I think a lot of the criticism of Van Damme comes down to jealousy. Lets face it, he had the looks, body and his kicks are probably more famous than any other movie star. I mean everyone was saying 'who's the next Bruce Lee', then it was 'who's the next Van Damme'. Do I think he was the best fighter in the world, not at all, but damn man you can tell he's good by the way he moves. And even today as he get older, he's still in great shape and seems to be a pretty decent human. He's honest about his past when he went of the rails and he came back from it. He's always been one of the guys who I tried to emulate when training, it was always 'we got to get that flexibility, 'I've got to kick like that'. It doesn't matter to me if he has a fantastic fight record, he influenced probably millions of people to take up martial arts and weights, and that is better than being the greatest fighter in the world.
Nah this is so wrong bro.. look at a guy like dk yoo for example, he moves like a skilled striker and incorporates master level mastery of form when punching statically, but under pressure it all crumbled in his recent fight. Van damme may be able to move like that but so can a ballerina, or a gymnast or anyone flexible enough to do so. But to put it all together in a fight is a whole different story
Off the subject of him actually fighting, one of my friends met JCVD in the 1990's as a kid and said that was the one of the best experiences of his life. He got autographs, they talked, and he asked my friends dad what he for a living. My friend said he wanted to be a fighter like him when he grew up, and JCVD told him to go for it and fight/train hard. In a few days, my friend will turn 40 and he still tells that story.
When i got back from Afghanistan, some friends and me went to Vegas. We ran into jvcd at a casino, and literally had a hangover movie like time with him. Great guy, and humble at that phase of his life (2003).
Van Damme's real name is Van Vaerenberg and I have seen his name in the results of Karate (Points fighting type) tournaments in old (Dutch) martial arts magazines so he did compete. Also I have met his former trainer Serge Goetz.
He never fought world ranked fighters! Point karate is not same as American kickboxing and it’s explained in this video . Point knockout not a Tyson knockout lol
@@jittboy1 Nobody says its the same, what I am saying is his martial arts achievements are respectable. Idont need a video to explain anything because I have fought all systems including points, continuous and full as well as K1 and Muaythai.
@@suchasin as amateur possibly I have 3 black belts also shaolin, jeet Kune and akido as well I have rolled with kimbo Fabre brown as well I think he was hyped up a little as well . For me not so much I don’t think he is that good. As the video shows he got kicked in the head by a nobody that should tell you something. That has never happened to me just saying
@@jittboy1 he got kicked TO the head not IN the head by somebody because he let him. I respect his skillset or at least what he has shown us in film as I respect everyone who has dedicated his life to martial arts.
JCVD has beautiful kicks and I've always admired it. His Instructor in most of the documentaries made it clear that JCVD competed in Martial Art and could've gone far however he prefered to act in movies and it turned out to be great for all the fans who grew up watching him. Stay healthy Viking Samurai ✊🏼
@@shiz19 What "kickboxing" do you refer to, the only video of him doing anything was from 1979, from what was shown he was the one getting his ass kicked but ended up raising the trophy.
He is my hero too. The man inspired a whole generation of UFC champions, kickboxing champions, stunt performers, martial arts action stars, etc. I think the significance of JCVD was not that he had world class fighting skills but what he represented on the screen.
Man Van Damme is the real deal. He knows how to train, he's a great teacher. A league of his own. The trouble is, there are and always have been so many associations, federations, unions etc.the European circuit back in the day and American circuit totally different. But research shows, he was and is the man.
Not a league of his own pal, Van Damme has limits! He's stuff in the deliveries of his kicks!! If the Bengay isn't around, he's keeping his feet on the ground
I only have to see what he could do in movies so i consider Van Damme a legit actor and martial artist,if he is a fighter that's another question. Martial arts were designed for war but there are specialties. You can train for competition fights,for war or self defense. Any one of those specialties can prepare you to act in action movies. People need to understand movies are not real but the skills of the people who are in movies are or they wouldn't be able to perform as action stars. Now if i have to compare Van Damme to other actions stars like Jackie Chan for example who jump around like monkeys and block every attacks but nodody gets killed i would have to say i would rather watch Van Damme because it seems more realistic and cool. But this is my preference,other people can disagree. But the skills of Van Damme or Jackie or any other action star of those golden years are real and i have no doubt of that.
but let’s be honest, even if he spar Chuck Norris. Both Chuck and Van Damme were mainly doing point sparring as what was mentioned in the video. Just his speeds are nowhere the legends like Don, Benny, Bill Wallace, Sugar Foot, Blinky and Joe Lewis. Chuck was an average Tangsoodo martial artist. People praise him because of his famous scene with Bruce Lee. Just he’s not good. He’s only good at kicking but punching nope. You need to be able to box and kick together. If you seen the Wheels on Meals movie that showed Jackie Chan fight scene with Benny, now that is a heck of a fight! They actually hit each other using full contact. Even Benny said himself Jackie wanted to get hit hard so they were going full blast on each other for real. That’s how Hong Kong movies are like. Yuen Biao had a scene with Bill Wallace. Same thing, he wanted Bill to literally fight him for real. Nothing is scripted in these movies. They didn’t even want to wear paddings. Now can JVCD pull this off? Heck no! Brad Allen that just passed away is an amazing fighter. You could see both him and Jackie were doing full contact for real. Why? Because that’s how Jackie wanted to be. JVCD lack boxing skills and he’s way too linear straightforward. He’s way overhyped. Yes he’s only been in point sparring but not full contact fight. Big difference. Even if they never been in rings. I wouldn’t hold against them because both Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao actually did full contact fight with these legend fighters and that tells you a lot. Also, let’s talk about Donnie Yen in Ipman 3 fight scene with Mike Tyson. That wasn’t even scripted. Donnie actually blocked Tyson’s hook with his Elbow and broke his pinky knuckle and the film had to be stopped. Donnie wanted Tyson to go full on with him according to Tyson’s interview. Tyson even asked him are you sure but Tyson praised Donnie’s skills and said he’s a legit fighter. You see? It just tells you that they’re humble. JCVD is a womanizer. He sexually molest women and harass them. He used drugs from fame. Just not a martial arts person I look up to. He’s definitely can kick but does the same spinning back kick or jump split kick but without using hands, he’s done for.
Throwing my 2 cents. I am french. Back in the 80's/ early 90's, you would mainly have 3 different styles of fighting options if you were not doing Judo or Boxing: Karate (points-based, where heavy hits were prohibited), Full-Contact (use of kicks and punches, hitting the opponent only ABOVE the waist. Elbows, and knees could not be used), and, as mentioned in the video, "American Boxing", Boxe Américaine, which allowed to kick and punch anywhere. Elbows and knees were not authorized but you could do spin punches!!). The only sport back then that would allow you to use elbow, knees, punches and kicks, on any part of the body, was Muay Thai, but it was really hard to find a club outside larger cities. From 1993 to 1997, while a student, I was in a "Full-Contact" club, and when inter clubs fights were organized, I could be registered for Full Contact fights on a weekend, and Kickboxing the next one. The same federation was managing both. The term "Kickboxing" was not really used and I remember my coaches saying it was just the American name for "boxe americaine". But I realized in 1997, when an exchange student in the US, that the rules were different. It was also the year I discovered the first Ultimate Fighting events in Native American reserves' casinos ;-). Still , in the early 90's we all knew JCVD and knew he was 100% legit...
@@joebostetter5849 there is the us kickboxing and the japanese kickboxing created around the 60s and based on the muy thai. Japan rename it, since any thai reference was prohibed. Savate is a diffèrent martial art from the xix century.
Best screen fighter of all time? A bit of a stretch when you have a ton of guys with better fight scenes. Scott Akins, Jackie Chan, yuen biao, Donnie yen, billy Chou, dick wei, Michael Kai white, Matt Mullins, Cynthia Rothrock, Mark dacoscos, Philip Rhree, Brandon Lee, Bruce Lee, Shannon Lee, sammo hung, Gary Daniels, lateef crowder, marko zorro, Tiger Chen, Tony jaa, Dan chapong, yushiki kurata, moon lee, Eric Jacobus, Dennis ruel, James lew, ikko wais, benny the Jet urquidez.... etc I could go on. If you think JCVD is the best screen fighter... you haven’t watched that much action movies. 😂
Van Damme was European Middleweight Karate champion and had a 44-4 fight record in semi-contact karate and an 18-1 (18 k.o) record in kickboxing. His only loss in kickboxing was by D.Q. Also,remember that kickboxing in the 70's wasn't like kickboxing is today.If you watch early kickboxing matches,even Bill 'Superfoot' wallace fought 'kickboxing' on the mat sometimes and not in a ring.That was when full contact karate was transitioning into kickboxing. He's a legit martial artist.If people can't see that,they're blind.
I have personally trained with JCVD, a couple hours of informal instruction backside of an event...I thought I knew how to fight and handle myself, and JCVD taught me some lessons I'll never forget, mostly by terribly humilating me in front of the other students before helping me up off the ground, kissing me on both cheeks, and explaining in simple language exactly what he just did to me, and then a slightly different technique better suiting my size/strength. He's pretty weird, and can come off as rude or curt to some people, but it's just his intensity and focus combined with unfamiliar (to most Americans) European manners and custom
@@dakken74 blocking anything like this will get your hurt very badly. You have to keep your arm close to your body to keep your arm from coming back and hitting you in the head.
Van Damme is a badass fighter with a great agility, flexibility and skills. His fighting record is also quite impressive - 18 wins in kickboxing (and all of 18 wins was via knockout, and only 1 fight was a loss) isn't a joke!
