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Ever look through an old issue of Black Belt and see an article about a martial artist who catches your interest? Ever wonder what happened to that person?
More than 30 years ago, Black Belt ran a story about a New Yorker named Ralph Mitchell, one of the first Westerners to train in Chinatown’s kung fu schools. Later, he served in the Vietnam War and gained exposure to Thai boxing. Afterward, he competed in underground kickboxing tournaments, eventually making his way back to Thailand, where he was among the first Americans to train there. It was a fascinating look at a pioneering martial artist with a wide range of unique experiences.
So what happened to Ralph Mitchell? Turns out he’s still in New York and looking not so different from the way he did in those old photos. Of course, I asked him the obvious question when we connected: “What have you been doing for the past 30 years?” His answer was what you’d expect: He’s been training.
Combined Experience
Mitchel combined his experience in judo, kung fu, kickboxing and other arts and created his own style, called the Universal Defense System.
“I have students from back then who have graduated from my school and now have schools of their own under the Universal Defense System banner,” he said. “But they have my blessings to change things. I don’t want clones.”
Although he started his career giving instruction in the traditional hung gar and praying-mantis styles he learned in Chinatown, his curriculum evolved to embrace the many styles he’d been exposed to.
“Now I teach the concepts of the arts I’ve done,” he said. “Rather than a specific style, we deal more with the elements of fighting at long range, middle range and close range.”
Never one to rest on his martial arts laurels, Mitchell also studied jeet kune do under Dan Inosanto and Paul Vunak during the intervening years. And he took up savate. His approach to training remains the same as it was decades ago—to be in the best possible condition so he doesn’t get tired during a fight and to be pound for pound the strongest martial artist he can be.
“The difference is, I’m more well-rounded and understand fighting better now,” Mitchell said. “I understand the strategy and tactics. I also understand how some people are better-suited for traditional martial arts and some people want to compete, and I understand how to help them go from amateurs to professionals.”
Although he still teaches elements of the traditional arts, like kata, in his schools, he’s had no qualms about branching out into MMA—helping produce, among others, former UFC competitor Phil Nova and IFL veteran Nardu Debra. Both started as children in Mitchell’s traditional program and later transitioned to MMA.
Traditional Roots, Modern Respect
Despite his traditional roots, Mitchell has always been a fan of MMA—“a fighter loves a fighter,” he said—while at the same time disapproving of the circus mentality that sometimes surrounds the big events.
As for traditionalists who turn up their noses at MMA, he said those who haven’t actually done it should at least respect it. One thing he doesn’t respect is traditional instructors who try to jump on the MMA bandwagon by claiming to teach MMA.
“If you’re a good karate school, then call yourself a good karate school—be proud of that and stick with that,” he said. “But I can understand there’s a law of supply and demand, and MMA has made a big dent in the business of traditional schools. It’s a fine line between the positive and negative influence MMA has had. Nowadays, people aren’t looking for a Yoda-type sensei to teach them. They’re looking for a coach to get them into some form of competition. They have multiple coaches for different aspects of the game.”
But Mitchell’s OK with that, saying he primarily handles the stand-up training for his students who compete in MMA. Wisely, he has Brazilian jiu-jitsu instructors oversee their ground game.
His feet are firmly planted in the modern era, but he still respects the past. He gives a lot of credit to his first martial arts instructor, Edward Liddie Sr., while making sure to mention Liddie’s son, Eddie Jr., an Olympic medalist in judo. He also stays in touch with his first kung fu instructor, Gin Foon Mark.
Mitchell is quick to acknowledge that he was wrong about one aspect of the arts: In that old Black Belt article, he gave the impression that racial discrimination held back Westerners who wanted to learn kung fu in Chinatown in the 1960s, but in hindsight, he said he believes it was just a filtering system.
“Sifu Mark said to me it doesn’t matter what race you are—laziness is a universal thing,” Mitchell recalled. “That’s why they started us with the most difficult forms and made us hold the lowest stances—to see if we really wanted to be there. Now I train my students the same way.”
Photo Courtesy of Ralph Mitchell
