| Ron van Clief | |
|---|---|
| Born | January 25, 1943 Brooklyn, New York City, United States |
| Other names | Black Dragon |
| Nationality | American |
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) |
| Weight | 182 lb (83 kg; 13.0 st) |
| Style | Chinese Goju, Goju-Ryu Karate, Jujutsu, Wing Tsun, Daitō-ryū Aiki-jūjutsu, Eskrima, Okinawan Kobudo |
| Fighting out of | New York, U.S. |
| Mixed martial arts record | |
| Total | 1 |
| Wins | 0 |
| By knockout | 0 |
| By submission | 0 |
| Losses | 1 |
| Draws | 0 |
| No contests | 0 |
Ron van Clief (born January 25, 1943 in Brooklyn, New York) is an American martial artist and an actor in Hollywood and Hong Kong action films. He is the father of poet Shihan van Clief.
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Van Clief was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York City. In 1959, he joined the United States Marine Corps and served during the Vietnam War, before being discharged in 1965.[1]
Ron van Clief began his martial arts career competing in both full-contact and non-contact karate tournaments in New York then internationally, going on to win several national tournaments and world championships. He was nicknamed "The Black Dragon" for his competition victories.
Van Clief was a student of Goju-ryu masters Peter Urban, Frank Ruiz, and Moses Powell, as well as WingTsun founder Leung Ting Modern Arnis (Remy Presas) Brazilian Jiujitsu (Joe Moreira). In 1971, Van Clief created his own style of martial arts, called "Chinese Goju," attempting to unify Japanese style goju-ryu with its roots in Chinese martial arts. He currently holds the rank of 10th degree red belt (shidoshi or grandmaster), in this system.
On December 16, 1994, Ron Van Clief returned to the ring to fight in the 4th Ultimate Fighting Championship, as the oldest competitor to date to fight in the UFC at the age of 51.[2] Van Clief's sole fight in the tournament was against Brazilian jiu-jitsu exponent Royce Gracie. Gracie won the match by submission with a rear naked choke near the four-minute mark. Ron went on to serve as the commissioner of the UFC. Ron Van Clief retired from competition in 2002 after winning the All American Karate Championship at 60 years old. Ron competed in over 900 tournaments in over 40 years on the tournament circuit. Ron Van Clief retired as a 5 time world karate/kungfu champion and 15 time all American champion.
Van Clief is also the author and creator of a number of instructional books and video recordings.
Ron Van Clief's first acting job came when he was selected to star in the Hong Kong film Black Dragon (1974). Some of his film roles during the 1970s were Blaxploitation films which capitalized on the then-novelty of an African-American martial artist, following in the tradition of Jim Kelly's role in Enter the Dragon. He starred along side Leo Fong in a Filipino action film called Bamboo Trap in 1975. Van Clief's film roles earned him the nickname "The Black Dragon." He was also the fight choreographer for the film The Last Dragon.
Van Clief has earned over 12 different black belts in his martial arts career. those include black belts in karate (goju-ryu and goju-kai), jiu-jitsu, judo, kung fu and boxing tae kwon do. One film that was never released was "The Art of Cliefing", directly by Jason Dash. The producers pulled the funding at the last minute, due to widespread protests in Korea. Van Clief is also a martial arts consultant on the upcoming action-comedy Gun Lordz, which was written, directed, and edited by independent film producer Jimmy Spice Curry.
Ron van Clief also performed various voice-over roles for the international television series titled Kung Faux.
| Professional record breakdown | ||
| 1 match | 0 wins | 1 loss |
| By knockout | 0 | 0 |
| By submission | 0 | 1 |
| By decision | 0 | 0 |
| Result | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 0-1 | Royce Gracie | Submission (Rear Naked Choke) | UFC 4 | December 16, 1994 | 1 | 3:59 | Tulsa, Oklahoma |
Manual of The Martial Arts (1981)
Ron Van Clief White Belf Guide Book (1984)
Ron Van Clief Green and Purple Belf Guide Book (1984)
The Black Heroes of The Martial Arts (1995)