Dude, In the 70’s JCVD competed in the Euro Karate scene in Light contact & Semi-contact…. , which was is nowhere near the standard of today. Yeah he was passionate & took part in a very benign non-aggressive style of karate and then dabbled in kickboxing. I’m pretty sure his opponents in kickboxing where of a very low standard. So yeah JCVD was definitely NOT a baddass ring fighter.
Personally, as a martial artist, I respect the artist who doesn't have to go out and prove himself to others. I watch Van Damme move, and it is undeniable the man has martial arts talent and is physically gifted. I don't need to see a fight record to recognize this. In his prime, that man could whoop a lot of ass. Guaranteed.
Unfortunately today's meta is 'if he doesn't have a record in UFC / K1 then he isn't a fighter' and I think it's too toxic and illogical. As you said it well, he and a lot of other fighters have the moves, the talents and the looks of a great fighter, who cares if they have a record that's recognized today but wasn't even a thing back then.
On Wikipedia is his fight record in the ring with names, dates and all. Somebody made this up? I don't think so. Besides a whole lot of semi contact karate tournaments he did kickboxing and fought in the ring about 20 times and only lost once.
Thank you for that comment. Not every martial artist needs to enter tournaments which are primarily for the entertainment of strangers just like not every talented ARTIST needs to display their work in a gallery, they might be a professional Surgeon that just likes painting... I was told at my start "If you are not willing to protect the weak from the evil strong, I will NOT train you" It's not all about the ring when the world in itself is an arena
The focus of htis video is JCVD 's "fight record"....whether or not it was all "Pt-fighting" or if there was actual "Kick-boxing' IN other videos someone said in Europe they had to call JCVD's "{t fighting" "Kickboxing" due to copyright issues in Europe. Shrug. Some people are interested. His fans and MA film fans. Does it really matter in the end if you enjoyed his films? No. They're "entertainment". Jackie Chan never competed nor did Brcue Lee. Nor did Segal. THough having said t hat it IS ODD there is no videos on YOuTube showing any of JCVD's "full-contact matches"....only I think one b/w of him in a clearly "Pt fighting (controlled)" fight. Would there not be lots of photos? More film clips?? Why would the Euro "Fighting league" not have televised the fights? Or had journallists there?? If we just do a Y ouTube search for Bill Wallace 's kickboxing fights there are many to be found. Same for Benny Uriquedez....though in all fairness....there aren't many potos of Chuck Norris' fights...One of two with Joe Lewis....and just one b/w video of Joe Lewis ....perhaps MA was so unpopular back then....the broadcasting stations didnt think it was worth their time to cover these matches... making it harder to dig up clips...thus the lack of on TH-cam?? Did JCVD have legit MA skills? Clearly yes. Easily seen in various interviews he did and in his films even th ough he did use "flashy moves" for entertainment sake. Not easy to get hte air he got doing his "propellar kick"...which his daugher Bree...can do too.. Had JACD been a "Pro kickboxer" in the PKA....even better...for his fans. A PLUS on his "resume"....but not essential to be a MA movie star... Interesting how lots of legit world kick boxing champions appeared in MA films but never became MA film stars (e.g. Bill Wallace and Benny Urquidez).. Not something they wanted I guess.
No he was not a “pro kickboxer” as Don Wilson puts it, no one is disputing that, but he did compete in many karate competitions and he is a genuine shotokan black belt, for anyone to dispute that is just ridiculous
@@Docinaplane that wasn’t point karate. That was full contact karate referred to as the “blood and guts era” where you actually hit each other at “full contact” that’s not point tag. That’s was basically “kickboxing” before the gloves. That didnt exist in Europe. Especially by the time JCVD was competing. They already had PKA kickboxing by then. And Savate was already a thing in France too. So bad analogy. 😂
@@dardrex777 I never said it was actual fighting or combat, people question that he is a actual martial artist and competitor, getting into fights doesn’t make you a martial artist, any asshole can get into a fight, that’s not what being a martial artist is about
You could tell that JCVD knew how to handle himself in a fight on the movies. His moves were calculated and well placed and looked natural. Steve McDojo belly Segal on the other hand was mess with his moves. Always took on dudes who looked like they just walked out of a all you can eat buffet puffing a cigar. For Segal to even attempt to call Van Damme’ a phony is the most absurd thing I’ve heard in a long time.
I don't get all the hate toward Van Damme unless it's because he became an easy target. He got himself cleaned up and sorted his life out from where he was, he deserves credit and respect for that. Don't know how well he'd fare, but it can't be disputed that unlike a lot of action stars he does have a genuine fight record. Nothing but respect to the people who step on the mat/into a ring/cage to try their skill. Another good vid, buddy.
Don Wilson saying anything negative about van damme is just the product of envy. Wilson is highly overrated as a fighter and he was pretty awful as an action star. no agility or grace in his movements and absolutely no charisma as an actor.
@@dassolosyndikat5113 Dennis Alexio in his prime, Jerry Trimble, or Rick Roufus would have destroyed Wilson. There is no doubt in my mind that Van Damme would have had no trouble beating him either.
@@Liquidcadmus Some serious Don Wilson haters in here. You don't know anything about him haha if you did you'd know Wilson fought and beat a "prime" Dennis Alexio. Research is your friend.
@@williamwest7008 Who's Dennis Alexio??? People like Wilson wouldn't last 5min with a Muay Thai champ, even if the Thai guy was in a lighter weight class. People like Wilson could not make it in a boxing ring or in an octogon.
@@kaihuang4970 1. You couldn't google any of this crap you're talking? 2. Dennis Alexio is only one of the greatest kickboxers of all time 3. Don Wilson fought thai fighters under full muay thai rules which included elbows and he did great, look it up 4. As previously stated you people know nothing about Wilson.
In 1980, I was fighting out of a UFAF Tang Soo Do studio (Norris was president) and we went to the Ed Parker Invitational in Spokane which was technically a point tournament but, I can tell you first hand that once we got past the first few rounds, the refs were letting the contact fly with no "excessive contact" penalties, whatsoever. In the early rounds, there are a lot of beginners and people without a lot of tournament experience and they want to protect those people. But, once they got "weeded out," it was another story. When the advanced players were going at it, you'd hear the slaps and thumps, no problem.
Not really. Any person could duck or grab his leg. He kicks so slow and awkward. Take anyone with a high school wrestling background and he’d end up on his head. Happens to karate guys that actually have fought 😂
You should of left the part where MJW also said right after that “I beat up 5 people at the same time” lol... great interview and makes total sense, remember I told you when we discussed this, that it wasn’t in a ring with boxing gloves, cuz well the evidence shows karate images only... makes total sense...
I did tae kwon do in the late 80s through to the 90s and although it was point fighting each tournament there would always be some guy getting kicked out of the fighting area through chairs. Point fighting maybe frowned upon but look at how well Stephen "wonderboy" Thompson used it in MMA
Wonderboy is a legit fighter and Van Damme isn't and its mma and that's why Wonderboy is not a champion don't get me wrong Wonderboy is good but his ground game is not where it needs to be but Van Damme is a joke. Wonderboy also gets beat up in the standup not as much as he does on the ground. Like i said Wonderboy i have much respect for but Van Damme is not on his level at all.
@@DrunkSince1973 To say van damme us a joke is unfair from the record books he was well versed in his area of martial arts in the era he was from. I will point out this was before the popularity of mma which started around 1985 i believe in Japan. Before fully taking of in the early 90s. Yeah van damme as he is now would get destroyed but if he was young now in this era and trained in all the arts who knows what he may have become. Also wonderboy cannot have been that bad as he fought for the title twice i think ....he suffered the exact same thing most fighters do the game passed him by and he hasn't evolved.
@@alroygardner5436 Wonderboy is a warrior no doubt but for being a great striker he just let Tyron stand around and not make Tryon work when Tyron only had the right hand. Wonderboy is a great guy and no doubt should have won the belt. Then he would have lost it to Usman anyway but he should have tasted gold. You can make up all these different scenarios of what Van Damme would have become but from what i seen his mentality alone he would have never made it. He had manic depression and he was a cokehead later in his 30's. The guy would have gotten his face smashed in. Mickey Rourke went from acting to boxing and got his face rearranged. Van Damme is an actor who had training no more no less.
I remember that time when Sly Stallone was having a party and said JCVD was going after Steven Segal for all his crap talking against him...Sly said tough guy Segal wanted noooooo part of JCVD and ran away
Thanks Viking Samurai for This JCVD legitimate fighting records video. As one Big JCVD fan to another, We knew in our Hearts that JCVD is the Real Deal. There's Always plp that will Disagree and that's fine, but The Evidence is All there! Thanks for Bey Logan & Lambert for clearing things up .
The Evidence is all there? Really? As in film footage or even magazine or newspaper articles, maybe photographic evidence? Sure, there's a few seconds of footage of JCVD competing in point karate tournaments, but as for any full-contact competition at all, what actual evidence is there? Not some unconfirmed "record" someone put together on the internet, but actual evidence. There's footage of Chuck Norris, Joe Lewis, Benny Urquidez, hell, even Dolph Lundgren competing, full matches, some of them full-contact, going all the way back to the 1960s, but with Jean Claude, not so much. I can appreciate the effort put into this video, but it still doesn't present anything that could pass for real evidence.
@@BRUCEJJ66 Well in the States everything gets Pumped up . Well not over here. Belgium had the best Judoka's in the 70s 80s from middle weight to havy weights Female and Male, But a fight was seldom broadcasted on TV exept the Olympics
I am a JCVD fan, spent years watching his films, amazing, then to hear his record was fake, I did not believe it, but that seed of doubt had been planted, I was gutted, JCVD was, well is, an inspiration in the martial arts industry certainly was for me, bit of a hero in a strange way. Basically I am saying a massive thank you for the resrsrch to finally put this to rest. 💯👌
JCVD is a legend and he's a big reason why I started training martial arts. My favorite action star hands down. I doubt we'll ever get anything close to him again.
