John L. Sullivan, contrary to what most people believe, did not fight most of his matches bare-knuckle. Not only did he wear gloves in most of his fights, but he published a public challenge, stating that he would wear gloves to protect his hands, but he didn’t care if his opponent were bare-fisted or not. He also preferred Marques of Queensbury Rules, rather than London Prize Fight Rules, as the London rules were more brutal and allowed limited grappling. According to a biography I just read, John L. never studied boxing. In fact, he never even practiced boxing. The only times he trained was when his weight would balloon up to 240 or more and he had to lose weight. Training routines in those days were a joke. John L’s training, before a title fight, consisted largely of long brisk walks and vigorous rundowns. His training diet consisted of beer and mutton. Once, in order to prove that he was the best, and to make some money, he went on an 80 day tour of the US and parts of Canada, fighting all-comers. He went completely undefeated. In those days there were no weight limits and the average fighter was 160 pounds, considerably smaller than John L Who fought between 190 and 250. Today, a tour like that would be impossible. There is a kid you’ve never heard of, in a random town in Iowa who could beat a UFC champion if it was the right day of the week. Fighting and fighters have really come a long way since the late 19th Century.
His reputation as a bare-knuckle boxer most likely stems from the fact that he was declared the last heavyweight champion of bare-knuckle boxing. This moniker came from his 1889 epic battle with Jack Kilrain, which lasted 77 rounds. This was both the last title fight fought under London Prizefighting Rules and also the final match ever held for the bare-knuckle championship of the world.
William Muldoon, one of the great wrestlers of the catch-as-catch-can days trained john L for this fight and he was in the best shape of his entire career. Muldoon was a visionary and pioneer in the field of physical fitness. He had John L. eating a high protein, low carb diet and abstaining from alcohol. Under Muldoon’s tutelage, John L. dropped about sixty pounds, weighing in at 190, a weight he hadn’t fought at since he was in his late teens.
Brooklyn Monk, Antonio Graceffo is a PhD candidate at Shanghai University of sport, writing his dissertation on comparative forms of Chinese wrestling. He is martial arts and adventure author living in Asia, the author of the books, “Warrior Odyssey’ and “The Monk from Brooklyn.” He is also the host of the web TV show, “Martial Arts Odyssey,” which traces his ongoing journey through Asia, learning martial arts in various countries.
Warrior Odyssey, the book chronicling Antonio Graceffo’s first six years in Asia is available at amazon.com. The book contains stories about the war in Burma and the Shan State Army. The book is available at http://www.blackbeltmag.com/warrior_odyssey
See Antonio’s Destinations video series and find out about his column on http://www.blackbeltmag.com
Twitter
As part of the research for his PhD dissertation on comparative forms of wrestling, the Brooklyn Monk, Antonio Graceffo, is learning Greco-Roman wrestling at Shanghai University of Sport. Greco is a very challenging form of wrestling which prohibits any kind of attacks to the legs. You can neither grab your opponent’s legs with your hands, nor trip your opponent’s legs with your own legs. Greco wresters rely on tremendous upper body strength to clinch with and take down their opponents. This video features a special appearance by Kirk Thomas, a former Canadian provincial wrestling champion who trains part time, with Antonio, at Shanghai University of Sport.
Watch Greco-Roman Control Position (SUS) on Youtube:
Brooklyn Monk, Antonio Graceffo is a PhD candidate at Shanghai University of sport, writing his dissertation on comparative forms of Chinese wrestling. He is martial arts and adventure author living in Asia, the author of the books, “Warrior Odyssey’ and “The Monk from Brooklyn.” He is also the host of the web TV show, “Martial Arts Odyssey,” which traces his ongoing journey through Asia, learning martial arts in various countries.
Warrior Odyssey, the book chronicling Antonio Graceffo’s first six years in Asia is available at amazon.com. The book contains stories about the war in Burma and the Shan State Army. The book is available at http://www.blackbeltmag.com/warrior_odyssey
Sambo Steve (Stephen Koepfer) of New York Combat Sambo invites Brooklyn Monk , Antonio Graceffo to train catch wrestling with his team in Manhattan. Catch wrestling is a form of submission wrestling where you can win by submission, choke, or pin. The pin makes it more like wrestling and different from Brazilian Jujitsu, where many competitors like to pull guard. In catch, if your shoulder blades touch the ground for three seconds, you lose. In this episode, the Brooklyn Monk also welcomes Eddie Goldman, the host of the podcast, No Holds Barred. In part two, hear Eddie tell the history of Catch wrestling.
