Gabriel Varga is WRONG!

Going over the misconceptions in Gabriel Varga's recent video on Karate Techniques.
Gabriel's original video:
• 5 Stupid Things Karate...
My links: linktr.ee/leot...
Philips Instagram: @irishman_in_okinawa

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

Here is a link to Gabriel’s original video if you wish to watch it. He’s still a great martial artist even if I disagree here. kzbin.info/www/bejne/l3mneqJugtWfrrcsi=VnziXJlCHxxEarxl

[@brucele2776]

Could you proved in fight against him that he was wrong?

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@brucele2776 could you prove anymore that you never watched the video

[@brucele2776]

@@StrykeTeamOfficial the question is could you beat him?

[@brucele2776]

@@StrykeTeamOfficial if he is wrong try to fight him

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@brucele2776 how would fighting him prove anything I said in this video. You obviously didn’t watch it 🤦🏾‍♂️.

[@nicholai7300]

I'm an ex professional combat sports athlete and everything Gabriel says is mostly correct, he's speaking in general sport context. You brought up a great point with the back fist. I'm a southpaw, I like to pat the lead hand and backfist jab as I step outside to make an angle for my cross/hook/leftkick, or backfist, step out, rear kick, lead kick, cross, if they don't stay in the pocket. Lot's of options from that sequence.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

I get the context and I agree with you. My issue isn’t actually with Gabriel’s sports applications, minus the backfist, but with his statement “throw it away” if it doesn’t work within that context. And correcting mistakes about the context not just for him but also because they are common misconceptions and I thought this would be a good way to address it.

[@WadeSmith-oe5xd]

He's never fought a No rules handicap match against Okinawan black belts. I have. I think he's wrong.

[@emanuelazote8988]

​@@WadeSmith-oe5xd😂😂

[@threebeans5006]

@@WadeSmith-oe5xdbruh lmao

[@TheLuconic]

@@WadeSmith-oe5xdfair enough. Just like the majority of couch keyboard warriors who say that if it’s not on mma, it doesn’t work. By the end of the day, what matters is the fighter and Gabriel is an amazing fighter. But he did overstretched his knowledge by saying to discard the edge kick without understanding how it’s actually supposed to work.

[@sultanofsomaliland9332]

He said in combat at the start, so in a sports context. He's a glory world champion so I'd go with what he says.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

Nah he’s right for sport. My issue isn’t that I just pointed out how they work in non-sport

[@sultanofsomaliland9332]

@@StrykeTeamOfficial you said at the start that even in sport he is wrong.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@sultanofsomaliland9332 I meant for one move in particular where I disagree. Specifically the backfist because Ali would use it. And I take a video from a boxing world champ who explains it so it’s someone with equal credibility. He has actually seen the video and approves. You gotta watch the whole thing my man.

[@athenry]

It's amazing how people who do not fight seem to know the best way to fight, and always want to "correct" people who actually do fight.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

Good thing I fight isn’t it. Also, if you actually watched and actually comprehended the video you would see how dumb this comment is.

[@athenry]

@@StrykeTeamOfficial I did watch the video. And comprehended it. And I box. Also did karate way back in my younger days back in the 80s, full contact. They say if you throw a rock at a pack of dogs, the one who yelps is the one that got hit. I'm just saying. Regarding your issue with the side kick information, Varga is correct.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@athenry I disagree. I actually just got hit with it today in sparring during clinch sparring. However, my argument isn’t even its usefulness in combat sports in the first place even though I’ve had it used on me successfully. The fact that you think I am actually disagreeing with Varga on a combat sports level let’s me know you’re not comprehending the video. The only time I truly 100% disagreed with him I inserted a clip of a world champion boxer to validate my point. You 100% did not comprehend the video.