Thanks for a great video and for getting to the bottom of this controversial topic. It was pretty much as I thought it would be, hopefully people ease up on him a little now. Jean Claude is still the best movie martial artist in my mind, a true originator!
Well he was never a world class fighter like Don Wilson. He competed on a semi-professional level, was pretty successful, but decided to do movies instead of building a fighting legacy. End of story. But thanks for the clarification on the French-American-Boxing translation issue. That was new to me.
Millions of people watching this video, liking, commenting ..just because of one name JC Van Damme... All other so-called champions of their own eras and times got a chance to get some role in movies ....become famous ...to be inviewed today....just because of one name ...JCVD... Hats off to Him...many joined SFs, many learnt Karate, kick boxing.... Because of JCVD ...Offcourse after Bruce Lee... Respect and love for him.. was, is and always will be.
One of my friends was telling me years ago in the Fall of 1994 that he met Jean Claude Van Damme in Pittsburgh,Pennsylvania and they had drinks at a bar and Van Damme told him he was filming an action movie titled Sudden Death!! I didnt believe him, but in the summer of 1995 they showed promotion of it (Sudden Death) coming soon to theaters in December 1995, so he was telling the truth!!
JCVD style is French Kick Boxing, rightfully called ("Savate"). "Savate, also known as boxe française, savate boxing, French boxing or French footfighting, is a French kickboxing combat sport that uses the hands and feet as weapons combining elements of English boxing with graceful kicking techniques"
For me, as a martial arts movie fan, the only important thing is if the actor can do something that looks good on camera and makes me wanna watch him in the story. I like quite a few Van Damme movies but none of Don Wilson.
waaaay better movies how i know because ive never seen a don wilson movie because they're worthless and a waste of time i know without even watching them
Jean Claude Van Damme is clearly legitimate. You can see from his movements that he is a very competent martial artist. Had he chosen to pursue that route im certain he would have done well for himself. What takes the piss out of me is the irrational dislike and disparaging of the man by others in the industry. I expect nothing less from social media keyboard warriors. They're generally uninspired mediocre malcontents who have varying issues. But from within the industry I would think that there was some form of mutual respect for a peer. I guess I was sadly mistaken.
Thanks for proving what I already knew to be true that Jean Claude van Damme is a real martial artist with an actual fighting record those specialised kicks on the screen I've not seen ANYONE else do them
@VAN DAMME THE BEST yeah but van bakker is more of a dick than a male porn star uses and more of a prick than a steroid injection weightlifting champion
I met Van Damme on two occasions. On both he was very down to earth and seemed a bit flamboyant but nothing like the weirdo seagal whom I've also met and...yeah..the second time I spoke to JCVD was a quiet relaxed situation where about 10 of us were talking about this new thing ( ultimate fighting championship ) he was quick to say that he wouldn't fair well in the cage because he's an actor not an athlete and that his tournament fights were structured VERY differently somewhere between point sparing and "full contact" ( he made quotations with his hands ) he seemed humble, genuine,...honestly alittle sad. In any case I enjoyed many of his movies.
thanks forthat information, right there he himself is explaining that he was simply a point stop karate guy not a full contact kickboxer or mma that level of competingb is out of his league, im glad he was honest and humble enougth to admit this. clearly a decent gent.
These van Damme fights were probably like PKA events. How organized was kickboxing as we know it today during the 70s? I'm under the impression that many different promotions had different rulesets.
A lot of people talk a lot of b.s. about Van Damme. All they think about is ballet dancer and addict. Van Damme's the man. He deserves a lot more credit than people give him. Only one way to find out. Get Van Damme to do an interview.
@@wantutosigh1117 let's make it viral or trending. Whatever you call it. Let's get Van Damme's attention. #VikingSamurainterview. Let's go Viking Samurai fam.
U got sonny from lionheart.. thats his name right.. lol. I he sounds like the character he played.. meaning he sounds pretty close to real.. he remind me of the late bill paxton. Enjoying every single video.
I was competing in full-contact, point karate tournaments in the 90's here in the USA. Literally anyone could be a champion. We used to compete against 3-5 people in a tournament so you could rack up a record pretty fast. I was a champion in several local tournaments that are basically meaningless today lol. I don't even think they kept any sort of record for them. We got trophies but that was it. IMO, it doesn't much matter what VanDamme's actual record was because he obviously has talent and training and he inspired so many people to practice the arts.
I believe those Karate tournaments during Van Damme's fighting days looked more like what you see in Karate Combat today,then the kind of tournament point style fighting you see in wkf karate tournaments,where you can get disqualified if you knock your opponent out
Loved his style and grace. So glad to see that he's legit. Watched the vedio hoping not to see he was fake. So much these days are so many people aren't who they say they are. What a good feeling to admire some one real.
Really? People like Seagal and Dux accusing him of lying lol Regardless of JCVD actual record, you can tell he’s legit by the way he throws those kicks To this day I haven’t seen anybody throw kicks with that solid form and accuracy
Exactly, to me Dux and Segal talking shit means he is legit, I take their words to mean the opposite of whatever they say. Don the Dragon can talk shit about pretty much anyone in the film industry, hell, he could probably talk shit to most fighters too. That guy is legit and I can see why he might think it's not fair Van Damme and other even less legit fighters had more success than he. But you gotta know the looks count for a lot in the movies, and Van Damme had the looks.
@@DrunkSince1973 No one said anything about world champion. Crediting his martial arts skills combined with the fight record we have is simply a counter arguement to anyone saying he is an actor and not a fighter, he trained, sparred, and has proof of competitive level fights. Just because he isnt involved in relevant competitions of todays standards doesnt mean he isnt/wasnt a fighter...
Yeah lol that gave me a chuckle. Frank Dux has the absolute most wild "world records" and yet there still hasnt been proof of the Kumite, nor has he ever demonstrated any of his feats- 72mph kick, and millisecond punch. Steven Segall is another story. I never looked much into him but find it funny that as much as he "consults" mma fighters, we never see his techniques or training really credited or showcased from the fighters he trains.
I did my own research and found majority of these fighters on JCVD fight record and they all check out. Some dont have a bio online but the ones that do all show that JCVD beat them all.
I live in the Netherlands, here you have kickboxing fights literally every weekend, small not some commercial, not some amateur of course, professional fighters, so I can believe that the JCVD had normal professional fights, you can see from the history that they were all mostly in Belgium, that's why there are no records.
I never really cared if a fighter was "legit" when I was a kid watching these 80s martial arts movies and enjoying them a lot. The important part for an actor is if they can perform and look good on film. You know what happens when you got an actor that isn't trained...you get a bunch of messy fast edits to give the illusion of hand-to-hand combat. Heck, Keanu Reaves isn't a real lift master assassin but he does a great John Wick.
@@alexferrana3979 I would actually say it doesn't help that much unless the fight choreography is grounded in reality. If I was to really point out something to help a martial artist to star in movies....it'll be acting lessons. ^_^
At 17 in 1989 I went to a Bruce Lee convention in Liverpool and met and chatted with Bey Logan. I think I asked him about what his thoughts were on the amount of training BL received from William Cheung. He’s kind of a wealth of knowledge. He was writing for Combat magazine and covered a bunch of weird ‘Kung fu’ arguments in those years between Southern Mantis Schools in London. ( I was witness to some of that ) Weird time, Kung Fu in London in late 80’s-90’s.
I was a teen in the mid to late 80's in London and remember the arguments between practitioners of modified Wing Chun and traditional. I also remember William Cheung getting challenged while he was teaching a workshop in Germany!?
While you looked at his own listing of fights and saying it's legit. Is it possible to contact some of the people he fought or someone from the so of the fight? I am not sure why we are chasing opinions rather than chasing down folks that can validate Vandamme's record. I am a fan of Vandamm, and don't care if he was a fighter or not, but am tired of this controversy, so why not chase down people who were directly involved in his fights?
The one American he fought has talked about it and he says dropped Van Damme with a left hook and Van Damme got up and KO'd him with a kick. That sounds as full contact as it gets. Actually sounds more like kickboxing than karate.
is JCVD aware of this channel ? This is some really in-dept stuff right here. Maybe one day you can get him in person, it will be much more satisfying than getting Dux.
I lost interest in point sparring when I saw how often guys who couldn't really fight would win against guys they couldn't beat on the street. But that's not always the case. However, now I just think getting into fist fights as an adult is stupid lol
I know! I've had to break it down for numerous people who act like it's freeze-tag or something. If it's so easy, how come everyone isn't doing it? The answer is: you get hurt. It doesn't matter that it's not the same as a cage match, it doesn't have to be. Just like Judo matches don't have to be, and wrestling matches don't have to be.
Georges "Rush" St. Pierre credited karate point fighting with his ability to time his opponents and "rush" in to take them down. Everyone always credited his wrestling for his takedowns but he would correct them and say it was his karate and point fighting that made him so good at it.
@@Ehrle6969 And yet he has the nerve to call himself a fighter while straight up lying and saying that JCVD is not! What a ridiculous, absurd man. He should be ashamed of himself!