Watch Brooklyn Monk Catch Wrestling w. Sambo Steve (Part 1)
Watch Brooklyn Monk Catch Wrestling w. Sambo Steve (Part 2)
Brooklyn Monk, Antonio Graceffo is a PhD candidate at Shanghai University of sport, writing his dissertation on comparative forms of Chinese wrestling. He is martial arts and adventure author living in Asia, the author of the books, “Warrior Odyssey’ and “The Monk from Brooklyn.” He is also the host of the web TV show, “Martial Arts Odyssey,” which traces his ongoing journey through Asia, learning martial arts in various countries.
Warrior Odyssey, the book chronicling Antonio Graceffo’s first six years in Asia is available at amazon.com. The book contains stories about the war in Burma and the Shan State Army. The book is available at http://www.blackbeltmag.com/warrior_odyssey
See Antonio’s Destinations video series and find out about his column on http://www.blackbeltmag.com
Twitter
Antonio Graceffo’s wrestling teammates at Shanghai University of Sport show him how wrestlers escape from judo side control. The Brooklyn Monk finds it interesting to explore how different arts deal with the same positions and situations.
Brooklyn Monk, Antonio Graceffo is a PhD candidate at Shanghai University of sport, writing his dissertation on comparative forms of Chinese wrestling. He is martial arts and adventure author living in Asia, the author of the books, “Warrior Odyssey’ and “The Monk from Brooklyn.” He is also the host of the web TV show, “Martial Arts Odyssey,” which traces his ongoing journey through Asia, learning martial arts in various countries.
Warrior Odyssey, the book chronicling Antonio Graceffo’s first six years in Asia is available at amazon.com. The book contains stories about the war in Burma and the Shan State Army. The book is available at http://www.blackbeltmag.com/warrior_odyssey
San Da is a Chinese kick boxing which includes kicking, punching, and wrestling takedowns. The takedowns largely come from Chinese wrestling, shuai jiao. Many of the takedowns or shuai fa come from catching the opponent’s kick and taking him down. Brooklyn Monk, Antonio Graceffo studies wrestling at Shanghai University of Sport. He also cross trains in San Da, studying the takedowns and shui fa as part of his doctoral dissertation on Chinese wrestling.
Watch: San Da Sparing, Shanghai University of Sport (Part 1)
Watch: San Da Sparing, Shanghai University of Sport (Part 2)
Brooklyn Monk, Antonio Graceffo is a PhD candidate at Shanghai University of sport, writing his dissertation on comparative forms of Chinese wrestling. He is martial arts and adventure author living in Asia, the author of the books, “Warrior Odyssey’ and “The Monk from Brooklyn.” He is also the host of the web TV show, “Martial Arts Odyssey,” which traces his ongoing journey through Asia, learning martial arts in various countries.
Warrior Odyssey, the book chronicling Antonio Graceffo’s first six years in Asia is available at amazon.com. The book contains stories about the war in Burma and the Shan State Army. The book is available at http://www.blackbeltmag.com/warrior_odyssey
See Antonio’s Destinations video series and find out about his column on http://www.blackbeltmag.com
Twitter
The traditional Chinese Shuai Jia wrestling team at Shanghai University of Sport is composed of students from sports schools, former Greco Roman wrestling competitors who are now studying at the sports university, and learning Shuai Jiao. Former MMA fighter, Brooklyn Monk, Antonio Graceffo is a a PhD candidate at the university, writing his dissertation on wrestling. At age 47, he is by far the oldest member of the team, the average age is barely 20. On a daily basis, Antonio’s teammates help him practice freestyle, shuai jiao and some MMA grappling.
Watch: Wrestling Sparing, Shanghai University of Sport (Part 1)
Watch: Wrestling Sparing, Shanghai University of Sport (Part 2)
Brooklyn Monk, Antonio Graceffo is a PhD candidate at Shanghai University of sport, writing his dissertation on comparative forms of Chinese wrestling. He is martial arts and adventure author living in Asia, the author of the books, “Warrior Odyssey’ and “The Monk from Brooklyn.” He is also the host of the web TV show, “Martial Arts Odyssey,” which traces his ongoing journey through Asia, learning martial arts in various countries.
