross on my lunch breaks at the time and I found when I was sparring there, that it was often hard to keep the pressure on on more experienced folk - especially if they could time you for a check hook or a slip and cross! On less experienced opponents I could happily swarm them, but then I could do that with pure boxing too. Then again, the training at the wing chun club was constantly evolving so maybe I would have been more effective as I developed further. Definitely the guys who continued were hella good!

Wow, a suprise cameo from another one of my favorite RU-vid channels! that's really cool. Rokus, your videos keep getting better and better. I have trained 1.5ys in Wing chun, I completed and graded from the first form (Sui nim tao) but after trying grappling, I moved to Judo, but as time has gone on, I have noticed I am using more and more wing chun in my grip fighting, moves like pac sau, tan sau and bong sau have been really useful and I am tempted to revisit my old club. I think wing chun works best when it is trained like Boxing.

I've watched your channel since you were an aikido channel. Great content all along.

I realy like your way, you explore not judge at first. You got "It" in the mind.

So pretty much majority of Wing Chun practicioners/schools are holding itself back from becoming a legit combat martial arts. If all of them had the same mindset like Qi lala and his teacher, who's knows how much further they could evolve Wing Chun.

So glad I discovered your channel

Very smart research my friend, that is true spirit of martial arts, mind, body and real practice.

We incorporated Wing Chun chain punch techniques into close range fighting. It complimented our Muay Thai/Vale Tudo base well and was great for adding quick accumulative concussion to the menu, or for opening them up for bigger shots.

I used to be a chunner over 20 years ago. I studied for years under a sifu who was strict on form and pressure testing. From 12 until 19 I studied under this sifu until I left for the Navy. After my time in I came back to my home town to find my school was still there but my sifu had left someone else in charge. This sifu below him was a former classmate that at first seemed to focus on what my sifu had taught. I was so wrong. The students were dressed like they were cast members in Ip man movies. When I studied we had a T-shirt that had the school name in Cantonese. That’s it. We trained on concrete floors, no padding while pressure testing and the wooden dummy’s were meant to for full force. The new school was all about speaking in traditional terms, they padded up before “sparring” and Mats were brought out when you trained “ground fighting”. Absolute shit. When i began doing some chi sau with other students I was hitting them at full force when finding an opening. I could tell from the shock of the other student that this was not normal. I was yelled at by the sifu that, “we don’t train that way anymore!” And with that I became sad. My sifu (who has passed on may he Rest In Peace) was open minded and accepted that other martial arts are in the world. This new sifu was of the impression that wing Chun was all there is or ever will be. Needless to say I left and found a Muay Thai school. Trained hard there and was confronted at my own home a year after I left wing Chun by this new sifu. He stated that I had “put a cancer in my martial art” and that “I will never harness the true power of wing Chun”. What the hell!? Then he challenged me to “spar”. He wanted to chi sau, which I obliged. Following his lead I was thrown off my center line and paddy caked with his chain punching. I asked to go one more time and when he put up his hands I pushed back to keep my distance and used Muay Thai. When I kicked his thigh his face told everything to me. Fear. He was shown a flaw in his belief and didn’t know what to do. As he started to limp and couldn’t figure out why his leg would work, I asked him to leave my property. He went on about how I was banned from the council and that my name will be forever smeared in the wing Chun community. This long story is a cautionary tale to those who might be seeking out a “pure art”. Make sure the mystique of the system doesn’t cloud your search for a quality system. The wing Chun I trained in still sticks with me to this day. I have used it several times while in the Navy in street fights or friendly competition. I also used it for years working at a mental hospital where people try to hurt you daily. Wing Chun can and will work but hot if you believe it’s the end all be all. Each martial art is a tool box. Reach in and find the tools that have substance and disregard the fancy BS. To end, chain punching is a fantastic way to increase hand speed. Period. Now chain punching someone’s head is not recommended.

I trained under the wong shun leung wing chun lineage in London for a bit...they did have some practical pressure testing compared to the other wing chun I did.