@@MatrixCobretti yea i know mjw is jelouse i mean all his movies r flops except spawn. Nobody give a damn bout him in holywood or in the fightingverse so he downtalk ppl like segeal. So they get only attention on this way. Otherwise noone would talk bout seagal or mjw. And van damme always spoke nice bout them niggas
@@Ehrle6969 Actually Spawn was a flop too, that's why it didn't become a franchise like it was designed to be. It only made $54M on a $45M budget. MJW just needs to shut up about Bruce Lee, JCVD, and Seagal. If he ever disrespects Chuck Norris I'll be done with him forever. If he would've stopped bragging and shown a little respect for his elders, he probably would've gotten farther like Scott Adkins. I think MJW is lazy and won't put in the work that all those other guys did.
If they really want to know if jcvd's fight record was legit then why don't ask the people he fought? I wanna hear what they say. This will clear all arguments.
There was an article in Black Belt magazine, which I still have, where Don Wilson challenged Van Damme to a $50,000 kickboxing match. Van Damme declined. My thinking is that Don, who struggled to get mainstream success, and was a kickboxing champion in 3 different weight classes, felt like Van Damme was undeservedly using a title he didn't have. I do believe he fought in point Karate, similar to what was popular in the 1960s stateside. But not the kickboxing that were used to seeing. Not hating on Van Damme. I do believe he can fight. But it wasn't kickboxing that he fought in.
In a fight anyone/everyone is dangerous and has a chance to win. JCVD would most probably lose, ws risks a d consequences were too high for him. Just my analysis.
@@williamwest7008 Yes, I believe he was afraid. If he wasn't why didn't he go for it? Most people would assume he was the best/toughest fighter going around. Which is definitely not true. His athleticism, flexibility, and leg control are amazing, and that portrayed him to the audience to be better than what he really is. I like the bloke and his movies, I'm not hating, just my analysis.
@@marvinjordan9987 I completely agree with you, when we share these opinions we get accused of being haters. We can be fans and objective at the same time.
I once met a guy that had won the world championship in Taekwondo. It was a week after the tournament and his eye was still swollen shut. That is some rough point fighting!!
Pretty much what the person that said that he doesn't need to see a record or any of the sort about what a martial art or artist is and what they represent Jean-Claude Van Damme right after a Bruce Lee is my favorite second fighter because his kicks were fluid he was the real deal he had spectacular kicking abilities and he had awesome hang time in the air I believe that he was a real fighter he would not be put up there with Bruce Lee Chuck Norris Jet Li Jackie Chan and all the rest of the guys up there for no reason people may sit there and try to duplicate him and try to say that he is nothing he's not a fighter in my eyes he always and forever will be a spectacular martial artist and he definitely deserves to be up there with the rest of the guys hands down
I searched about all top US kickboxers of late 70s and early and late 80s.People call Don Wilson,Benny Urquidez and some others name as great.If you see their opponents name of their full contact kickboxing fights,almost 90 percent unknown fighters and they fought very few known names in their career.I heard there were some full contact kickboxer in 80s were truck drivers.Van Damme came once US and defeated a low profile US kickboxer.He had all the skills and he could participate in so called tough US competitions if he wanted that time and I am sure this point karate fighter(Van Damme) won most of the fights.But his passion was different and joined acting.He had full potential to beat US champion kickboxer of that time if he trained and his ambition was to become a movie star.
It's funny. Back when I was a kid. We had discussions in school about who would win in a fight out of the actors. Back then, everyone said that jcvd was the fraud, and Seagal was the legit dude. Boy, we were all wrong lol
@@adambachmann2633 we were like 7 or 8 then. Jcvd was doing flashy moves while seagal was straight murdering people. Much darker back then so as kids, we thought he was just that much of a k!ller.
Kickboxing in France is also called savate boxe française, savate boxing, French boxing or French footfighting, is a French kickboxing combat sport that uses the hands and feet as weapons combining elements of English boxing with graceful kicking techniques. There is a good chance that Van Damme knew that style also
Another stellar vid. And I really like the fact that you went over the language barrier or mistranslation if you will. It’s a conversation I’ve had with many people trying to convince them that JCVD is legit.
There has been a lot of discussions over the years regarding Van Damme's fight career. First of all it doesn't matter to me as long as the guy has the moves for the camera (Like Jackie or Jet for exemple). If you know/practise martial arts then you know that you only use 15-20% of what you learn in a fight competition so having just the fight moves in a movie would be quite boring and not very exciting. What we want to see in movies are more techniques, something that's closer to martial arts demonstration so more "flashy" techniques are displayed etc... Anyway, There was a french TV show back in the 90's to discuss martial arts and obviously Van Damme was brought up. A martial arts champion intervened and revealed that Van Damme beat a young fighter who later became champion so I guess he had to be a solid fighter. Any martial artist can easily tell you that Van Damme has got the moves and uses great techniques and leg control. Wether he used his knowledge to win a competition shouldn't matter. Like you said Viking, the guy doesn't fake his moves. Gotta Love Van Damme for all the classics he brought us and for promoting martial arts around the world. Would there be the UFC if Van Damme didn't make Bloodsport? Would Hong Kong cinema had been to hollywood? Would we have had the 90's kickboxing movie craze? Would all the many martial arts stars that followed Van Damme's path had a career? Think about all the things that Van Damme brought us.
You know, I never had a doubt about Jean Claude. I mean, my favorite actor, Jackie Chan didn't fight in the ring and it didn't make any difference to me.
I think a lot of the criticism of Van Damme comes down to jealousy. Lets face it, he had the looks, body and his kicks are probably more famous than any other movie star. I mean everyone was saying 'who's the next Bruce Lee', then it was 'who's the next Van Damme'. Do I think he was the best fighter in the world, not at all, but damn man you can tell he's good by the way he moves. And even today as he get older, he's still in great shape and seems to be a pretty decent human. He's honest about his past when he went of the rails and he came back from it. He's always been one of the guys who I tried to emulate when training, it was always 'we got to get that flexibility, 'I've got to kick like that'. It doesn't matter to me if he has a fantastic fight record, he influenced probably millions of people to take up martial arts and weights, and that is better than being the greatest fighter in the world.
Only thing Segal ever influenced anyone to pick up was a 6er and a bakers dozen
Those kicks were his taekwondo skills in action.
Nah this is so wrong bro.. look at a guy like dk yoo for example, he moves like a skilled striker and incorporates master level mastery of form when punching statically, but under pressure it all crumbled in his recent fight. Van damme may be able to move like that but so can a ballerina, or a gymnast or anyone flexible enough to do so. But to put it all together in a fight is a whole different story
@@somebodysson227 Except Van Damme did have real fights unlike Steven Seagal projecting on Van Damme..
@@edstar83 bro we’re talking about actual skill. Regardless of what segal said, van damme isn’t a fighter. Neither of them are
Off the subject of him actually fighting, one of my friends met JCVD in the 1990's as a kid and said that was the one of the best experiences of his life. He got autographs, they talked, and he asked my friends dad what he for a living. My friend said he wanted to be a fighter like him when he grew up, and JCVD told him to go for it and fight/train hard.
In a few days, my friend will turn 40 and he still tells that story.
I heard some storys that he is a real gentle and friendly guy, not a big mouthed brawler or a "Glam Star of Hollywood".
Awesome story!
@@drhkleinert8241 yes he s a soft gay guy and loves men and dogs
When i got back from Afghanistan, some friends and me went to Vegas. We ran into jvcd at a casino, and literally had a hangover movie like time with him. Great guy, and humble at that phase of his life (2003).
The best part about this is Dux accusing JCVD of faking his fight record lol
Glass houses 😂
All part of his con.
FIGHT TO SURVIVE - KUMITE KUMITE
🤣🤣🤣
@Jewishlady Runsyoutube Frank's fights were against girl scouts.
Van Damme's real name is Van Vaerenberg and I have seen his name in the results of Karate (Points fighting type) tournaments in old (Dutch) martial arts magazines so he did compete. Also I have met his former trainer Serge Goetz.
Cool. And yeah, he's from Belgium, also known as "The muscles from Brussels". 😁😁
He never fought world ranked fighters! Point karate is not same as American kickboxing and it’s explained in this video . Point knockout not a Tyson knockout lol
@@jittboy1 Nobody says its the same, what I am saying is his martial arts achievements are respectable. Idont need a video to explain anything because I have fought all systems including points, continuous and full as well as K1 and Muaythai.
@@suchasin as amateur possibly I have 3 black belts also shaolin, jeet
Kune and akido as well I have rolled with kimbo Fabre brown as well I think he was hyped up a little as well . For me not so much I don’t think he is that good. As the video shows he got kicked in the head by a nobody that should tell you something. That has never happened to me just saying
@@jittboy1 he got kicked TO the head not IN the head by somebody because he let him. I respect his skillset or at least what he has shown us in film as I respect everyone who has dedicated his life to martial arts.
JCVD has beautiful kicks and I've always admired it. His Instructor in most of the documentaries made it clear that JCVD competed in Martial Art and could've gone far however he prefered to act in movies and it turned out to be great for all the fans who grew up watching him. Stay healthy Viking Samurai ✊🏼
Indeed. I've seen that interview, as well. His instructor was actually pretty disappointed, too, for not pursuing a martial artist's career.
Pretty kicks is all it was, he was just a poser
@@noirnoble1181 Ke knocked out alot of his opponents in kickboxing, his record is available online. Check it out.
@@shiz19 Sorry, im not that naive, I don't fall for regurgitating & shady narratives.
@@shiz19 What "kickboxing" do you refer to, the only video of him doing anything was from 1979, from what was shown he was the one getting his ass kicked but ended up raising the trophy.
JCVD is still my Hero/inspiration in my Martial art journey ever since i was a kid and saw his movies… great video !
He is my hero too. The man inspired a whole generation of UFC champions, kickboxing champions, stunt performers, martial arts action stars, etc. I think the significance of JCVD was not that he had world class fighting skills but what he represented on the screen.