Warrior Odyssey, the book chronicling Antonio Graceffo’s first six years in Asia is available at amazon.com. The book contains stories about the war in Burma and the Shan State Army. The book is available at http://www.blackbeltmag.com/warrior_odyssey
See Antonio’s Destinations video series and find out about his column on http://www.blackbeltmag.com
Twitter
The Shan people migrated from China to Burma centuries ago, brining with them their own special brand of Chinese Kung Fu. Travel with Antonio Graceffo as he makes his way into the war zone of Burma to learn this ancient martial art at the military headquarters of the Shan State rebel Army. See the first Lai Tai video ever
Meet twenty year old Kawn Wan who first learned Lai Tai from monks in his village. After the Burmese government burned his village and killed his parents, he came to live in Li Tailang, Shan State Army headquarters, where he teaches Lai Tai to the orphans so that the Shan culture will not die out.
Antonio Graceffo has been embedded with the Shan State Army inside of Burma. This article is part of the “In Shanland” project. To raise awareness about the plight of the Shan people Antonio will release one print article and one video per week for a year. He is giving these media away for free to ensure that they will reach the largest audience. You can watch all of the Shan videos released to date on youtube.
Antonio is self-funded. If you wish to contribute to the “In Shanland” film project, you can do so through paypal, through the Burma page of his website.
In this new episode, Antonio interviews a monk, who is a veteran of the 1988 pro-democracy protest, the bloodiest protest in Burmese history. The video also features an interview with an innocent 14 year old Shan girl who describes the horrors of her torture at the hands of Burmese soldiers.
Antonio is self funded and humbly seeks donations to continue his Shan State video project.
“Many thanks for all of the support I have received so far. I hate to ask, but the only way I can keep up this project is if people would be willing to help finance my work to document the lives of the Shan people and to uncover the animal behavior of the junta.”
If you wish to contribute to the “In Shanland” film project, you can do so through paypal. If you wish to contribute to the “In Shanland” film project, you can do so through paypal. Through the Burma page of his website.
This is the first production video ever done about the Khmer Martial art of Bokator. It stars Grand Master San Kim Saen and features Antonio Graceffo. The narration is provided by Antonio and is the most thorough explanation of the origin and spirit of Bokator to date. The video production was done part by a local company, in Cambodia and part by Soso Whaley, the producer of Martial Arts Odyssey.
Martial Arts Odyssey is the youtube show hosted by Antonio Graceffo, adventure and martial arts author. The show follows Antonio around Asia, as he trains with masters of ancient and sometimes lost arts, and as he tries to discover the perfect martial art.
Antonio had this to say about his participation in the show. “Life is a journey of development. The road I have chosen is martial arts. The show gives me an opportunity to share my path with people from around the world.”
Khmer people and martial arts fans from have already begun writing in, leaving comments and encouragement. To find out more about Bokator, take a look
By Antonio GraceffoFlashes of steel the clank of metal, blades blazing like fire: This is a practice session for Kru Pedro Villalobos and his trainer, Adjarn, one of the last living masters of Krabi Krabong, the Thai art of stick and sword fighting. “If I do not block, he will definitely hit me.” Says Kru Pedro Villaobos, the founder of the school of Muay Thai Sangha, a religious form of Muay Thai Boran, in Chiang Mai. For years, Kru Pedro traveled around Thailand, finding and training with the best masters for the various forms of Muay Thai, Muay Thai Boran, and Krabi Krabong. While professional, sport Muay Thai slowly drives all other historical and artistic forms of Muay Thai into extinction, Krabi Krabong is quickly disappearing. Many of the teachers dont take new students. Some dont take any at all. The Adjarn is considered to be one of the last great masters. He hadnt accepted any students in years, but after seeing Pedros diligence and extreme desire to learn, he agreed to take him on, as his last student. For myself, I was grateful for this rare opportunity to watch the practice. Before Pedro could even pick up his swords, in the presence of outsiders, he had to ask permission from his teacher. “If I demonstrate to anyone, without his permission, he said he would never teach me again.”The two men fought, with one, real, heavy metal sword in each hand, swinging, blocking, advancing and retreating for a half hour. By the end of the session, Pedro, who is in world-class physical condition, was dripping sweat. The Adjarn looked barely winded, which is amazing, considering his age of around sixty. In a rare interview, the Adjarn imparted the wisdom gained from a lifetime of studying the sword.
