Sifu Dr Jim Bentley is a full senior instructor in the Science, Art, and Philosophy of Wing Chun. He has also been authorized to instruct The Filipino Martial Arts, Lee Jun Fan Gung Fu, & Jeet Kune Do as a Guro under Guro Danny Inosanto. In addition to belt ranking systems, he trains with Black Ops Rangers and other military and ex-military personnel in advanced hand-to-hand combat, weaponry, improvised hand-loads, and firearm tactical training. He is also the founder of The Bentley Method of Healing. The black-ops refer to him in their circles as, “The Body Man for Martial Arts Royalty”. He provides care for many of these martial arts legends, actors, actresses, and stunt doubles. Dr Bentley feels honored to have each of these fantastic individuals under his care and excited that they promote his work through ongoing testimonials. Sifu Bentley provides instruction into the intricacies of our Wing Chun as taught in the Yip Man and Jiu Wan lineages. His philosophy has always been,
“No matter what your social, professional, or martial arts status is, we must remember to always put ourselves as students first and foremost. We must train for the love of training to reach our next level of personal advancement. Remembering that rank or status is not a right to become lazy, we must constantly learn, re-learn, reanalyze, and apply, for the love of the art, ourselves, and those entrusted under our care and guidance.”
Dr Bentley started his training under Sifu Hung Chow in Beaverton, Oregon. Later, while attending his doctorate program, he continued his training in martial arts under Sifu Al Zepeda and SiGung Francis Fong, which included Wing Chun, Muay Thai, and Kali. Advancements in martial arts inspired him to become a doctor. With a deeper understanding of kinesiology, human movement, the human frame, and the five elements of the human condition, this accumulation of knowledge complement his overall learning advancement. Sifu Al has over 49 years of martial arts experience and teaching Wing Chun for over 34 years.
He learned the entire Grand Master Yip Man Wing Chun System as taught by Sifu Bill Wong before learning and being authorized to teach Sifu Francis Fongs Wing Chun System, which came from Grand Master Jiu Wan. Dr Jim Bentley is proud to be the 13th Black Sash/ Belt of his lineage. Black belts received a dragon name, and because Dr Bentley worked on all the fighters helping them with a wide range of conditions, he was given the name Healing Dragon. Dr Bentley feels exceptionally fortunate and excited to share this body of knowledge to help empower others through the Science, Art, and Philosophy of Wing Chun. He is continually training and advancing under the direct instruction of Sifu Al Zepeda, SiGung Francis Fong, Guro Danny Inosanto, Guro Leonard Trigg, Grand Master Chai, Sensei Erik Paulson, and Datu Kelly Worden.
“The greatest masters I have ever met have one trait in common. They do not have time to share their exploits and superiority over others. They are too busy creating superiority over who they were 5 seconds ago. That is why they call themselves a student, while other people call them a master. That is why you will never catch up to them because they never stop. They never stop training, evolving, and dissecting their own inner nature. It is why I like healing and combat to see what works what does not and to dissect out the why. What is the deeper meaning found in the concept? The concept that makes 100 techniques true.” – Sifu Dr Jim Bentley