[@athenry]

@@StrykeTeamOfficial Perhaps you are right. I will rewatch the video. By the way I hope I didn't come across as rude. I probably did. Honestly, my comment was mostly directed at the commenters on numerous social media platforms who, well, don't fight but think they know all about what works and what doesn't. By the way, I won my first fight (full contact karate) way back in the day with a side kick - used the heel as my striking surface and knocked enough wind out of my opponent he didn't want to continue. So there's that. :)

[@athenry]

@@StrykeTeamOfficial Ok I just rewatched the whole video. Mea culpa. I see your points, and understand where you are coming from. And I acknowledge that I misunderstood what you were trying to say. And, let me just say that I really do respect the fact that you bring up the ORIGINAL intent of Okinawa-te, that is was NOT designed for two karateka to square off in the kumite ring of death or whatever, but that it was meant to defend oneself against generally untrained street thugs in a non sporting environment. 👍

[@lannelbishop3668]

The double punch is not a take down, it’s the fusion technique.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

I will accept this explanation

[@lannelbishop3668]

@@StrykeTeamOfficial seriously judo study is the answer to unlocking the bunkai behind kata and seemingly dumb techniques.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@lannelbishop3668 also 100% agree

[@sephikong7880]

Ha!

[@timwitherspoon1378]

This is Terrible Tim Witherspoon. I love exploring the different arts and finding the similarities. I even did a video on Karate's rising block and Wing Chun's Bong Sau

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

I didn't know that! mind if i react to some of your videos. Sounds like the type of thing i like to learn from!

[@timwitherspoon1378]

You can use my footage anyway you want. I give you full permission. What is your email@@StrykeTeamOfficial

[@iforgotitlol]

The double punch in bassai dai actually breaks the two punches separately into two, the first is the upper punch is a block against a punch to the face and the lower punch is a punch to the body.

[@seamusnaughton8217]

Your 100 per right thanks for standing up for karate

[@toyoseries]

*You're*

[@ZionSmith-gj9ow]

I don’t understand why everybody is being so dismissive I actually thought throughout the video his criticisms were pretty fair.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

Do you mean me or Varga?

[@ZionSmith-gj9ow]

@@StrykeTeamOfficial You of course, sorry I should have made that clear.English is not really my best language. I think your video is great 👍

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@ZionSmith-gj9ow thank you! And honestly you spoke fine I think I’m just to used to KZbin negativity

[@M_K-Bomb]

Facts and knowledge. It was great to see the side kick shown in it's original Karate method.

[@releases3811]

At first I thought this was going to be some bullshido rant. I’m glad I stayed. You make some fair points. I also did TKD for around 12 years, moved onto full contact. I’m glad that you made it abundantly clear in the beginning that you’re not saying that you know better than Gabriel in terms of full combat. Glad to see that traditional martial arts are still going strong.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@releases3811 thank you!!!

[@brahamwijaya1039]

In fact kansetsu geri is a dangerous kick. Its basically an old version of oblique kick. Probably done in a closed stance to break opponents posture or even break their knee...

[@nicholasnj3778]

Hook and Overhand , but there is also a "Whip Punch" not quite a overhand but more of a ridgehand with a fist, Bas Rutten has talked about this and Islam Makhachev hit a perfectly placed "whip punch" to the jaw of Charles Oliveria that dropped Charles, the arm was totally strait with a closed fist just like a ridge hand would be, he hits with the "Hammer" Hammer fist and does not break his hand which proves it works

[@nicholasnj3778]

go to 5:34 to 5:41, Cejudo calls it a hook, its a "long hook" as Bas would say with the arm totally straight whipping the punch just like a ridge hand .... kzbin.info/www/bejne/gqjJq5mdrclkgbs

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

I just now saw this reply. Thank you i'm going to take a look!

[@borisp9163]

What you describing is basically right hook, you have to adapt position of your fist to distance of target, you cannot have thumb up for max distance because you would land with fingers, so its palm down fist, and its always better than straight fingers, but also dont forgent that wearing gloves is much more forgiving for possition of your hand…

[@nicholasnj3778]

@@borisp9163 imo a :"whip punch" is different than a hook

[@jamesmunroe6558]

Gabriel is new to KZbin? No, dude, he's got 500 times as many subscribers as you... and he's a world-class fighter. You do make some excellent points, though.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

Gabriel is new to KZbin compared to most other martial arts KZbin’s even a third his size. I am also new to KZbin. Gabriel is also a famous world class fighter who is posting quality content every day and blew up at a ridiculously fast pace and his content constantly goes viral for a martial art post. But compared to a lot of channels he is still new. It wasn’t a comparison to me. And clarification “I am not saying from creation date of channel but from when he started taking it seriously and posting daily”

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

He’s just better at it than me lol

[@ElDrHouse2010]

I was going to critizice the video but yeah good points made.

