The Instructor
Grandmaster Jerry B. McCleary
Maha Guru Serbatik
Grandmaster and Founder of the Serbatik System
Maha Guru Jerry B. McCleary began training in 1976 under Sensei Greg Chadick. Fifty years of continual study later, he is proud to be not only a senior instructor but still a student of the arts. He founded the Serbatik System and the International Serbatik Federation (ISF) in 2005, and has taught in the Knoxville area for more than twenty-five years — primarily through private instruction and seminars.
- Five decades of practice across Filipino, Indonesian, Chinese, Japanese, Thai, French, Russian, and Brazilian martial traditions.
- Master-instructor (Mataas Na Guro) in Pekiti Tirsia Kali; senior rank in Pentjak Silat Serak.
- Direct student of Sifu Larry Hartsell (since 1996) and Guro Dan Inosanto (since 1998) — the two senior teachers in his lineage.
Five decades of practice
Training History
Maha Guru McCleary started his training in 1976 under Sensei Greg Chadick. Over the next five decades he trained in arts spanning Filipino, Indonesian, Chinese, Japanese, Thai, French, Russian, and Brazilian traditions — including Jeet Kune Do, Jun Fan Gung Fu, Kali, Vee Arnis, Pentjak Silat Serak, Muay Thai, Wing Chun, Fu Jow Pai, Ju-Jitsu, Sambo, Shoot Wrestling, Savate, Yang Tai Chi Chuan, Pekiti Tirsia Kali, Lameco Escrima, Kempo, Boxing, Sanuces Ju-Jitsu, and others.
He trained directly under some of the foremost martial arts grandmasters of his generation, deepening into specific arts over years of focused study and earning instructor and master-instructor rank in several of them.
In 2005 he founded the System of Serbatik and the International Serbatik Federation. In 2016 Serbatik Fighting Systems opened — the current public-facing brand of the system he developed across thirty years of cross-training and synthesis.
Direct teachers
Studied Under
Grandmaster McCleary trained directly under some of the foremost martial artists of his generation. The two senior teachers of the Jeet Kune Do line — Sifu Larry Hartsell and Guro Dan Inosanto — are listed first; the Lineage page charts that stream in full. Alongside it run Serbatik's other streams: Pentjak Silat Serak under Maha Guru Victor de Thouras, Pekiti Tirsia Kali under Tuhon William McGrath, Sanuces Ju-Jitsu in the line of Dr. Moses Powell and Prof. Charles Allen, and Thai Boxing under Master Chai — each a direct teacher-to-student transmission.
Sifu Larry Hartsell
Bruce Lee's senior student. Co-founder of the Jun Fan / Jeet Kune Do Grappling Association. Trained Grandmaster McCleary across JKD, Lameco Escrima, Lacoste Inosanto Kali, Pentjak Silat, Shoot Wrestling, Sambo, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (since 1996); appointed him State Director of the JKD Grappling Association in 1999.
Guro Dan Inosanto
Bruce Lee's principal student. Trained Grandmaster McCleary across Inosanto Kali, Jun Fan / JKD, Lacoste Inosanto Kali, Maphilindo Silat, and Ju-Jitsu (since 1998).
Tuhon William McGrath
President of Pekiti Tirsia International. Awarded Grandmaster McCleary Guru Isa (1999) and Mataas Na Guro / Master Instructor (2004) in Pekiti Tirsia.
Maha Guru Victor de Thouras
Founder of the VDT Pentjak Silat Federation. Awarded Grandmaster McCleary Pembantu Guru and Senior Representative for the Eastern United States (2003), Council of Elders (2004), and Guro (2006) in Pentjak Silat Serak.
Mataas Na Guro Zach Whitson
Mataas Na Guro of Pekiti Tirsia International; master of Pekiti Tirsia, Doces Pares, and American Kempo.
Dr. Moses Powell
Grandmaster of Sanuces Ju-Jitsu.
Prof. Charles Allen
Sanuces Ju-Jitsu, Vee Arnis, and Aijukemar Ryu. Awarded Grandmaster McCleary Shodan in Sanuces Ju-Jitsu (1997).
Guru Chris Gielen
Pentjak Silat Serak.
Guru Mike Roberts
Pentjak Silat Serak.
Across fifty years
Arts Practiced
Maha Guru McCleary has trained in more than thirty arts — and Serbatik draws on every one of them.
- Jeet Kune Do
- Jun Fan Gung Fu
- Lacoste Inosanto Kali
- Maphilindo Silat
- Savate
- Muay Thai
- Krabi Krabong
- Boxing
- Judo
- Ju Jitsu
- Brazilian Jiu Jitsu
- Sanuces Ju Jitsu
- Aijukemar Ryu
- Aikido
- Vee Arnis
- Vee Jitsu
- Kenjitsu
- Pentjak Silat Serak
- Pentjak Silat Tongkat
- Silak
- Mande Muda Silat
- Pekiti Tirsia Kali
- Lameco Kali
- Illustrisimo Kali
- Harimau Silat
- Wing Chun
- Tai Chi Chuan
- San Shou
- Shoot Wrestling
- Greco Roman Wrestling
- Catch as Catch Can
- Sambo
- Fu Jow Pai
- Kempo
Current titles
Credentials & Ranks
- Maha Guru Pukulan Pentjak Silat Serbatik (Grandmaster and Founder)
- Mataas Na Guro Pekiti Tirsia Kali (Master Instructor)
- Pentjak Silat Serak Council of Elders Member (Former)
- Pentjak Silat Serak Association Eastern United States Senior Representative (Former)
- Tennessee State Director, Jun Fan / Jeet Kune Do Grappling Association (Former)
- Jeet Kune Do Instructor
- JKD Kali-Silat Instructor
- Pentjak Silat Serak Instructor
- Jun Fan Gung Fu Instructor
- Tai Chi Chuan Instructor
- Sanuces Ju-Jitsu Shodan
- Boxing Trainer
1976 to today
Timeline
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