As a matter of interest......................
Can a Karate man beat a boxer? I can well remember this old chestnut forever popping up back in the seventies, eighties, even in the nineties. Until that is, the MMA scene took off and now I seldom hear the question. Can a boxer beat a wrestler? that was another one. Muhammed Ali tried to answer this one with a challenge match against famous Japanese wrestler Antoni Inoki. Inoki kicked Ali in the leg and lay on the ground while Ali stood over him beckoning him to his feet. Inoki wouldn't get up, and Ali certainly wasn't going to lie down with the wrestler. The farce continued like that for 15 rounds. It was a draw.
I have seen a good Karateman sort out a good boxer, I have also seen it the other way around. It depends on the fighter, the circumstances, the situation, the rules.


Talking of rules...............over the past few years watching the mma scene develop ther have been times when a hotly contested match up netween top rated mma fighters has been interrupted by an illegal blow. Such an illegal blow, usually a finger in the eye or a kick to the groin, has necessitated a brief halt to the fight in order to give the injured fighter time to recover. There then is the answer to overcoming the top well rounded athletes of the modern fight game. Train your finger jab, and your groin kick. Why punish youself doing rounds of full contact sparring or hours of exhaustive grappling when the two most effective techniques can be practised in half the time, and in the comfort of your own home? Recently in a Karate class we did some serious finger jabbing on the bag to warm up and then tested the shots on each others chest for speed, accuracy, and above all pain tolerance. Uncomfortable, to say the least, more so when you consider where the technique should actually be connecting. We're going to be kicking each other in the groin next week when we can see properly again....................

As a matter of interest............
How fit are you? Or what do you do to make you think you are fit? 'I'm on my feet all day' is one I hear often. 'I train at home' is another goody. But even if you don't use these
silly phrases I bet you think you do enough. Fitness is rather specific, I'm sure you will agree. I often get young footballers come to the dojo and really struggle to do a round on the pads. However, I bet I would have problems on the football pitch for ninety minutes too. That's why it's important to vary your training approach to get an all round angle of better fitness. I try to do strong training for four to five minute durations eg treadmill, rower, bags. That gives me the oxygen debt I feel I need, even in the first couple of minutes. A hundred double jumps on the skipping rope, straight off, ain't easy either, but that is still manageable after a fashion. I'm also into press ups, free squats, and sit ups now. All in that order. That can get tedious when you get the numbers up so I do the clap press up, dumbell squat with a jump, then dumbell sit ups so half the number but hard as hell. And these simple calisthenics you CAN do at home, no excuses. I don't road run now because of a knee injury, but I'm back on the bike this week..........I promise!

As a matter of interest.......
One of my kickboxing students ventured to the local boxing club recently and he was confused about the stance they taught. They told him he had too much weight on the front foot and that he should be sat back on his rear leg a bit more. I'm not surprised by this because I boxed for the same club over thirty years ago and was taught the same stance. But it wasn't until I started reading Bruce Lee's stuff that I got thinking. The problem with sitting on you back foot I believe, is that it's too defensive and invites your opponent to take advantage.
When over your front foot you can be more attack minded and therefore be able to strike quicker. This was Lee's philosophy and I liked it.
World boxing champion Don 'the Cobra' Curry was a brilliant example of having the weight forward and making lightning fast strikes, hence the nickname. Until, that is, our very own Lloyd Honeyghan went over and beat him up. I don't think Curry took The Honey too seriously and paid for his short sightedness.
Then, the other night I watched the 1951 rematch in the States between our very own world champion Randolph Turpin and Sugar Ray Robinson. Unfortunately, Turpin got ko'd in the later rounds but each fighter displayed the two different stances outlined above. I don't remember who held which stance because it was getting near midnight and I was getting tired but I was surprised that so many years back the forward stance was being utilized. You will also see these variations in stances in all martial arts arenas but, for me, the weight over the front foot is best.

As a Matter of Interest..............
With the furore over the MMA scene where does it leave the traditional karate scene? I think the traditional karate situation has always struggled to attract adult members for some time now but that doesn't mean it's washed up by any means. The majority of my adult class are teenagers who have moved up from the juniors and are also experienced little competitors. By the time they are sixteen seventeen they have developed the skill and aptitude to fight in cadet Karate contests and then move up to the adults. Or, they can use that experience and trained skill to test themselves in the full contact ring or even in an MMA match providing they have adapted their skill to the new format and conditioned themselves for the contact and endurance. I feel they have the ability to read a fight as it unfolds and can react well to the opponents movements. Where did they get this from? From the countless mini matches with their counterparts from the age of seven or eight where they added their normal pattern of movement with that of a fighting technique. Even if they have only done body sparring for a number of years, something which boxing coach Brendan Ingle advocates, they are still developing that ability to fight. Some are more naturally aggressive than others of course and things like mental attitude will unfold in their approach to the stiffer training when they get older. So the kids Karate class is stll a hotbed of young talent and the senior club is fairly healthy with young adults pushing us older uns.

As a matter of interest...........
I went along to the squad training session with former world Karate champion Wayne Otto to really encourage the guys of the Wado Ryu Academy to come along. It's been a long time since I did any serious Karate contest training but I thoroughly enjoyed the three hour stint that passed very quickly. The session was clearly and expertly laid out and catered for all levels so that anyone could follow. I was a little apprehensive before going wondering whether I really would enjoy the training or not but it was so good I'm thinking of making a comeback......watch out Wayne Otto.

As a matter of interest...........
The month of February, as always is the time of the Wado Academy winter karate course. This year however a very special guest will be part of the instructors' team. Katsumi Kobayashi 7th Dan has accepted an invitation to come to England from Shiomitsu Sensei and I for one will be delighted to see him as I am sure will many from the Wado Ryu fraternity. Kobayashi Sensei has been back and forth to England a few times in recent years but this will be the first time in a teaching capacity. He was a familiar figure in the 1970's teaching around the country and demonstrating his athleticism in dynamic displays at many prestigious championships. Not only is he famous for his Karate ability but also for his most amiable character. Those who have had the fortune to visit Japan have often found this affable Karate instructor giving guided tours of Mount Fuji, or impromptu private Karate lessons without so much as charging a single yen. They don't come much more honest than this man so get along to the winter course and meet the man himself.