Man Van Damme is the real deal. He knows how to train, he's a great teacher. A league of his own. The trouble is, there are and always have been so many associations, federations, unions etc.the European circuit back in the day and American circuit totally different. But research shows, he was and is the man.
Not a league of his own pal, Van Damme has limits! He's stuff in the deliveries of his kicks!! If the Bengay isn't around, he's keeping his feet on the ground
@@jdjjdjd2667 Your ability to write a coherent sentence also seems to have its limits….
I only have to see what he could do in movies so i consider Van Damme a legit actor and martial artist,if he is a fighter that's another question.
Martial arts were designed for war but there are specialties.
You can train for competition fights,for war or self defense.
Any one of those specialties can prepare you to act in action movies.
People need to understand movies are not real but the skills of the people who are in movies are or they wouldn't be able to perform as action stars.
Now if i have to compare Van Damme to other actions stars like Jackie Chan for example who jump around like monkeys and block every attacks but nodody gets killed i would have to say i would rather watch Van Damme because it seems more realistic and cool.
But this is my preference,other people can disagree.
But the skills of Van Damme or Jackie or any other action star of those golden years are real and i have no doubt of that.
Main catch with Jan Claude Van Daum was the changing of his name.
but let’s be honest, even if he spar Chuck Norris. Both Chuck and Van Damme were mainly doing point sparring as what was mentioned in the video. Just his speeds are nowhere the legends like Don, Benny, Bill Wallace, Sugar Foot, Blinky and Joe Lewis. Chuck was an average Tangsoodo martial artist. People praise him because of his famous scene with Bruce Lee. Just he’s not good. He’s only good at kicking but punching nope. You need to be able to box and kick together. If you seen the Wheels on Meals movie that showed Jackie Chan fight scene with Benny, now that is a heck of a fight! They actually hit each other using full contact. Even Benny said himself Jackie wanted to get hit hard so they were going full blast on each other for real. That’s how Hong Kong movies are like. Yuen Biao had a scene with Bill Wallace. Same thing, he wanted Bill to literally fight him for real. Nothing is scripted in these movies. They didn’t even want to wear paddings. Now can JVCD pull this off? Heck no! Brad Allen that just passed away is an amazing fighter. You could see both him and Jackie were doing full contact for real. Why? Because that’s how Jackie wanted to be. JVCD lack boxing skills and he’s way too linear straightforward. He’s way overhyped. Yes he’s only been in point sparring but not full contact fight. Big difference. Even if they never been in rings. I wouldn’t hold against them because both Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao actually did full contact fight with these legend fighters and that tells you a lot.
Also, let’s talk about Donnie Yen in Ipman 3 fight scene with Mike Tyson. That wasn’t even scripted. Donnie actually blocked Tyson’s hook with his Elbow and broke his pinky knuckle and the film had to be stopped. Donnie wanted Tyson to go full on with him according to Tyson’s interview. Tyson even asked him are you sure but Tyson praised Donnie’s skills and said he’s a legit fighter. You see? It just tells you that they’re humble.
JCVD is a womanizer. He sexually molest women and harass them. He used drugs from fame. Just not a martial arts person I look up to. He’s definitely can kick but does the same spinning back kick or jump split kick but without using hands, he’s done for.
Throwing my 2 cents. I am french. Back in the 80's/ early 90's, you would mainly have 3 different styles of fighting options if you were not doing Judo or Boxing: Karate (points-based, where heavy hits were prohibited), Full-Contact (use of kicks and punches, hitting the opponent only ABOVE the waist. Elbows, and knees could not be used), and, as mentioned in the video, "American Boxing", Boxe Américaine, which allowed to kick and punch anywhere. Elbows and knees were not authorized but you could do spin punches!!). The only sport back then that would allow you to use elbow, knees, punches and kicks, on any part of the body, was Muay Thai, but it was really hard to find a club outside larger cities.
From 1993 to 1997, while a student, I was in a "Full-Contact" club, and when inter clubs fights were organized, I could be registered for Full Contact fights on a weekend, and Kickboxing the next one. The same federation was managing both. The term "Kickboxing" was not really used and I remember my coaches saying it was just the American name for "boxe americaine". But I realized in 1997, when an exchange student in the US, that the rules were different. It was also the year I discovered the first Ultimate Fighting events in Native American reserves' casinos ;-). Still , in the early 90's we all knew JCVD and knew he was 100% legit...
Thanks for sharing.
I thought Savate was a French form of kickboxing?
@@joebostetter5849 there is the us kickboxing and the japanese kickboxing created around the 60s and based on the muy thai. Japan rename it, since any thai reference was prohibed. Savate is a diffèrent martial art from the xix century.
This comment right here... right on the head! Awesome info and insight sir! Oss
@@joebostetter5849 It is. But not widely practiced. Not even in France.
Dux saying anyone lied about his fight experience is just hilarious.
Right, if Dux and Segal call you a liar for your fight record that is a solid endorsement to your skills.
Who cares if Bruce Springsteen is his shidoshi? All I know is that he is the best screen fighter of all time.
😂
Best screen fighter of all time? A bit of a stretch when you have a ton of guys with better fight scenes.
Scott Akins, Jackie Chan, yuen biao, Donnie yen, billy Chou, dick wei, Michael Kai white, Matt Mullins, Cynthia Rothrock, Mark dacoscos, Philip Rhree, Brandon Lee, Bruce Lee, Shannon Lee, sammo hung, Gary Daniels, lateef crowder, marko zorro, Tiger Chen, Tony jaa, Dan chapong, yushiki kurata, moon lee, Eric Jacobus, Dennis ruel, James lew, ikko wais, benny the Jet urquidez.... etc I could go on. If you think JCVD is the best screen fighter... you haven’t watched that much action movies. 😂
Are you serious best sfreen fighter of All time??? Hahahah
@@bkamara1 Absolutely. Though if someone wanted to add "non-Asian" to that, I'd understand.
@@dardrex777 I've seen so many martial arts films, it's frustrating to read this comment 😂
But I'll suck it up like a big boy.
Van Damme was European Middleweight Karate champion and had a 44-4 fight record in semi-contact karate and an 18-1 (18 k.o) record in kickboxing.
His only loss in kickboxing was by D.Q.
Also,remember that kickboxing in the 70's wasn't like kickboxing is today.If you watch early kickboxing matches,even Bill 'Superfoot' wallace fought 'kickboxing' on the mat sometimes and not in a ring.That was when full contact karate was transitioning into kickboxing.
He's a legit martial artist.If people can't see that,they're blind.
Hear what his best friend growing up has to say th-cam.com/video/8bMxowFV-ZY/w-d-xo.html
VD was never a champion
no he wasnt
@@smaster-m4fThat doesn't mean he is legit martial artist
I have personally trained with JCVD, a couple hours of informal instruction backside of an event...I thought I knew how to fight and handle myself, and JCVD taught me some lessons I'll never forget, mostly by terribly humilating me in front of the other students before helping me up off the ground, kissing me on both cheeks, and explaining in simple language exactly what he just did to me, and then a slightly different technique better suiting my size/strength.
He's pretty weird, and can come off as rude or curt to some people, but it's just his intensity and focus combined with unfamiliar (to most Americans) European manners and custom
lmao he has no actual martial arts skill
@@TheJasoncash83 prove it.
@@dakken74 th-cam.com/video/e5vlTuwRbMs/w-d-xo.html
@@dakken74 blocking anything like this will get your hurt very badly. You have to keep your arm close to your body to keep your arm from coming back and hitting you in the head.
@@TheJasoncash83 that's 2020 and MMA, has nothing to with what Van Dam was doing in the 70s
Van Damme is a badass fighter with a great agility, flexibility and skills. His fighting record is also quite impressive - 18 wins in kickboxing (and all of 18 wins was via knockout, and only 1 fight was a loss) isn't a joke!
Dude, In the 70’s JCVD competed in the Euro Karate scene in Light contact & Semi-contact…. , which was is nowhere near the standard of today. Yeah he was passionate & took part in a very benign non-aggressive style of karate and then dabbled in kickboxing. I’m pretty sure his opponents in kickboxing where of a very low standard.
So yeah JCVD was definitely NOT a baddass ring fighter.
@@doubledragan VD was just a ballet hes my frlend
@@doubledragan cool how many wins you got... name so we can check on your record
@@doubledraganEven if they were low standard but he was a fighter.
Personally, as a martial artist, I respect the artist who doesn't have to go out and prove himself to others. I watch Van Damme move, and it is undeniable the man has martial arts talent and is physically gifted. I don't need to see a fight record to recognize this. In his prime, that man could whoop a lot of ass. Guaranteed.
Unfortunately today's meta is 'if he doesn't have a record in UFC / K1 then he isn't a fighter' and I think it's too toxic and illogical. As you said it well, he and a lot of other fighters have the moves, the talents and the looks of a great fighter, who cares if they have a record that's recognized today but wasn't even a thing back then.
On Wikipedia is his fight record in the ring with names, dates and all. Somebody made this up? I don't think so.
Besides a whole lot of semi contact karate tournaments he did kickboxing and fought in the ring about 20 times and only lost once.
Thank you for that comment. Not every martial artist needs to enter tournaments which are primarily for the entertainment of strangers just like not every talented ARTIST needs to display their work in a gallery, they might be a professional Surgeon that just likes painting...