Sir I watch your videos regularly they provide me with massive information as well as entertainment. Hats off to you! Sir I want to ask you one question if you could kindly reply. My question is that which martial art do you think is good for self defense?

Great video! I also watched the original challenge video when it came out. I have practiced a handful of various martial arts and thankfully majority of my instructors focused on sparring and functionality in real life scenarios. This was probably due to the fact that I was in prison in Texas (doing a 10 year sentence) and there was no time for learning something without real application. While in prison from 1999 to 2009, I studied the basics of Wing Chun (Sifu Edward Jesus Marrerro), kickboxing (Preston Perry, heavy weight), and Pankration (Boon).

Seeing this I am so lucky I have a school that spars. Thanks for teaching this.

*triggered Taiwanese noises* In all seriousness though, Qi La La is from Taiwan. I think that most people would agree that regardless of if you think Taiwan is a country, it's usually more appropriate to refer to it as a separate "place"

You nailed it.

Wong Shun Leung was a very sparring oriented trainer. He was also a boxer so he’s a bit of an outlier. Bruce Lee referred to WSL as his true Sifu.

I have watched our videos for some time. Good to see that you share your experiences, including sharing your updates and learings. Concerning Wing Chun, what I used to learn and like to reengage in in an applicable way, some things are clear: a.) Many Wing Chun schools are TMA schools by defintion. They lack pressure testing like most TMA schools. b.) The "Kung Fu Cult" you already explained in a Video with your partner from Canada (Frank Lupo?) manifests this so called "non-fighting culture". So far, so bad. However, things are changing: a) Many well-experienced fighters who got disappointed by this "Cult" have already left their schools and foundet there own branches, like EBMAS or Wing Revolution/Wing Fighting. b) More and more "pure" Wing Chun guys want to overcome this "non-fighitng culture". c) As Germany has been a main place for the evolution of Wing Chung for many years, I suppose you could do more research on the German guys. Some of the top-fighters of the past are still allive and accessible, may it be under the original name or their new branch (like EBMAS). Here are some links to a German Wing-Chung-Guy representing the new breed of Wing-Chun-athlets: 1.) The Wingtsunner - analyzing the fail of WingChun in MMA/Full-Contact and exposing the non-fighting culture: ru-vid.com/show-UC7-WzGa4fMbwBLAWbE6-vzgvideos 2.) Defencegroup: A group of athlets arround "The Wingtsunner", cross-training together for MMA, sharing WingChun, JDK, Kickboxing and BJJ: ru-vid.comvideos 3.) WingTsun Sport Association: Channel of the same guy, and his journey to become an Athlet for MMA-Competition - while using WingChun (WingTsun): ru-vid.com/show-UCnz98avKU9JMbCW2HCLcW_gvideos HIs English is not excellent, as he is a native Germany speaker. However, his messages are understandable, even with a slightly German accent (that might sound rude to native English-Speakers, but just results from the sound of the German language). If you haven't known these channels before, they can give you a profound insight. After all, applicability in full-contact is a matter of the right training. A backyard shool of TMA, with the teacher and the student doing it only part time, can never meassure up with full-time athlet using modern training facilities, training concepts including professional conditioning and nutrition. All these things have to come togehter to produce an athlet. In addtion to realistic sparring, off course.

Good video. I originally started Wing Chun training in Hawaii over 40 years ago. Since moving to the mainland and seeing how many local schools train I have to agree with much of what you say here. I've noticed the thing with Chi Sau being used as a sparring drill. It was never taught to me as such. Chi sau was simply a flowing drill meant to help learn sensitivity and movement from one position to the other while feeling the movement from your opponent. Being able to control your own "energy" as it were (what the opponent feels). We had actual sparring drills which were basically controlled fights where to "win" you had to knock your opponent completely down at least 3 times. Chi Sau was never conducted in this manner. I've also noticed that many of the WC schools I've encountered here tend to practice wing chun as a series of prearranged movements and they don't learn to adapt to the opponent instead they focus on using brute strength. This can work if one's opponent is significantly less strong but usually doesn't fair so well when an opponent is of equal of greater strength or of greater skill. In the end, like Mr. Lee and many others have pointed out, a punch is a punch and a kick is a kick, the fact is that how well one does in fighting is in many ways how well you apply the various movement options at any given moment in relation to what you opponent is doing. Anyway long story short great video and breakdown.

