Traditional martial artists disagreed with Bruce's philosophies on martial arts and self defense. In his theories on fighting, he was light years ahead of the traditional martial artists that denounced his teachings and views. People mention how today's NHB fighter would defeat Bruce in a fight. Bruce himself would proclaim that it would be possible, I'm sure. If anyone knew about the theories of fighting, it was him. Therefore, he would completely understand what his weaknesses were against such a fighter before the first punch was even swung. With that, let it be known that Bruce understood, much to the scoffing of traditional martial artists and teachers, just how important it was to be versed in groundfighting techniques. It was mentioned here that he had some interaction with "Judo" Gene Labelle on the set of the Green Hornet. Actually, Bruce was a student under Gene Labelle for a time. As mentioned earlier, Bruce understood the importance of being knowledgeable in groundfighting techniques and strategies, and Gene Labelle was considered to be the best in this department at the time (Helio Gracie's system wasn't yet introduced to the masses of the U.S., so whether his or Labelle's teaching was superior is still up for debate).
Bruce also studied traditional judo & jujitsu while he was on his quest for groundfighting knowledge. Traditional asian martial artists would not let go of the belief that their systems would not let them down in a physical altercation.To them, their skills would end a fight before it had a chance to go to the ground. Bruce wasn't so niave. His philosophy of taking what can be of real use from all fighting systems (boxing, karate, kung-fu, judo, jujutsu, etc.), learning these techniques and strageties, and disregarding the rest was an insult to others. Regardless, this philosophy is what everyone else is just now realizing, over 30 years later! Yes, it is true that he didn't get into any actual fights that we know about, and he knew all too well what this meant in terms of experience. As he put it, "Training to fight without actually fighting was like training to swim without actually getting into the water". But for him to understand this without getting into any actual fights, while everyone else needs to learn this by trial & error, specifically participating in and observing NHB events, gives us an idea of how far ahead he was in his theories than others of his time.
How would he do in the UFC? Well, first of all, I do believe that he would have reservations about fighting in such a restrictive environment. Even in the first UFCs, there was no eye gouging allowed. When asked how he would do against Muhammed Ali, Bruce replied, "In the ring, not so well. In the street, I'd beat the shit out of him." When asked what his stragedy would be against Ali in the street, he replied that the first thing he would do is go for the eyes; take out the eyes and everything else would come easier.
To me, if he did neglect anything in his studies, it would be defensive fighting on the ground. Although Asian jujitsu teaches primarily groundfighting, it is mostly offensive techniques. The same may be said for Gene Labelle's teachings. I'm sure that at the time, most of Gene's teachings focused mostly on joint manipulation, chokes & sleeper holds, and other submission holds. I'm willing to bet that Bruce didn't hone his fighting-while-on-his-back skills as much as a typical NHB fighter does now.
Couple this with the fact that across the equator, the Gracie legacy had been in full swing for several decades already. Their style of jujitsu was a streamlined version of traditional asian jujitsu, and they were using it in REAL fights on the beaches of Rio De Janiero. This type of fighting style was something that Bruce never had a chance to look into.
If Bruce would've known about this, he may have made his way down there and looked into it. Who knows? Maybe he may have studied under the Gracie teachings, despite its exclusive membership at the time (family only).
No one really knows how well Bruce may have done in the UFC. Personally, I think he may be a bit weak on the ground, despite his groundfighting studies. And his groundfighting studies may not be as advanced as what the Gracies (and everyone else at this point) are studying and practicing at this point. And I'll be willing to bet, though, that the concept of the UFC, whether he was participating or just observing, would be something he would have absolutely loved.
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