[@ikust007]

5:35 agree with you . Been training for more than 35 years . And switched to full muy Thai / Let Wei. Your points are excellent . He doesn’t know the history . That said : in full combat , the way Karate is taught now is 90% ridiculous. Like kata with no Bunkai…

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@ikust007 agreed! Without bunkai kata loses most of its value

[@UmarAmriyev]

Bro watch karate combat matches and see all the effective strikes that karate has. That is it

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

You sir… are maybe not able to comprehend what this video is actually talking about. It’s ok, thinking isn’t for everyone and neither is the attention span to watch a video over 5 minutes. Have a nice day

[@ikust007]

9:42 back fist : full works but mainly street efficient .

[@honigdachs.]

He's definitely wrong about the backfist. There's a lot of utility to that technique. Anybody who uses a flick jab should also look into the backfist. Especially in MMA with small gloves it can be an effective technique - especially when thrown while angling off (tai sabaki) or to come around the guard. The usual argument of "if you don't see it in MMA, it doesn't work" is moot because the MMA meta is traditionally limited and sometimes a bit slow to catch up. That's why every few years you see a "new" (most of the time actually traditional) technique pop up in MMA and then all of a sudden people start training and using it. Everybody thought front kicks are nonsense until Lyoto Machida and Anderson Silva knocked people out with it. Same thing with fumikomi (oblique kick), calf kicks ... Right now some people have started discovering the uchi mawashi geri (inverted snap kick). Also obviously wrong about the ridge hand - that has been working forever. The thing that you need to know is that a lot of times, you're not actually connecting with the hand, but with the hard bone above the wrist joint or the forearm. Works like a charm. Same thing with "knife hand" - you don't actually connect with the fingers of your hand, but with the hard bone close to wrist joint.

[@saiyanninjawarriorz]

Well his opponent in Karatr combat was giving him the business until the eye poke. I would never underestimate Karate

[@stefankeeney8462]

Finalllly an intellectual called him out. I’ll be honest I’ve noticed a bit of a shift in his personality in recent videos in which he comes off just a little bit arrogant. In one video I saw him trash the “52 blocks” style and while he’s right that no high level pro fighter has claimed to come from that background, many of their elbow and cross face type of blocks are widely used in muay thai (even if Muay Thai fighters don’t know about 52 blocks and 52 blocks don’t know Muay Thai, is the same concepts!)

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

I haven’t seen that particular video but seeing as that style is newish and came from prison, the history itself doesn’t lead to it having high level combat sport fighters yet. Also, that style itself isn’t a sport, if you want to compete in a sport you probably start training in that sport or you did traditional systems as a kid. No one’s putting kids in the prison style, at least not yet. Not having a bunch of pro fighters from there so far makes sense. And you make a strong point on the similarities existing.

[@Richerrr-g6g]

You have to take what pro fighters say with a grain of salt. There may be 2 amazing high level fighters that think completely opposite on something or a technique and they both could be completely right in their own perspectives because of stylistic differences. A technique that works sometimes for one super flashy risky style might be completely wrong for 90% of guys because almost no one can fight like that one different fighter.

[@stefankeeney8462]

@@Richerrr-g6g 100% accurate

[@adamwalker5861]

Different techniques work for different people and opinions vary. Plus many situations demand different solutions

[@shaun1552]

Our Tyson Fury, here in the uk, also uses the backfist jab, very effective

[@murdermane934]

Larry Holmes was saying to flick your jab as well

[@XD_SPIDER]

Varga is right! Semicontact is useless and that makes Karate useless only kyokushin is exception

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

With all due respect. Karate kata has nothing to do with semi contact. Semi contact was created after for a competition format and the kata are mostly full contact grappling. Also, many karate styles are full contact not just kyokushin

[@XD_SPIDER]

@@StrykeTeamOfficial I've been training Kyokushin for last 6 years and we are conditioned to become tough as nails. we are trained to never let our guard down! we are prepared for full contacts fights bare knuckles! long story short if a regular person wanted to join karate and ends up joining shotokan, do u think he will stand up to his bullies? do you think those bullshido katas work? hell no!!

