Jeff Smith and His Contemporaries: Lewis, Wallace, Norris, Corley

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Grand Master Jeff Smith fought, coached and worked alongside the founders of American sport karate and kickboxing. He came from the Texas network of Allen Steen and Pat Burleson, beat Bill Wallace in 1973, won his PKA title the same night as Joe Lewis and Wallace in 1974, defended it on a Joe Corley card in 1976, and today works with Corley at PKA Worldwide. This page records the documented connections.^1,2,3,4,5

Joe Lewis

Smith and Lewis were teammates on the 1974 U.S. tour of Europe and won their world titles on the same night in Los Angeles, Lewis at heavyweight.^6,3,7 With Joe Corley and Bill Wallace, Smith presents the Joe Lewis Eternal Warrior Award at the Battle of Atlanta.⁸

Bill Wallace

Smith beat Wallace 5–1 at the U.S. Pro-Am in Ocean City in 1973.² They toured Europe together in 1974 and won PKA titles the same night, Wallace at middleweight.^6,3 In 1987 they coached the U.S. team together at the WAKO World Championships in Munich: “Having these two great champions as coaches gave the Americans the direction and inspiration needed to sweep all three World Team Cups.”⁹

Chuck Norris

Smith is one of the named witnesses in Black Belt’s retrospective on Chuck Norris’s early career, “Before Hollywood.”¹⁰

Joe Corley

Corley promoted Smith’s 1976 title rematch with Wally Slocki in Atlanta, televised on “The Champions.”⁴ In November 2022 Corley, as CEO of PKA Worldwide, announced Smith as President of Sports Operations.^5,13,14 The two co-promoted Stephen Oliver to 8th Degree in 2006.¹⁵

Pat Burleson

Burleson was one of the Texas black belts who built Jhoon Rhee’s college-club network in which Smith started in 1965.¹⁵ He signed Smith’s 10th Degree certificate in 2016 and sat on the 2015 board for Stephen Oliver’s 9th Degree.^16,15

Allen Steen

Steen, Jhoon Rhee’s first American black belt in Texas, built the network that produced Smith’s generation of fighters.^1,17 Smith fought at Steen’s 10th U.S. Championships in Dallas in 1973, and Steen presented his 10th Degree in 2016.^18,19,16

Other rivals and peers

Howard Jackson: the decade’s top rival; Smith beat him 7–6 in the 1973 U.S. Open Professional final.²
Wally Slocki: beaten twice for the world title, in 1974 and 1976.^3,4
Dominique Valera: beaten over nine rounds in Paris in 1978.^20,21
Mike Anderson: promoter of the 1974 championships; Smith confirmed his death to Martial Arts Professional in 2026.²²

Frequently asked questions

Did Jeff Smith fight Bill Wallace?

Yes. Smith beat Wallace 5–1 at the 1973 U.S. Pro-Am in Ocean City; they later coached the 1987 U.S. WAKO team together.^2,9

What is Jeff Smith’s connection to Joe Corley?

Corley promoted Smith’s 1976 title defense in Atlanta and, as PKA Worldwide CEO, named him President of Sports Operations in 2022.^4,5

Work with Grand Master Jeff Smith

School owners can book a free Growth Diagnostic: 30 minutes with Grand Master Jeff Smith and 30 minutes with Grand Master Stephen Oliver. See how it works.