I enjoyed this video very much. While I haven't trained Wing Chun due to no good schools around me I really love the art and have wanted to train it for years. I learned as much as I could from online sources and while I now train Ted Wong lineage JKD I found some great Wing Chun practitioners in that time. I'd highly recommend Alan Orr and his Iron Wolves fight team. They have taken Chu Sau Lei Wing Chun and tested it in MMA, boxing, and Kickboxing competition and done really well with it. Also Kevin Lee has been doing some great stuff as far as pressure testing his Wing Chun here on RU-vid. While they haven't to my knowledge produced fighters or pressure tested their Wing Chun in combat sports (to my knowledge) I'd also recommend Dominic Izzo's channel and Gary Lam's channel. Izzo is not opposed to sparring or combat sports but gears his Wing Chun more towards self defense, and Gary Lam teaches WSL lineage Wing Chun, the lineage that the first fighter you detailed in this video trains. Over the years I waded through a lot of bad Wing Chun and finally found these guys. While I haven't gotten to train Wing Chun yet, and love my TW JKD, in my opinion these guys are the best Wing Chun practitioners out there today. Go check them out and decide for yourselves. 🙂

Fun fact: Qi Lala is a practitioner of Wong Shun Leung Wing Chun and in some of the clips of the traditionalist displays of skill you've shown (including the very first one) Wong Shun Leung himself was the demonstrator. I totally get your point but I found it kind of funny too.

True Talk! Sometimes it depends on the fighter. One of my karate sensei sparred with other sports like kickboxing and kungfu to make his Karate Kumite better. Yet there were others that focus on Kata

I was in a Wing Chun school that did pressure testing but it was against other wing chun students using "boxing". Most had very rudimentary boxing skills at best. Ultimately, I felt that one year of Muay Thai was better than 3-4 years of wing chun. My personal experience.

The main thing that is missing in a lot of scenarios is testing the martial art against actual pressure. It's not that the martial arts are "useless" it's that they aren't trained against actual pressure testing, sparring and resistance. If you actually train to fight and against actual resistance it can help you figure out ways to use some of those techniques and principles in an actual fight. You find what works, what doesn't work and what techniques could actually be applied. One of the best aspects is that he considered BJJ essential in MMA, but he still utilizes the effective strikes he learned from Wing Chun and Kung Fu and applies them to combat sports because he actually TRAINS THEM in combat sports and against actual resistance and utilizes what techniques and principles work in a real fight and not spending time on what doesn't. It's pretty great to see.

hi there. I'm a wing chun practitioner with some experience on some other martial arts. I think the concepts of wing chun are pure gold for a good fighter.

“To be bound by traditional martial art style or styles is the way of the mindless, enslaved martial artist. But to be inspired by the traditional martial art and to achieve further heights is the way of genius.” Bruce Lee

4:44 omg, sparred a lot with Tie fighters? Impressive, most impressive.

