What do you think? Karate that looks like boxing.

[j1123s]

Ok, so we train in kihon. We practice kata. We learn bunkai. We practice formal kumite. We strike makiwara. Maybe we meditate. We might study kobudo.

So... How come in a fight, sparring, tournament ( knock down or tag type), Karateka end up looking like a BOXER or KICKBOXER?

[Fairfax_Uechi]

Often you'll see that because, unless someone has been training a very long time, they're revert to bad habits when the heat is on. It takes a long long time to be able to have skills so ingrained that you don't go to what you're describing.

In our dojo we spend a lot of time doing slow speed drills. You do these over and over and over to get technique down. Then you speed it up once you have the technique down. Then you slow it down again to get even better. Doing techniques fast right away hides mistakes and doesn't allow you to see what you're doing wrong.

[wyx]

Beacuse the rules in most tournaments dont allow open hand techniques i.e strikes and grabs which utilise 'chambering'.

Also people conditioned for the knockdown tourneys tend to take the punches rather than block them, this is for the same reason as above plus the fact you would be using some form of boxing gloves which hinder effective blocking.

The only excpetion I have seen is Kyokoshin tournaments which are knockdown but with no punches to the face. These fighters dont always stand like a boxer, but again kyokushin fighters train to take hits rather than block them.

In conclusion its basically down to adapting to the rules.

[Traditional-Fist]

Ok, so we train in kihon. We practice kata. We learn bunkai. We practice formal kumite. We strike makiwara. Maybe we meditate. We might study kobudo.

So... How come in a fight, sparring, tournament ( knock down or tag type), Karateka end up looking like a BOXER or KICKBOXER?

It is all in the training. Your comments also hold true for kung fu. When your training is slow, detailed and faithful to your art then eventually you will fight the way you were meant to in your particular art other wise you will do the "boxer thing" i.e. jab, wide swings and bouncing around, which is good for boxing and fits within its theories and concepts, but not good for karate nor kung fu.

[y2_sub]

Ok, so we train in kihon. We practice kata. We learn bunkai. We practice formal kumite. We strike makiwara. Maybe we meditate. We might study kobudo.

So... How come in a fight, sparring, tournament ( knock down or tag type), Karateka end up looking like a BOXER or KICKBOXER?

What exactly do you mean , they way you dress ( i mean gear not uniform ) or the way you fight ???

[Shorin Ryuu]

I think part of the answer is that the rules of sparring and tournaments create an environment where boxing is very useful. Boxing is very scientific form of sport fighting using a closed fist. It only makes sense that it would look similar to what a lot of karateka do when they do sports or fight with a lot of rules. You can't do a lot of things that make karate "karate" in a very sport environment. Certainly it is possible to do karate while looking like you are doing boxing. In tournaments and the like, you are simply not seeing the whole depth and range of techniques which are an integral part of what karate is.

[BlueDragon1981]

Good points...most of the time the good moves are banned from tournaments etc, or we don't know or arent taught to use the other moves because it is hard to teach them without hurting someone...not a good thing to do in this sue happy country....oh no my coffee was hot i'm gonna sue

[Shorin Ryuu]

Actually, everyone always citing the McDonald's coffee case always bugs me.

1. Old lady was held partially responsible because she put the coffee cup in her lap.

2. The coffee was heated about 40-50 degrees hotter than it should have been.

(I'm unsure on the exact numbers for the coffee temperature...but they were way higher than "safe" levels)

3. The coffee gave her 2nd and 3rd degree burns.

4. She originally asked only for enough money to cover her medical expenses (way less than a million dollars).

5. McDonald's refused to pay and settle outside of court, even though there were other cases of too hot coffee reported (they heated the coffee excessively hot so it would last longer without having to replace it in most all their locations).

6. The amount was determined by the judge: 2 days worth of coffee sales. It was more of a preventive measure to prevent negligence from happening again.

7. McDonald's clearly was at fault for negligence here and causing risk to customers by offering dangerous products (even if she just drank it she would obviously burn herself).

8. There are plenty of examples of frivolous lawsuits...choose one of those instead.

[Menjo]

also some people with little training may not be able to fight very well in a stance becase of their inexperiance

[MadMatt]

I feel alot of the traditional karate stances have very little practicle application in actual fighting. Their main purpose is to develop strength, co-ordination and balance whilst moving which is very beneficial to the martial artist's long term development but when it comes to actual fighting the boxing/kickboxing method is the most efficient and effective.

The reason people use it is not because of a deficiancy in their training or ability it is because of their basic understanding of what works in continous fighting.