A technique popularized by Bruce Lee at a demonstration for Ed Parker’s International Karate Championships in 1964. Bruce Lee had adapted the one inch punch method from the Wing Chun system, which relies on internal, short range power and strength rather than size and build.

Often regarded as a gimmick or trick, the one inch punch technique relies solely on wrist strength, power and focus. It is utilized in short range combat when the arms may be trapped and the combatant has little space to pull back the elbow. In practicality terms, there are numerous variants to the one inch punch, such as the two and three inch punch, or the one inch palm strike and/or push.

Kung fu practitioners regard short range power as an explosion of internal chi energy, where all of the body’s power is generated to focus on a single spot or part of the body. It is the harnessing of internal chi energy which is the source of what many people perceive as ‘superhuman’ power, which is best demonstrated in the one inch punch and the stunt work performed by the Shaolin monks. As a consequence, the visual appeal of the one inch punch has been utilised by many martial arts filmmakers including Sammo Hung for Warriors Two and Quentin Tarantino for Kill Bill Vol. II.

Bruce Lee's 1 Inch Punch

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