You really need to try Qi Sao! The way you start off by just flowing back and forth with each other is just how you START! The object IS to hit the other person. But the contact of your limbs and the sensing of each other's movements and "qi" allow you to play an intricate chess game! It's very fun and absolutely helps prepare you for real fighting. You're not gonna go qi sao someone, obviously, but you'll find a much greater level of comfort with being in contact with a hostile body. Being able to sense, deflect, guide, manipulate the movement of your opponent, I can't tell you how many times I've been in a clinch and just felt 2-steps ahead of my opponent, all credit to qi sao training. I'm not a tough guy, I'm just trying to explain that you ARE actually trying to hit your partner while playing qi sao! You only start off with that flowing motion as some kind of warm-up. I started playing qi sao with my BJJ buddies when we were at a tournament and another school's coach was calling out "small circles" to his student, and then the combatant pulled out a perfect huen-sao! I recognized the technique and explained it to my BJJ friends, who were very receptive and actually started to train qi sao regularly. I'm sorry to say, you've gravenly misrepresented qi sao, sir. I wish you would reevaluate. That moment you see the resistance stop and the finish applied is not choreographed or staged. It is a live game but a game nonetheless! When you're playing it, you can feel when someone's escaped you and taken over. It is a GAME, you get game overs. Bad manners to do those finishing techniques but apparently it's some sort of exhibition, but there's typically an understanding that those situations, your actual resistance wouldn't do much better than a bit of compliance. You should have the control and awareness to not need to hit someone in the face for that person to understand they got punched in the face. So when you know you've been bested, you assume in a real fight, you would have just got cracked, so you're kinda simulating a flash ko. It's a game best played totally honestly, so if someone trapped you and showed you 2 to the chest 1 to the face, it's game over. I think you also show a clip of Master Yip jr in which a very generous slightly younger master is being very gracious to the old man. Your general thesis in that section, however, that many schools confuse qi sao with actual sparring is totally correct. Qi sao is NOT sparring. It is, however, pressure testing and working against live resistance. It is a great disservice to students to suggest qi sao alone would prepare them for a real fight. But, I've never met anyone in wing chun that actually said technical drills and qi sao alone would prepare someone for a real fight. That said, all the wing chun schools I know have been participating in sanda/sanshou tournaments for decades, and even have had students make it into professional circuits.

I go to a wing chun school that spars and trains the way it works. I was shocked when you said only 5-20% does this. It needs to grow.

I was actually having a discussion about this the other day with my friend. I think Wing Chun has some amazing concepts but when I learned it for fun, the actual techniques were not taught well. However I loved the concepts, now when fighting Muay Thai or boxing, the concepts are very helpful. Though I no longer practice wing-chun, I see myself applying a lot of it's concepts when I am fighting my opponents close range. So in a sense, I use my own minor version of wing-chun because I take it's concepts and figure out how it works in normal fight pressure. I love wing-chuns concepts, and I believe when practiced under the proper circumstances the art is actually practical.

Great video. I always thought there was something to handtrapping. I see a tiny bit of it when boxers parry. There's a video going around of Thug Rose from UFC practicing hand trapping and I'm excited to see it being used more in MMA. But time will tell if it's useful. Sidenote: being a blue belt in BJJ means you should be able to take care of an untrained opponent. Same could probably be said with Aikido and Wing Chung. The problem arises when you try it with trained opponents.

I studied at 2 separate wing chun schools. The first school was amazing! Very good training in skill, confidence and aggression. Little old lady assistant instructor hit me shockingly hard lol. After I moved the second school was just like every other belt academy. As long as you can memorize and mimic the movements you progressed. I felt like I could beat up most the people there no matter their rank, where as the first one blew my mind at how effective it can be.

I trained Wong shun Leung Ving Tsun for 15yrs on and off, mostly under Alan Gibson in the UK, and then David Peterson and Darren Elvey in Melbourne Aus, and it was great, and they are really great teachers (they all have various vids online) - I must get back to training one day! We did a fair amount of pressure testing over the years, yes mainly against boxing skills, as boxers are tough opponents. If you dont know, the main element I loved was the touch sensitivity you learn through training, so your body learns to react by feel (once in contact), so you dont have to think so much, speeding up your reactions to what you feel. I too would agree there is a lot of poor WC out there... cheers

It's definitely mostly about the application. I trained in Lau Gar growing up and we did sparring for half an hour every session as well as a lot of pad work. But I was really surprised to discover that other schools did nothing but forms. That's basically like the equivalent of saying you do boxing but really just doing boxercise. I was skeptical about wing chun until I tried a class in China and genuinely couldn't believe their level of power

Wing Chun definitely works, alone it’s not absolute. Bruce Lee added styles to his wing Chun.. sparing is key 🔑 🔥🧘🏽‍♂️🔥

We can thank Xu Xiodong for the wide spread wing Chun pressure testing 💪