I was told at my start "If you are not willing to protect the weak from the evil strong, I will NOT train you"
It's not all about the ring when the world in itself is an arena
The focus of htis video is JCVD 's "fight record"....whether or not it was all "Pt-fighting" or if there was actual "Kick-boxing' IN other videos someone said in Europe they had to call JCVD's "{t fighting" "Kickboxing" due to copyright issues in Europe. Shrug. Some people are interested. His fans and MA film fans. Does it really matter in the end if you enjoyed his films? No. They're "entertainment". Jackie Chan never competed nor did Brcue Lee. Nor did Segal.
THough having said t hat it IS ODD there is no videos on YOuTube showing any of JCVD's "full-contact matches"....only I think one b/w of him in a clearly "Pt fighting (controlled)" fight. Would there not be lots of photos? More film clips?? Why would the Euro "Fighting league" not have televised the fights? Or had journallists there??
If we just do a Y ouTube search for Bill Wallace 's kickboxing fights there are many to be found. Same for Benny Uriquedez....though in all fairness....there aren't many potos of Chuck Norris' fights...One of two with Joe Lewis....and just one b/w video of Joe Lewis ....perhaps MA was so unpopular back then....the broadcasting stations didnt think it was worth their time to cover these matches... making it harder to dig up clips...thus the lack of on TH-cam??
Did JCVD have legit MA skills? Clearly yes. Easily seen in various interviews he did and in his films even th ough he did use "flashy moves" for entertainment sake. Not easy to get hte air he got doing his "propellar kick"...which his daugher Bree...can do too.. Had JACD been a "Pro kickboxer" in the PKA....even better...for his fans. A PLUS on his "resume"....but not essential to be a MA movie star...
Interesting how lots of legit world kick boxing champions appeared in MA films but never became MA film stars (e.g. Bill Wallace and Benny Urquidez).. Not something they wanted I guess.
@notfiveo said nuff😀
Jean Claude Van Damme was faster and more skilled than any of his haters. He was also a great actor too. Poor guy just had so many jealous haters.
They can hate but i don't think any tarnished his image in any way.
No he was not a “pro kickboxer” as Don Wilson puts it, no one is disputing that, but he did compete in many karate competitions and he is a genuine shotokan black belt, for anyone to dispute that is just ridiculous
Facts
Point karate doesn’t equal being a fighter. It means you played tag 😂
@@dardrex777 Not back in the day it didn't. Watch Fred Wren versus Jim Harrison. They were both in the hospital after that fight.
@@Docinaplane that wasn’t point karate. That was full contact karate referred to as the “blood and guts era” where you actually hit each other at “full contact” that’s not point tag. That’s was basically “kickboxing” before the gloves.
That didnt exist in Europe. Especially by the time JCVD was competing. They already had PKA kickboxing by then. And Savate was already a thing in France too.
So bad analogy. 😂
@@dardrex777 I never said it was actual fighting or combat, people question that he is a actual martial artist and competitor, getting into fights doesn’t make you a martial artist, any asshole can get into a fight, that’s not what being a martial artist is about
I don't care what anybody says Van Damme's movies are legendary. He's what inspired me to take martial arts as a kid
You could tell that JCVD knew how to handle himself in a fight on the movies. His moves were calculated and well placed and looked natural. Steve McDojo belly Segal on the other hand was mess with his moves. Always took on dudes who looked like they just walked out of a all you can eat buffet puffing a cigar. For Segal to even attempt to call Van Damme’ a phony is the most absurd thing I’ve heard in a long time.
More absurd than Duxe calling him a phony?????? 😕
Segal always runs like a girl if you notice
I think Segal lost all credibility when he claimed he fought Bruce Lee.
I don't get all the hate toward Van Damme unless it's because he became an easy target. He got himself cleaned up and sorted his life out from where he was, he deserves credit and respect for that. Don't know how well he'd fare, but it can't be disputed that unlike a lot of action stars he does have a genuine fight record. Nothing but respect to the people who step on the mat/into a ring/cage to try their skill. Another good vid, buddy.
Van damme is a Hard Target though.
Don Wilson saying anything negative about van damme is just the product of envy. Wilson is highly overrated as a fighter and he was pretty awful as an action star. no agility or grace in his movements and absolutely no charisma as an actor.
Factual!
@@dassolosyndikat5113 Dennis Alexio in his prime, Jerry Trimble, or Rick Roufus would have destroyed Wilson.
There is no doubt in my mind that Van Damme would have had no trouble beating him either.
@@Liquidcadmus Some serious Don Wilson haters in here. You don't know anything about him haha if you did you'd know Wilson fought and beat a "prime" Dennis Alexio. Research is your friend.
@@williamwest7008 Who's Dennis Alexio??? People like Wilson wouldn't last 5min with a Muay Thai champ, even if the Thai guy was in a lighter weight class. People like Wilson could not make it in a boxing ring or in an octogon.
@@kaihuang4970 1. You couldn't google any of this crap you're talking?
2. Dennis Alexio is only one of the greatest kickboxers of all time
3. Don Wilson fought thai fighters under full muay thai rules which included elbows and he did great, look it up
4. As previously stated you people know nothing about Wilson.
In 1980, I was fighting out of a UFAF Tang Soo Do studio (Norris was president) and we went to the Ed Parker Invitational in Spokane which was technically a point tournament but, I can tell you first hand that once we got past the first few rounds, the refs were letting the contact fly with no "excessive contact" penalties, whatsoever. In the early rounds, there are a lot of beginners and people without a lot of tournament experience and they want to protect those people. But, once they got "weeded out," it was another story. When the advanced players were going at it, you'd hear the slaps and thumps, no problem.
Thanks for clearing this up Viking. Yes, I have too been hearing the controversies over the years. I as well feel that Van Damme was a legit fighter.
No retreat no surrender my favorite Jcvd movie his fight choreography was superb
Yeah, he nailed that character pretty well. It took me time to separate him from that.
Don just jealous because his movies never made it to the big screen, that's his real beef with JCVD.
Any of them kicks wud take the head of any man. Jcvd living legend. My 1 and only true idol
@The Crazy Amateur Runner haha
Not really. Any person could duck or grab his leg. He kicks so slow and awkward. Take anyone with a high school wrestling background and he’d end up on his head. Happens to karate guys that actually have fought 😂
You should of left the part where MJW also said right after that “I beat up 5 people at the same time” lol... great interview and makes total sense, remember I told you when we discussed this, that it wasn’t in a ring with boxing gloves, cuz well the evidence shows karate images only... makes total sense...
Between MJW and Steven Seagal, i dont know who to believe, hhhhh
@@isaelmahdi6593 lol
I did tae kwon do in the late 80s through to the 90s and although it was point fighting each tournament there would always be some guy getting kicked out of the fighting area through chairs.
Point fighting maybe frowned upon but look at how well Stephen "wonderboy" Thompson used it in MMA
Wonderboy is a legit fighter and Van Damme isn't and its mma and that's why Wonderboy is not a champion don't get me wrong Wonderboy is good but his ground game is not where it needs to be but Van Damme is a joke. Wonderboy also gets beat up in the standup not as much as he does on the ground. Like i said Wonderboy i have much respect for but Van Damme is not on his level at all.
@@DrunkSince1973
To say van damme us a joke is unfair from the record books he was well versed in his area of martial arts in the era he was from.
I will point out this was before the popularity of mma which started around 1985 i believe in Japan. Before fully taking of in the early 90s.
Yeah van damme as he is now would get destroyed but if he was young now in this era and trained in all the arts who knows what he may have become.
Also wonderboy cannot have been that bad as he fought for the title twice i think ....he suffered the exact same thing most fighters do the game passed him by and he hasn't evolved.
@@alroygardner5436 Wonderboy is a warrior no doubt but for being a great striker he just let Tyron stand around and not make Tryon work when Tyron only had the right hand. Wonderboy is a great guy and no doubt should have won the belt. Then he would have lost it to Usman anyway but he should have tasted gold.
You can make up all these different scenarios of what Van Damme would have become but from what i seen his mentality alone he would have never made it. He had manic depression and he was a cokehead later in his 30's. The guy would have gotten his face smashed in.
Mickey Rourke went from acting to boxing and got his face rearranged. Van Damme is an actor who had training no more no less.
The most nerve Segal ever showed in his life is saying Van Damme was fake. That's like a clown calling someone in jeans and a t-shirt a clown.
Galling indeed.
Seagull can't even run like a man, let alone fight like one.
Steven Seagal is a registered legit Aikido master in japan
where jcvd s registered ? lol
I remember that time when Sly Stallone was having a party and said JCVD was going after Steven Segal for all his crap talking against him...Sly said tough guy Segal wanted noooooo part of JCVD and ran away
Thanks Viking Samurai for This JCVD legitimate fighting records video. As one Big JCVD fan to another, We knew in our Hearts that JCVD is the Real Deal. There's Always plp that will Disagree and that's fine, but The Evidence is All there! Thanks for Bey Logan & Lambert for clearing things up .
The Evidence is all there? Really? As in film footage or even magazine or newspaper articles, maybe photographic evidence? Sure, there's a few seconds of footage of JCVD competing in point karate tournaments, but as for any full-contact competition at all, what actual evidence is there? Not some unconfirmed "record" someone put together on the internet, but actual evidence. There's footage of Chuck Norris, Joe Lewis, Benny Urquidez, hell, even Dolph Lundgren competing, full matches, some of them full-contact, going all the way back to the 1960s, but with Jean Claude, not so much. I can appreciate the effort put into this video, but it still doesn't present anything that could pass for real evidence.
@@BRUCEJJ66 Well in the States everything gets Pumped up . Well not over here. Belgium had the best Judoka's in the 70s 80s from middle weight to havy weights Female and Male, But a fight was seldom broadcasted on TV exept the Olympics
JEFF LANGTON!!! THAT GUY IS GREAT!!! Hes awesome in Final Impact with Lorenzo Lamas and Maximum Force, two PM Entertainment flicks.
