Altes Joe Lewis Interview
Ich hab mal meine alten E-Mails von 2000 und früher durchgewühlt und da dieses alte Interview von Joe Lewis gefunden, welches dieser mit einem Bekannten von mir geführt hat. Keine Ahnung ob das jemals veröffentlicht wurde, aber hier ist es. Vielleicht interessiert es ja den ein oder anderen.
1. question:
Joe, with the Joe Lewis Fighting Systems going
strong, and with the recent reunion you had, will there be any plans in the
future to hold a training camp for the public to attend and learn from you
and these top fighters?
Joe Lewis:
I average three seminars per week year round.Anybody interested in
attending should go to www.aikia.net for a schedule of appearances. We will
have a future web site of seminar/camp listings under joelewisfightingsystems
2. question - the best JKD-fighter:
Hi Joe, who is the top JKD fighter you
have seen???
Joe Lewis:
I never seen one but I'm sure someone is on the rise.
3. question: What standard did Bruce Lee have in accepting students?
Joe Lewis:
Hi Jimmy,I want to thank you for posting my articles. You've got
more of then than I do! George says you're alright. Bruce had 2 motives-1-to
get in movies. He worked with big name directors, producers, writers and
actors 2-to build his stature as a kung fu instructor by working with world
champs like myself, Mike Stone and Chuck Norris. That was a smart move cause
it paid off. This all paid off. He became the most iconic Asian actor of all
time.
4. question - about the importance of footwork:
Bruce & yourself were masters
at bridging the gap. How much importance did Bruce emphasize in training on
footwork to achieve this? Old saying 'The Art of Fighting is the Art of
Moving' and we all know that Bruce really respected Muhammad Ali who proved
that this was the case. Any comments please about the importance of mastering
footwork and how much time did yourself & Bruce spend on footwork training in
your private sessions?
Joe Lewis:
Footwork is the pinacle in all sports. Many boxing coaches send
their fighters to dance school for this purpose. In Okinawa and with BL 90%
of all my training was dedicated to footwork drills. You can only punch, kick
or defend as fast as you can effectively move on your feet. Fast fights, more
importantly quick fighters are determined not by the fastest of their
techniques, but by the quickness, the explosiveness and the emotional
definition of their footwork.
5. question - the hardest opponent:
Joe, Who has been your hardest to beat
opponent?
Joe Lewis:
My sparring partners were always better than my opponents. 9 of my
sparring partners became world champs. A difficult opponent is someone who
keeps me from getting set, establish areach advantage and knows how to follow
thru after a quick initial move. You need combo's against me-one kick or
punch at a time won't work. I taught my sparring partners how to beat me.
This calls to constantly raise my bar/I considered it a complement when my
sparring partner told people they knew how to beat me. I think all
instructors should follow this same philosophy.
6. question - adrenaline:
I was curious on how to overcome the adrenaline
rush that seems to accompany me when I spare. I have had few real life fight
situations so I am sure it is much worse in real life as oppossed to
sparring. When sparring I tend to throw things out and not "think" .
Of course hindsight being what it, is I can pinpoint my problems after the
fact
Kevin
Joe Lewis:
Relax and don't fight it. Learn to accept it. Distinguish between
the excitement to engage and anxiety. They both feel the same. Learn to go
back to basics. Work from a strong with a single technique. Focus on
establishing a simple game plan such as using an `educated' jab to keep your
opponent off balance. You don't control your adrenaline, you learn to control
your focusing.
7. question - the greatest fighter:
which figter of all time, do you respect
the most, and why?
Joe Lewis:
Sugar Ray Robinson. He could fight inside or outside. He could in
the trenches and fight the tuff guys or he can get center ring and play with
the fast technicians. He had 2 things-he hit hard and he had a hard chin. He
had an incorrigible will to continue. He never yield/he never quit. He had
incredible basics and his decision making skills were extremely quick. These
are the traits of great fighters. These are the thing we all try to emulate.
8. question - workout with Bruce Lee:
What was a typical workout session with
Bruce like?
Joe Lewis:
He was strict about being on time. We went right to work,no warm up. He
always had to show off his stomach muscles or forearms and sometimes a new
kick he was working on. His kicks were a little weak back in 65-67. If you
look at his movies, he has bad extension, his hands were out of position and
he often over lunges. We would always work on fighting principles and /or
tactics. Speed and quickneess was a value that we both shared over everything
else. We mostly worked on tactical sparring drills. sometimes transition
maneuvers, such as going from an offensive strike to a defensive posture. We
studied fight films often. Most of what BL did was copied from another
source, he would then add his emotional energies and unique fight philosophy.
Then I became his test tube and spy. I would go to tournaments and do JKD
demo's. I would test his JKD against boxers and karate fighters in the ring
and report back. What didn't work we threw away. Quite a bit was the old Wing
Chun stuff, such as the trapping. For example when you get inside, don't
cover, move or trap. Instead fir first, just as you would on the outside. I
woud go to differnet camps or schools snoop arond, steal their stuff and go
back to BL and we'd analyze what was useful. That's the process of
creation-you take something from here and there and come up with something
new. That one of BL's gifts. He was innovative and had the courage to be
creative. He had the balls to say goodbye to the past. we call this breaking
free. That's why I liked him,we both alike.
9. question - Bruce's skills:
I know practically everything about you (and
Norris as well), but I'm hoping you can elaborate more on your experiences
with Bruce (as far as training with him). Can you give us a better
understanding of just how good he was (as far as boxing & defense wise).
