Simple Wisdom from Wong Shun Leung

During the week of September 20, 1990 we had the honor of meeting Master Wong Shun Leung

On The Concept of Chain Punching

During the week of September 20, 1990 we had the honor of meeting Master Wong Shun Leung and Master Tsui Sheung Tin from Hong Kong.
Master Tsui Sheung Tin was the third official student of the late Grandmaster Yip Man in Hong Kong and Master Wong Shun Leung was probably THE most famous fighter of the Wing Chun clan in the early 1950’s. Bruce Lee was a student of Yip Man but it was mostly Wong Shun Leung who taught Bruce Lee his Wing Chun.

The following question is an excerpt from the interview, translated by Yvette Wong.

What is the idea of the Chain punches in Wing Chun?
WSL: In Wing Chun if you throw two fast punches to someone’s head they’ll be knocked out. The first punch causes the brain to go to one side of the skull. If a quick second hit comes, the person is knocked out. If you withdraw the hand to give the second punch, then the brain can recover (will have more time to recover), but if you don’t give this time then a knockout results.

Insight from Wong Shun Leung

Something to Consider: “In Hong Kong we don’t use a lot of drills. We teach sticking hands and build everything into it.” – Wong Shun Leung


CREDITS & acknowledgements

Interview translation by Yvette Wong. Reporting by Ray Van Raamsdonk.