He got a 3 picture deal with PM Entertainment after Lionheart.
Respect to the warriors that have shared their skills and influence. All of them. They inspire us, make us better.
I am a JCVD fan, spent years watching his films, amazing, then to hear his record was fake, I did not believe it, but that seed of doubt had been planted, I was gutted, JCVD was, well is, an inspiration in the martial arts industry certainly was for me, bit of a hero in a strange way. Basically I am saying a massive thank you for the resrsrch to finally put this to rest. 💯👌
JCVD is a legend and he's a big reason why I started training martial arts. My favorite action star hands down. I doubt we'll ever get anything close to him again.
Bro I'm surprised van dam him self hasn't appeared on ur show yet. Keep up the great work bro love all ur episodes
Thanks for a great video and for getting to the bottom of this controversial topic. It was pretty much as I thought it would be, hopefully people ease up on him a little now. Jean Claude is still the best movie martial artist in my mind, a true originator!
Well he was never a world class fighter like Don Wilson. He competed on a semi-professional level, was pretty successful, but decided to do movies instead of building a fighting legacy. End of story. But thanks for the clarification on the French-American-Boxing translation issue. That was new to me.
Exactly. He definitely could and can fight.
No retreat, no surrender! First movie I saw Vandamme in! Awesome movie!
I don't know if he is legit or not, but I know I would NOT want him to kick me in the face!
Millions of people watching this video, liking, commenting ..just because of one name JC Van Damme... All other so-called champions of their own eras and times got a chance to get some role in movies ....become famous ...to be inviewed today....just because of one name ...JCVD... Hats off to Him...many joined SFs, many learnt Karate, kick boxing....
Because of JCVD ...Offcourse after Bruce Lee... Respect and love for him.. was, is and always will be.
One of my friends was telling me years ago in the Fall of 1994 that he met Jean Claude Van Damme in Pittsburgh,Pennsylvania and they had drinks at a bar and Van Damme told him he was filming an action movie titled Sudden Death!!
I didnt believe him, but in the summer of 1995 they showed promotion of it (Sudden Death) coming soon to theaters in December 1995, so he was telling the truth!!
JCVD style is French Kick Boxing, rightfully called ("Savate"). "Savate, also known as boxe française, savate boxing, French boxing or French footfighting, is a French kickboxing combat sport that uses the hands and feet as weapons combining elements of English boxing with graceful kicking techniques"
Ok so it was technially karate points fighting and full contact. But because of a copyright issue in europe it was called kickboxing
For me, as a martial arts movie fan, the only important thing is if the actor can do something that looks good on camera and makes me wanna watch him in the story. I like quite a few Van Damme movies but none of Don Wilson.
I became an American full contact kickboxer partly because of JCVD, All of those guys were my heroes, even Steven Seagal. :/
His European semi-truck commercial he did a few years ago is pretty dam impressive
Don Wilson is being a hater cuz JCVD had better movies
waaaay better movies how i know because ive never seen a don wilson movie because they're worthless and a waste of time i know without even watching them
@@dassolosyndikat5113 i sat thru black belt not to long ago. Got bad, not great... not van damme
@@dassolosyndikat5113 Without seeing them your opinion is worthless and a waste of time
Don wilson is a horrible fuckin actor
Streets Of Rage! Sweet collection bruh!
Jean Claude Van Damme is clearly legitimate. You can see from his movements that he is a very competent martial artist. Had he chosen to pursue that route im certain he would have done well for himself. What takes the piss out of me is the irrational dislike and disparaging of the man by others in the industry. I expect nothing less from social media keyboard warriors. They're generally uninspired mediocre malcontents who have varying issues. But from within the industry I would think that there was some form of mutual respect for a peer. I guess I was sadly mistaken.
Thanks for proving what I already knew to be true that Jean Claude van Damme is a real martial artist with an actual fighting record those specialised kicks on the screen I've not seen ANYONE else do them
👌🏼😃 And still there's people like aj van bakker talking shit about him
@VAN DAMME THE BEST yeah but van bakker is more of a dick than a male porn star uses and more of a prick than a steroid injection weightlifting champion
I met Van Damme on two occasions. On both he was very down to earth and seemed a bit flamboyant but nothing like the weirdo seagal whom I've also met and...yeah..the second time I spoke to JCVD was a quiet relaxed situation where about 10 of us were talking about this new thing ( ultimate fighting championship ) he was quick to say that he wouldn't fair well in the cage because he's an actor not an athlete and that his tournament fights were structured VERY differently somewhere between point sparing and "full contact"
( he made quotations with his hands ) he seemed humble, genuine,...honestly alittle sad. In any case I enjoyed many of his movies.
thanks forthat information, right there he himself is explaining that he was simply a point stop karate guy not a full contact kickboxer or mma that level of competingb is out of his league, im glad he was honest and humble enougth to admit this. clearly a decent gent.
These van Damme fights were probably like PKA events. How organized was kickboxing as we know it today during the 70s? I'm under the impression that many different promotions had different rulesets.
I am suprised Frank Dux didn't claim that was him fighting in a kumite in Van Damme's video.
A lot of people talk a lot of b.s. about Van Damme. All they think about is ballet dancer and addict. Van Damme's the man. He deserves a lot more credit than people give him. Only one way to find out. Get Van Damme to do an interview.
I would love Van Damme to talk about his fighting career. Dolph Lundgren too.
@@wantutosigh1117 let's make it viral or trending. Whatever you call it. Let's get Van Damme's attention. #VikingSamurainterview. Let's go Viking Samurai fam.
U got sonny from lionheart.. thats his name right.. lol. I he sounds like the character he played.. meaning he sounds pretty close to real.. he remind me of the late bill paxton. Enjoying every single video.
I was competing in full-contact, point karate tournaments in the 90's here in the USA. Literally anyone could be a champion. We used to compete against 3-5 people in a tournament so you could rack up a record pretty fast. I was a champion in several local tournaments that are basically meaningless today lol. I don't even think they kept any sort of record for them. We got trophies but that was it. IMO, it doesn't much matter what VanDamme's actual record was because he obviously has talent and training and he inspired so many people to practice the arts.
I love love how everybody hates on van Damme it says they secretly hold him in high value and jealous
I believe those Karate tournaments during Van Damme's fighting days looked more like what you see in Karate Combat today,then the kind of tournament point style fighting you see in wkf karate tournaments,where you can get disqualified if you knock your opponent out
I agree with you. I actually think some of those full contact matches probably looked more like kickboxing matches.
I remember when when Van Damme was about to kick Seagal’s ass at Sylvester Stallone’s house 😂
Facts
Ya but fat Ass ran away..😂
Love this! Thank you!
It’s good to search whether Van damme did really compete in MA competition; but he is crearly a Martial artist
Thank you for offering accurate research and information instead of b.s. and unfounded opinion. Good video.
Steven Segal questioning anyones martial arts credentials I'd hilarious
Loved his style and grace. So glad to see that he's legit. Watched the vedio hoping not to see he was fake. So much these days are so many people aren't who they say they are. What a good feeling to admire some one real.
Really? People like Seagal and Dux accusing him of lying lol
Regardless of JCVD actual record, you can tell he’s legit by the way he throws those kicks
To this day I haven’t seen anybody throw kicks with that solid form and accuracy
Legit kicks doesn't mean he is a legit fighter. He done legit training but that doesn't make him a world champion if he hasn't fought the best.
Exactly, to me Dux and Segal talking shit means he is legit, I take their words to mean the opposite of whatever they say.
Don the Dragon can talk shit about pretty much anyone in the film industry, hell, he could probably talk shit to most fighters too. That guy is legit and I can see why he might think it's not fair Van Damme and other even less legit fighters had more success than he. But you gotta know the looks count for a lot in the movies, and Van Damme had the looks.
@@DrunkSince1973 No one said anything about world champion. Crediting his martial arts skills combined with the fight record we have is simply a counter arguement to anyone saying he is an actor and not a fighter, he trained, sparred, and has proof of competitive level fights.
Just because he isnt involved in relevant competitions of todays standards doesnt mean he isnt/wasnt a fighter...
Yeah lol that gave me a chuckle. Frank Dux has the absolute most wild "world records" and yet there still hasnt been proof of the Kumite, nor has he ever demonstrated any of his feats- 72mph kick, and millisecond punch.
Steven Segall is another story. I never looked much into him but find it funny that as much as he "consults" mma fighters, we never see his techniques or training really credited or showcased from the fighters he trains.
I did my own research and found majority of these fighters on JCVD fight record and they all check out. Some dont have a bio online but the ones that do all show that JCVD beat them all.
Kickboxer and Bloodsport are all the proof we need lol
I live in the Netherlands, here you have kickboxing fights literally every weekend, small not some commercial, not some amateur of course, professional fighters, so I can believe that the JCVD had normal professional fights, you can see from the history that they were all mostly in Belgium, that's why there are no records.
Interesting to hear about the naming issue. This would definitely explain the discrepancies.
I never really cared if a fighter was "legit" when I was a kid watching these 80s martial arts movies and enjoying them a lot. The important part for an actor is if they can perform and look good on film. You know what happens when you got an actor that isn't trained...you get a bunch of messy fast edits to give the illusion of hand-to-hand combat. Heck, Keanu Reaves isn't a real lift master assassin but he does a great John Wick.
It's true, but in fact if the actor has a real fighting experience, it can be even more useful
@@alexferrana3979 I would actually say it doesn't help that much unless the fight choreography is grounded in reality.