Also, have you sparred with him regularly (or just once or twice, and was it
based in his backyard)....Thank you so much Mr.Lewis & God Bless......
Joe Lewis:
I never sparred with BL. We did limitation sparring drills. He had
the speed and the power to be a world class boxer. I do not know what he did
to prove he could do 10 or 12 rounds or what test he endured to show he could
take a punch. thirdly, to make it in the fight game, no promoter is going to
back unless he knows you have a strong will to continue at all costs. For
example what would you do if you got 3 ribs broken. If you're a grappler,
what would you do if your shoulder was dislocated. These questions need to be
answered. Unfortunately in Bruce's case they never were. I never stood in
front of another human who was a quick as him. He not only had the quickness
but he had the inner confidence to muster the conviction to do so. I've seen
other who had the speed but lack conviction,or vice versa. he was like Ali,
he had both. I stood before both of these men, so I know.
10. question:
Hi joe...See you in west palm in feb..hey.. at these camps and
seminars.. many of us would like to schedule a day of sparring with you and
other senior BB's.. For example.. in West Palm.. it would be great if we
could use one of Saun Kelly's dojos to work out and spar for a few
hours...How cen we work this out at future seminars and camps so all of us
can work out hard with each other and you and you can critique us as well??
Joe.. happy holidays man..Ken Migdol
Joe Lewis:
I do many sessions with some of my top black belts. Some of the
people they train want to compete in the K1 Grand Prix, the pinacle of stand
up fighting. There are none better. These types of sessions are my favorites.
I love helping fighters advance. The'yre technical skills and inner self
assurance.I teach what most talk about only. Keep posted on the Joe Lewis
Black Belt directory web site.
11. question - fitness/training:
I know you're on the road quite a bit with
intense seminar training sessions, what do you do personally to keep in the
phenomenal shape you're in? And what do think about aerobic fitness and
weight training?
Joe Lewis:
with weights I suggest performance lifting. not power or
bodybuilding. You need cardio as a must. In my opinion most of the aerobic
workouts are garbage. It does little to shape/strengthen your muscles,
increase bone minerl density or provide any useful skills. I believe there's
nothing better than hitting the heavy bag for power and striking skills and
the advantages of the resistance training. For speed there's nothing better
than a pre double end bag for speed timing footwork and transisting fotwork
and to back it up with broken field or distance running and on occasion
strength training is a must Nothig shapes muscles better or quicker than
weight training. Lift weights and kick box to lok and feel good..Our motto is
`The best workout on the planet' is out trademarked logo!
12. question - Wing Chun/JKD:
Welcome to the forum Joe, what do you think about the sort of JKD and Wing
Chun that it thaught in the schools today?
Will it be any good in real combat?
And is it the way bruce meant it to be? thanks,
Frans from the Netherlands.
Joe Lewis:
In the real world a true military will constantly upgrade their
weapons. If not you will become weak. Has Bruce Lee continued to develop JKD
in the last 27 years I'm sire his innovations would exceed your wildest
imagination. A fighting style like WC that was from 100's of years ago
reminds me of somebody trying to perfect the bow and arrow. If the style
becomes too formalized, the greatest tactic in warfare called surprise attack
would dominate your style regardless of youe preparation. I remind you, your
body comes first.The man makes the style, not vice versa.
13. question:
Greetings Mr. Lewis! How well would Bruce Lee have done in
competition? Would he have been a tough opponent for you? Please be sincere.
Many Thanks! Hector Martinez (USA)
Joe Lewis:
Asking me about this or what he could have been is like asking how
good an actor Tyson could be. ETD remains the highest grossing in history.
That's accolades to last 10 lifetimes. Don't make him more immortal than he
was. He's the leading candidate for being the greatest martial artist of all
time. That doesn't make you a fighter. If you want to fight then you fight
some amateur fights, then somebody like Angelo Dundee will invite you to his
camp. Being a martial artist doesn't automatically make you an actor, and
vice versa.
14. question: what is the single most important attribute that a fighter must
possess to be successful in combat ?
Joe Lewis:
His attitude is a composite of 5-6 factors. He must focus in the
present tense,have a game plan he's convinced will work, he must react
decisively before his or after the opponents trigger squeeze. his
philosophical tenets must be in place, whereby his intent is to show his
opponent he has no defense, but is theirs to test his offense, not the
oppnents. He must have an inner assurance that when is against him he knows
to keep his position strong and have the will to continue. these are some of
the factors of attitude
15. question:
Joe.. what are your feelings after all these years of fighting
and training - of Bruce approaching opponents with his strong side forward...
I still fight that way most of the time even though my friend and Sensei for
almost 10 years Bob Mauro, a champion kickboxer himself and trainer of 5
world champions, never felt the way bruce did...
Joe Lewis:
I don't believe in this concept. I can k.o. with either hand or
foot. power side forward implies one side is weak. Your lead side is for
speed and to blind your foe. you can use it to locate the target as well. The
military finds the target then annihilates it. the rear hand/leg are primary
power weapons/if the power side really worked than why hasn't a top fighter
or trainer endorsed this. Reason is if you practice these theories,you
realize they don't work. You can't drop the atom without locating your target
or or preventing the foe from detecting your approach. So the rule of thumb
is to locate, blind then you hit. Smart fighters can't be hit first. They're
too quick and sharp.
