Grandmaster James Ibrao was born in 1937 on a sugar cane plantation on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, to a Filipino Father and a Japanese Mother. Farming, raising chickens, & fishing was the normal day to day. Amongst the Fruit trees and Sugar cane, every part of it was hard work. This type of upbringing made for a naturally gifted athlete.
Young “Cuba” Ibrao was given the name because his pompadore hair cut, that resembled the Cuban chickens in Coq fights. He was a star in Highschool football & basketball for the Waialua Bulldogs. After Highschool “Cuba” found himself getting into mischief and decided to make a choice. That choice was to stay out of trouble and pursue a higher education. That Higher Education would turn out to be Martial Arts.
After moving to the US Mainland, in 1956 he had the opportunity to witness Ed Parker teaching a kenpo karate class and he was amazed at what he saw. Mr. Parker’s speed, power, and sheer presence were astonishing and he enrolled the very next day.
Ibrao immediately took a great liking to this deadly art form and found his body rapidly responding to Mr. Parker’s innovative teaching style. His speed, power, and self-confidence increased exponentially with each workout and he quickly rose through the ranks and has the distinction of becoming Ed Parker’s first black belt! What’s more, he accomplished this feat in nine months to Brown Belt, and 1 Year to Blackbelt.
Ed Parker was later to comment that among all of the many students he taught, James Ibrao was the most naturally gifted martial artist he ever met.
Mr. Ibrao was present for the formulation of many of the techniques, sets, and forms (kata) which have become standard in kenpo, and he helped Mr. Parker with the creation of many of them. Ibrao in fact accompanied Mr. Parker on a trip to San Francisco in 1960 where they observed many Chinese kung fu stylists and were especially impressed with the skills demonstrated by James Wing Woo.
A young Mr. Ibrao was so impressed with what he witnessed by the Kung Fu stylists, that he came home upset & discouraged and decided to pursue playing basketball.
James Wing Woo would later move to Southern California where he helped Mr. Parker with the writing of his second book, Secrets of Chinese Karate, and helped to develop some of the early kenpo forms, leading Parker to even begin referring to his art as Chinese Kenpo for a time. At this time many martial artists discovered that “Kung Fu” was the orgin of many different styles referred to as “Karate” especially Kenpo.
From 1962 to1964, Ibrao was recruited onto the travelling basketball exhibition team “San Francisco All Nations” a team of people from all different ethnicities to play against the Harlem Globetrotters. He traveled around the US at the height of segregation and the civil rights movement demonstrating his incredible ball handling skills against the likes of Geese Ausbie, and Meadowlark Lemon.
When he returned, James Ibrao went to Ed Parker’s Studio and found that his Blackbelt Classmates were no longer there. Particularly Rich Montgomery who helped James Wing Woo with a place to live so he wouldn’t move back to San Francisco. All of the senior students of Edmund Parker continued their studies in Chinese martial arts with James Wing Woo at his Hollywood Studio ” The Academy of Karate Kung Fu.
For 50+ years Sifu Ibrao studied many forms of kung fu and tai chi chuan with Sifu Woo and eventually began teaching his own students these ancient art forms.
James Ibrao continued to innovate his Martial Arts into a system of traditional forms in Hung Gar, Northern Long Fist, Seven Star Praying Mantis Fist and Tai Chi (Yang Style) etc.
Sijo James Ibrao Founder of Jun Bao Gung Fu transitioned from this earthly plane on September 12, 2020 of Natural Causes at 83 years old.
He leaves behind a Big Beautiful Family and hundreds of Blackbelts in many of the United States and BCS Mexico.
Jun Bao Gung Fu 