Baraw Sugbo: Diving into the Art of Knife Fighting with Eduardo Ceniza in Cebu

If you're passionate about traditional martial arts and are looking for an authentic (and slightly spicy) experience, let me tell you about my week of knife-fighting training (Baraw Sugbo) in Cebu, Philippines, under the guidance of master Eduardo Ceniza. Spoiler alert: it was intense, but at least I kept all my fingers!

Baraw Sugbo: Knife fight with Eduardo Ceniza in Cebu

As soon as I arrived, Eduardo Ceniza greeted me with his friendly smile. Training began without preamble, at the back of my hotel garden. No fancy tatami mats, no long-winded speeches: just Eduardo, me and his only training accessory... a knife (not sharpened, don't worry!).

Eduardo 'Boy' Ceniza is no ordinary master. Born in 1963, he has been immersed in the martial arts since childhood, when others were playing hopscotch. He is heir to a line of close combat experts. His father, Gregorio "Goyong" Ceniza, taught him the secrets of the knife before he knew how to tie his shoelaces.

Le Baraw Sugbo is not just a martial art, it's a lesson in survival. Every move is designed to leave you as the last survivor of an armed altercation. Basically, it's like learning to dance, except that if you miss a step, you end up on the floor.

It's a battle bare hands versus knifeThis is a rarity among Philippine systems, which generally focus on armed confrontations. It is precisely this specificity that attracted me.

Baraw Sugbo learning levels

You don't become an Eskrimador overnight. Eduardo explained the four levels of Baraw Sugbo. Spoiler: it gets more intense.

Level 1: Metodo - We start slowly with disarmament in the face of predictable angles of attack. It's like playing hide-and-seek, except you have to find a knife.
Level 2: Palakaw - Your opponent starts to act up and tries to counter your disarms. Basically, you go into "adapt or lose a hand" mode.
Level 3: Kuridas - Continuous random attacks. This is where you wish you'd taken more yoga classes to be faster.
Level 4: Juego Todo - The final boss. Everything you've learnt is put to the test. Here, even projections and ground fighting are part of the game. So good luck!

Here's a short technical video to help you understand what it looks like: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPm3ly8azBY&t=394s

My Personal Experience and Training at Baraw Sugbo with Eduardo Ceniza (Old but Guapo as he says 😉 )

10 hours of training over 5 days. Every morning, two hours of joyful torture. I sweated, but every minute was worth it.

Why face-to-face? Eduardo insists that it is impossible to capture the essence of Baraw Sugbo through online courses. The 'feel' of the fight, like the Wing Chun chi saois essential.

Each session begins with a meticulous review of the movements. Eduardo corrects every detail. It's a personalised experience, adapted to your pace, so you don't waste time.

The icing on the cake was the ever-present sense of humour. Eduardo is a man who loves to laugh, and our giggles during and after training were one of the most valuable aspects of this week.

Comparison with ACDS and Spadassins

Having already gained experience withACDS (Academy of Combat and Situation Defence) and the spadassins the comparison was inevitable.

ACDS Direct movements, eliminating superfluous gestures. Highly effective in urban environments.
Baraw Sugbo Fluidity and natural reflexes. Fine motor skills and learning over time.
Spadassins (Rico) Pragmatic, based on military efficiency. Armed combat takes precedence.

Each system has its strengths, but the Baraw Sugbo excels in spontaneous close combat.

Reflections and Lessons Learned

Baraw Sugbo is more than just a collection of techniques. It is a living heritageIt's a fighting philosophy that encourages you to hone your reflexes and intuition.

I questioned myself: too often, I tried to oversimplify. Eduardo taught me that sometimes complexity has a reason to exist.

Humility, perseverance and constant learning. That's what I remember.

At first, I had my doubts about the blockages and how sophisticated they were, because the aim of my research so far has been to simplify the techniques, because when they're too complex it's difficult to reproduce them in real-life situations. Then I remembered that that's exactly why I was there... to see the applicability but not to judge as a beginner.

The key word is humility!

So here again, we keep quiet and learn like good pupils. Gradually, I began to understand when he started to counter the disarms (palakaw) and when he started to go into the details of certain blocks, the whys and wherefores and the interest of the diversity of blocks and various disarms. But because there's always a but... Eduardo is an excellent teacher... one of those who tell you that with someone who has mastered the knife, it's better to flee... with someone who hasn't... well, it's the same thing.

Knife fighting advice and instructors

He joins the list of knife instructors for whom I have the highest regard, because they have the merit of being honest. If you want to learn how to defend yourself against knives, I can't advise you to find them because for me they are the best in France in any case:

Rico, who the experts will recognise and who is still my training partner (originally from the spadassins).
Fred PERRIN is better known as a cutlery forger, but is an excellent fighter and instructor. https://www.fredperrin.com/
Philippe PEROTTI is also better known for his shooting, but I would recommend him as a knife instructor if you are lucky enough to see him. https://www.pp-concept.fr
Eric LEMAIRE whom I also knew at ACDS
I haven't had the chance to meet Tony Lopes yet, but he's been through the same ranks, and I'd advise you to have a look at his website if you want some beautiful blades: https://www.tonylopesblades.com/
The ACDS or Citizen Academy of Defence in Situations (Fast and effective) https://www.acds-france.fr/

Conclusion

If you want to practice with Eduardo, you should know that Fabien Jolivel brings him to France from time to time, but otherwise you can go and train like me in Cebu City in the Philippines. His website: https://arnesdiablo.org/

See you on new adventures!