If I was to really point out something to help a martial artist to star in movies....it'll be acting lessons. ^_^
At 17 in 1989 I went to a Bruce Lee convention in Liverpool and met and chatted with Bey Logan. I think I asked him about what his thoughts were on the amount of training BL received from William Cheung. He’s kind of a wealth of knowledge. He was writing for Combat magazine and covered a bunch of weird ‘Kung fu’ arguments in those years between Southern Mantis Schools in London. ( I was witness to some of that ) Weird time, Kung Fu in London in late 80’s-90’s.
I was a teen in the mid to late 80's in London and remember the arguments between practitioners of modified Wing Chun and traditional. I also remember William Cheung getting challenged while he was teaching a workshop in Germany!?
His feet are really fast and fully controlled. You don't want to get into any fight with anyone with those tools.
great video my friend. keep them coming. i love these interviews.
While you looked at his own listing of fights and saying it's legit. Is it possible to contact some of the people he fought or someone from the so of the fight? I am not sure why we are chasing opinions rather than chasing down folks that can validate Vandamme's record. I am a fan of Vandamm, and don't care if he was a fighter or not, but am tired of this controversy, so why not chase down people who were directly involved in his fights?
The one American he fought has talked about it and he says dropped Van Damme with a left hook and Van Damme got up and KO'd him with a kick. That sounds as full contact as it gets. Actually sounds more like kickboxing than karate.
I seem to remember reading that a guy who Jean Claude fought died in a car accident a long time ago. Could be false memory on my part.
@@miesvaillanykyisyytta3252 I know one of them died of a heart attack.
@@wantutosigh1117 That was Sherman 'Big Train' Bergman. He also fought Gary Daniels and Mickey Rourke during his career.
is JCVD aware of this channel ? This is some really in-dept stuff right here. Maybe one day you can get him in person, it will be much more satisfying than getting Dux.
Hopefully he'll come on the channel someday!
I lost interest in point sparring when I saw how often guys who couldn't really fight would win against guys they couldn't beat on the street. But that's not always the case. However, now I just think getting into fist fights as an adult is stupid lol
what i find fascinating is that there is a video about JCVD's actual fight record and that I am watching it, this world is awesome man, just awesome.
People always wanna judge point sparring when they have never done it
I know! I've had to break it down for numerous people who act like it's freeze-tag or something. If it's so easy, how come everyone isn't doing it? The answer is: you get hurt. It doesn't matter that it's not the same as a cage match, it doesn't have to be. Just like Judo matches don't have to be, and wrestling matches don't have to be.
Ppl dont realize if your good and not getting scored on you are hard to hit. And if u know how to score u know how to hit someone when it counts
Georges "Rush" St. Pierre credited karate point fighting with his ability to time his opponents and "rush" in to take them down. Everyone always credited his wrestling for his takedowns but he would correct them and say it was his karate and point fighting that made him so good at it.
👍🤣
Van Damme had excellent control with his kicks in no retreat no surrender. He was amazing as an actor back then.
A knockout is a knockout and JCVD is a real fighter. My question is: where is the proof of MJW knocking out anyone?
Mjw never ko anyone thats the thing xD
@@Ehrle6969 And yet he has the nerve to call himself a fighter while straight up lying and saying that JCVD is not! What a ridiculous, absurd man. He should be ashamed of himself!
@@MatrixCobretti yea i know mjw is jelouse i mean all his movies r flops except spawn. Nobody give a damn bout him in holywood or in the fightingverse so he downtalk ppl like segeal. So they get only attention on this way. Otherwise noone would talk bout seagal or mjw. And van damme always spoke nice bout them niggas
@@Ehrle6969 Actually Spawn was a flop too, that's why it didn't become a franchise like it was designed to be. It only made $54M on a $45M budget. MJW just needs to shut up about Bruce Lee, JCVD, and Seagal. If he ever disrespects Chuck Norris I'll be done with him forever. If he would've stopped bragging and shown a little respect for his elders, he probably would've gotten farther like Scott Adkins. I think MJW is lazy and won't put in the work that all those other guys did.
@@MatrixCobretti seagal is fake as well, still spawn was mjw best hitter. Otherwise ur right.
Weren't there some more current actual kickboxing fight for him too? I think I remember seeing him actually fight in Thailand.
If they really want to know if jcvd's fight record was legit then why don't ask the people he fought? I wanna hear what they say. This will clear all arguments.
Tried, never heard back.
@@VikingSamurai too bad my friend. But I believe that jcvd is legit.
No retreat no Surrender was my favorite JCVD movie. Fight choreography was great . Gave a full display of his moves
There was an article in Black Belt magazine, which I still have, where Don Wilson challenged Van Damme to a $50,000 kickboxing match. Van Damme declined. My thinking is that Don, who struggled to get mainstream success, and was a kickboxing champion in 3 different weight classes, felt like Van Damme was undeservedly using a title he didn't have. I do believe he fought in point Karate, similar to what was popular in the 1960s stateside. But not the kickboxing that were used to seeing. Not hating on Van Damme. I do believe he can fight. But it wasn't kickboxing that he fought in.
In a fight anyone/everyone is dangerous and has a chance to win. JCVD would most probably lose, ws risks a d consequences were too high for him.
Just my analysis.
@@marvinjordan9987 He was afraid in other words
@@williamwest7008 Yes, I believe he was afraid. If he wasn't why didn't he go for it?
Most people would assume he was the best/toughest fighter going around.
Which is definitely not true.
His athleticism, flexibility, and leg control are amazing, and that portrayed him to the audience to be better than what he really is.
I like the bloke and his movies, I'm not hating, just my analysis.
@@marvinjordan9987 I completely agree with you, when we share these opinions we get accused of being haters. We can be fans and objective at the same time.
@@williamwest7008 very true.
I appreciate you making this video. Thank you ☺️
JCVD, a champ and a gentleman. If a slimeball disses him, it is just jealousy.
Van damme was a kickboxer and had many fights under his belt. He was a legit badass
I once met a guy that had won the world championship in Taekwondo. It was a week after the tournament and his eye was still swollen shut. That is some rough point fighting!!
Pretty much what the person that said that he doesn't need to see a record or any of the sort about what a martial art or artist is and what they represent Jean-Claude Van Damme right after a Bruce Lee is my favorite second fighter because his kicks were fluid he was the real deal he had spectacular kicking abilities and he had awesome hang time in the air I believe that he was a real fighter he would not be put up there with Bruce Lee Chuck Norris Jet Li Jackie Chan and all the rest of the guys up there for no reason people may sit there and try to duplicate him and try to say that he is nothing he's not a fighter in my eyes he always and forever will be a spectacular martial artist and he definitely deserves to be up there with the rest of the guys hands down
I searched about all top US kickboxers of late 70s and early and late 80s.People call Don Wilson,Benny Urquidez and some others name as great.If you see their opponents name of their full contact kickboxing fights,almost 90 percent unknown fighters and they fought very few known names in their career.I heard there were some full contact kickboxer in 80s were truck drivers.Van Damme came once US and defeated a low profile US kickboxer.He had all the skills and he could participate in so called tough US competitions if he wanted that time and I am sure this point karate fighter(Van Damme) won most of the fights.But his passion was different and joined acting.He had full potential to beat US champion kickboxer of that time if he trained and his ambition was to become a movie star.
It's funny. Back when I was a kid. We had discussions in school about who would win in a fight out of the actors. Back then, everyone said that jcvd was the fraud, and Seagal was the legit dude. Boy, we were all wrong lol
Really? We all knew Seagal was scared of JCVD. I always pick him... Seagal was mugged by a 13 yr old... lol
@@adambachmann2633 we were like 7 or 8 then. Jcvd was doing flashy moves while seagal was straight murdering people. Much darker back then so as kids, we thought he was just that much of a k!ller.
Kickboxing in France is also called savate boxe française, savate boxing, French boxing or French footfighting, is a French kickboxing combat sport that uses the hands and feet as weapons combining elements of English boxing with graceful kicking techniques. There is a good chance that Van Damme knew that style also
Another stellar vid. And I really like the fact that you went over the language barrier or mistranslation if you will. It’s a conversation I’ve had with many people trying to convince them that JCVD is legit.
There has been a lot of discussions over the years regarding Van Damme's fight career. First of all it doesn't matter to me as long as the guy has the moves for the camera (Like Jackie or Jet for exemple). If you know/practise martial arts then you know that you only use 15-20% of what you learn in a fight competition so having just the fight moves in a movie would be quite boring and not very exciting. What we want to see in movies are more techniques, something that's closer to martial arts demonstration so more "flashy" techniques are displayed etc...
Anyway, There was a french TV show back in the 90's to discuss martial arts and obviously Van Damme was brought up. A martial arts champion intervened and revealed that Van Damme beat a young fighter who later became champion so I guess he had to be a solid fighter.
Any martial artist can easily tell you that Van Damme has got the moves and uses great techniques and leg control. Wether he used his knowledge to win a competition shouldn't matter. Like you said Viking, the guy doesn't fake his moves. Gotta Love Van Damme for all the classics he brought us and for promoting martial arts around the world.
Would there be the UFC if Van Damme didn't make Bloodsport? Would Hong Kong cinema had been to hollywood? Would we have had the 90's kickboxing movie craze? Would all the many martial arts stars that followed Van Damme's path had a career? Think about all the things that Van Damme brought us.
I get a kung fu movie feel with that audiosync
You know, I never had a doubt about Jean Claude. I mean, my favorite actor, Jackie Chan didn't fight in the ring and it didn't make any difference to me.
This mystery has kept me awake for years ...
I’m hooked on your videos brother
I saw the Big Trouble in Little China on your shelf. Good Man!
great journalism, well done