“Real fighters have to use their intellect. They approach each other not just for show. You have to practice your sword techniques on your partner. Know when he advances and know when to parry. He goes for your head, you go for his leg. Each person has their own gracefulness.” Here, the Adjarn was talking about how we all have our own style and ability. “If you’re talking about the ancient sword fighting, that’s not how we practice today. For them, sword fighting was life and death. They practice throughout their entire life as well. Every facet of their life revolved around the sword technique. The ancients engaged in massive sword battles, consisting of hundreds of fighters. Today, we practice two forms (katas), and the fighters are already tired. If they tire so easily, they don’t know the real way. In the old days, fighters knew they would be cut, or die. So, they made their skin thick, and the swords slipped off on contact. Then they could do real battle quickly. Here we practice for art. But, in earlier times the practice had a purpose, war.”“The same is true of Muay Thai. It used to be for real fighting, not only just for gambling and money. They knew how to defend in all situations. They knew how to avoid the unnecessary battles as well, and only engaged the enemy when needed.”“If you engaged in too many sword fights, the blades would chip and split. The swords had to be of high quality. And they infused them with blessings and other ancient magic. The written histories are full of sword fighting and splitting swords.”I didn’t even begin to believe I was worthy of studying with Pedro’s Adjarn. But I wanted to get ataste of Krabi Krabong, so I traveled to Surin province, where I took some lessons with Adjarn Sak Chai, a trainer of Khmer movie fighters. He is an expert of Muay Thai Boran, Krabi Krabong, and gymnastics, all aimed at performing in Thai action cinema.
The Adjan taught me some techniques fromKrabi Krabong, the Thai art of double sword and stick fighting. He practices by attacking a tire, mounted on a wooden pole, which serves as a wooden man. The long stick is similar to bo the staff used in other martial arts, but it is very heavy, not flexible like the ones at Shaolin Temple. Often, the Adjan took the long staff by the end and swung it like a baseball bat.The short sticks were heavier and longer than Arnis sticks. The important thing to remember here, is that they aren’t sticks at all. They are swords. If you were a master of Arnis you probably couldn’t apply your skills to these longer, heavier weapons. The Adjan taught me a basic patter; strike to the left shoulder, strike to right shoulder, strike to the top of the head. When you swing the sword in Krabi Krabong, you have to get a real wind up swing, twisting your body and reaching far back behind you. Then you let it fly and the weapon cuts your opponent in half.After doing the basic three strike combo on a tire for a while, I was permitted to practice with a live partner. I attacked, stepping forward with each strike. The opponent defended, stepping back at a forty-five degree angle, blocking as he went. Then he attacked, and I retreated and blocked. We practiced again and again, until we could do the patter at speed. In rehearsing for movie fighting, we did the same, basic pattern. On film, however, you use a lot more energy and add in a great deal of shouting and snarling. It looks really mean in the cinema. But it was fake. Pedro’s Adjarn was the real deal. Pedro’s Adjard said.
“In ancient times, when an enemy appeared out of the blue, they had to face off and see whose style was superior.”“Bang! Boom! Pssshhh! The best and fastest one would win! This is the real fighting. Today, fighting is all a big show. It’s not real, only exercise and theatre. We must attempt, now, to preserve the old sword fighting methods, not just make a show of it, practice the real way. You must be serious and not slap each other with the blades like if it were a game. You must practice with all your heart and devote your time to it like it was your life, as the old practitioners did. If some one wants to come study with me, I must first examine their behavior and dedication. Otherwise, they will waste their time and mine. This style is mostly one of defense and not offense. “The sword is a weapon, but the fighter is the brain. The pain of loss could lead to your death. I even fear for my life at times.”
Antonio Graceffo is the host of the web TV show, “Martial Arts Odyssey.” To watch the show, please visit his YouTube channel here: http://www.youtube.com/user/brooklynmonk1 He has studied Kung Fu at the Shaolin Temple in China, and a Muay Thai at a temple in Thailand. He is the author of four ... Continue reading →
New, In Depth Bokator Video on Youtube
Brooklyn Monk in Asia 