Hahah...this is great. If ever Puma picked the wrong Karateka to criticise it was these guys. Gavin Mullholland and his group are well respected and are doing something with Karate that is well needed. This looks EXACTLY like the Shidokan sparring we do and let me tell you...when you've had a couple of leg kicks, a shot to the plexus and been ragged about in some clinch work EVERY technique looks sloppy (not that I thought these guys looked that bad). Sure the no head punching is flaw but then ALL sparring formats have flaws. I know for a fact that during club sparring head shots will used, drilled and perfected. Out of all the Karate videos on Youtube to pick I've no idea why you picked these ones.
if you don't like it, don't watch it; the rest of us (who can identify with the people involved, regardless of the specific content) recognize that there's a lot to be gained from watching normal people demonstrate their abilities and the results of their training, and will continue to get something out of things that don't live up to the standards of some guy on the internet. What did you gain from watching this then?
Ah, only a bit of my post came out. I'll do it again. If ever Puma picked the wrong Karateka to criticise it was these guys Why? Gavin Mullholland and his group are well respected and are doing something with Karate that is well needed What exactly? I've never seen him. Is there any footage of him?
the classical hogwash would be "fighting spirit;" simply, a desire to train harder! the energy and doggedness the film highlights is infectious. chin down, hands up, wade in, kick'em in the leg, punch'em in the face, take'em down, choke'em out... i'm ready for class. gotta wait six hours, though. karateka practicing (almost) full range, hard contact sparring. what's not to like?
What's not to like? Well, for me, they wasn't punching or kicking very well. For example, there were quite a few attempts at Ura-zuki, or uppercuts if you like to the body. But they were either thrown from the wrong distance, or position. They weren't throwing them from the correct angles, and not working to get in position, just marching forward, therefore having little or no effect. They weren't really throwing their body behind the shot, just arm swings, usually allowing the other person to punch over them at the same time. The fact that not one person did this properly suggests they just haven't been taught any other way. Also, for me, the kicks were generally poor. There was one good Maegeri, but other than that, nothing. Too many kicks got caught were they were just swung, a few head kicks either went sailing over the opponents head, or, the ones that did land were completely ignored. I was always taught to kick down and through on a round-house leg kick. The opponent will buckle. I could go on, but I think you get my point. I like tough sparring, but there has to be skill, technique, thought, etc, involved as well. I don't expect every technique to be perfect, but for me most were not good.
Well show me what's up. We all want to see it! If that was crap Karate, I wanna see the damn good stuff! I feel like such a newbie . . . I'm so deprived I can't even tell the wheat from the chaff. Show me the goods! I WANTS it!
...you're comparing a local tournament to someone who won the Kyokushin all-Japan tournament twice? No wonder you're underwhemed That would be like saying that no boxers besides Muhammad Ali and Manny Paquiano should ever upload videos to YouTube. No singers besides Plácido Domingo and Luciano Pavarotti should ever post videos to YouTube. Etc. That's not what YouTube is.
What exactly? I've never seen him. Is there any footage of him? Gavin Mullholland wrote the book "Four Shades of Black" and as mentioned has coached some Goju guys into MMA comps (although I feel Neil Grove did well on size more than anything). Gavin Mullholland has worked the doors and spent years training in Japan (IIRC). Now none of that stands up on it's own per se but as an overall resume that little lot earmarks Gavin as someone that is taking his martial arts very seriously indeed (and has accomplished far more than most of us here have). Given that, for example, I've seen someone of the likes of Kanazawa teaching some VERY dodgy bunkai on Youtube there are more fruitful targets I feel. Look up Tekki bunkai. For a 10th dan Kanazawa doesn't seem to have a clue what to do with it.
there's an interview with gavin in the interviews section also, from sensei kanazawa's bunkai clips, i get the feeling that he likes the word "attacking"
you're comparing a local tournament to someone who won the Kyokushin all-Japan tournament twice? No wonder you're underwhemed Lol! Finally you get where I am coming from, and why I don't feel posting a video would help.
Hey Puma, just to make it easier to follow your posts, could you use the Quote button at the bottom of the post you want to reply to? If you want to reply to several posts you can click the +" button at the bottom of each one in turn, then just click on the usual add reply button at the top or bottom of the thread and they'll all be quoted so you can answer each in turn. Should make your life easier too Mitch
Well if that's your position, where you're coming from is asinine. Sorry, but the idea that nobody but legendary world champions should ever share videos of what they do is, simply, asinine.
Ohhhh . . . I see, you had no idea that there are people of different of different skill sets within your art. Let me see if I can explain it to you. Ever heard of belts?
Yohan, are you on drugs? I don't think you are reading these posts properly. Your last post made absolutely no sense whatsoever.
But surely the idea that if they do share them, no-one can post anything negative about them is equally asinine? Hands up who's never posted a negative comment about a youtube video?
There's nothing wrong with criticizing a video that karateka put up. That's not what I have a problem with. The problem I have is when someone says "they're not at Matsui's level so they shouldn't have put that video up." It's not the existence of criticism that bothers me, but the nature of this specific criticism.
No, I think you misunderstood me. A few posts back I did say it was the name that threw me. If it said it was just a small club competition I probably wouldn't have even looked at it to be honest, and certainly wouldn't have taken much notice. But I got the impression it was going to be something really impressive, due mainly to the title given to the video.
You know what...I think it IS something really impressive. It's people that self identify themselves as Karateka trying their skills in a fairly unrestricted rule set competition and not worrying that it might make them look sloppy or unskilled in some cases. It's something that, despite it being over 15 years since the first UFC, is still pretty thin on the ground.
