Two martial arts legends Chuck Norris and Bruce Lee trained together during part of the 1960s. Various interviews and biographies have shed much light on the friendship that preceded Norris’s role in Way of the Dragon. In the 1972 kung fu film by Hong Kong studio Golden Harvest, the actor played Colt, a karate master who took on Lee in an epic 10-minute fight.
For years, Norris was among the various celebrities that Lee coached during his time in the United States. After moving to California and before returning to Hong Kong, the actor ran his own kung fu schools and gave private lessons to many Hollywood celebrities, including James Coburn, Steve McQueen, Roman Polanski and James Garner. Norris, who wasn’t a star (or even an actor) when they first met, is known as one of the many people who trained with the martial arts icon.
Bruce Lee & Chuck Norris Learned Martial Arts From Each Other
although Norris sparred with Lee regularly, it is true that their relationship was not like the one he shared with any of the names mentioned above. After all, Norris was a skilled martial artist in his own right. Unlike Lee, who was trained in Wing Chun kung fu, Norris practiced karate. By that time, Norris was already an experienced fighter, participating in numerous martial arts competitions. Norris met Lee immediately after winning the national karate tournament in 1967.
As Matthew Polley points out in Bruce Lee: A Life, Norris constantly referred to his workouts with Lee as “workouts.” With that in mind, it would be unfair to say that Norris was just one of Lee’s students. It seemed that while Lee taught him kung fu, Norris brought some of his knowledge and experience to the game. This makes sense given that Lee had a reputation for taking an open-minded approach to martial arts. Even after becoming a kung fu teacher, Lee never objected to learning something new.
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What Did Bruce Lee Learn From Chuck Norris?
Comments from Chuck Norris provide specific details on what exactly Lee learned from sparring with the karate champion [via YouTube]. Norris claimed that before they began training together, Lee was of the opinion that high kicks are ineffective in real fights. At the time, he preferred to kick from the waist down. According to Norris, he convinced the actor that “you should be able to kick anywhere,” especially if the opponent leaves the head area undefended. Chuck Norris said that in under six months of practice together, Bruce Lee was able to make vast improvements his high kicking techniques.