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@XD_SPIDER Kyokushin is great. I;m not arguing that because I agree. What I am saying is it is not the only karate style that has full contact training. Also, the kata's do work if we don't practice them the crap way. To be fair, it was actually Funakoshi, the founder of Shotokan, who changed the way katas were trained and removed the grappling and full contact from the training. Karate losing its original purpose and becoming so impractical is the actual reason for this channel. Half of my videos are about how to actually use the katas in a way that can work in a real fight. Shotokan if done right would almost look like Judo with striking. However, it does not because people don't train properly. I will agree that the way people train katas right now make them useless for the most part. however, if they were trained like they were before Funakoshi they would be much more useful. That's my issue with the kata are useless statement. People made it useless due to training in unrealistic bunkai ranges. its not the kata alone.

[@DiscoFever1970]

Useless? That is a strong word. Semi-contact offers an opponent, conditioning, and an opportunity to test techniques. People have to work in the morning. Not worthless.

[@tatumergo3931]

I just realized that this whole argument comes from the difference of having learned American karate versus Japanese karate-do, or Okinawan karate. IMO the difference between learning something retarded, and learning something normal....as offensive as it might sound.. IDGAF!

[@TheLuconic]

Yea I get it. Karate originally didn’t have high kicks so the bladed side kick worked for those reasons. I also remember someone saying that doing that same edge kick to the head is actually bad for your foot and that’s why people in Savat do the stool side kicks for that. But really I understand why you disagree with what Gabriel said when it comes to the bladed side kick.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@TheLuconic thank you! I appreciate you giving it an honest listen!

[@tatumergo3931]

There's even a bigger reason for karate blows and strikes being the way they are, and as many different types there are. Number one and most importantly, karate is and was never meant for sports competition. Although karate is a type of pugilism that could work as a boxing or kickboxing sport, karate in its original format is not designed for that. It was not even meant for that at all, and the argument is as old as karate itself. Basically karate doesn't work with gloves or protection on! Number two, therefore it must be understood that each and every single blow and strike in karate is designed for a particular target in the human body. The different cavities found in the human body not only allow but actually requires that the striking be done and delivered in a certain way. Number three, the way karate blows and strikes are executed are the most important factor in what makes unique and different from other martial arts. Karate striking is done in a percussion fashion, not in a push through method like boxing or its old ancestor kung-fu. Karate true striking is about using pressure points for either incapacitating or killing the opponent by causing serious injuries or damage. In conclusion: original karate was mostly closely resembles chancery pugilism, or ancient Greek pankration. A method of unarmed combat designed for warfare in which grappling and striking was used to defeat your opponents.

[@RodieLEE]

hes saying it in sport context, as much as i love karate this video is jus not that neccesary to make, you had a point though, OSS!

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

True, he was talking about sports. I just think he didn't make that distinction clear enough. I don't disagree with him in a sports context for the most part. But, I also thought this was a good chance to cover some of the misconceptions he shared in his video and a nice excuse to share some karate history people may not have known.

[@adhdmed]

Ridge hand supposed to land on side of Neck to stop blood knocking opponent out.

[@amusik7]

Adjusting which techniques you train vs. which ones you omit is a really interesting one. Overall there is such a tendency to follow what seems to work in MMA and BJJ that people just focus on the staples, and this conversely opens up a lot of potential for using techniques outside that scope. It's clear when you watch for example Jesse Enkamp fight some people - he puts in often techniques that no one really trains, and for that reason they have no defence for it and he catches them off guard. Of course you should primarily focus on the important main techniques, but it's interesting conversation to have - at what point have you taken out too much from your arsenal that it no longer benefits you?

[@calonordstoast]

The fact you even made this video is why no one takes Karate seriously. Arguing amongst yourselves about semantics or minor differences in technique that amount to little or nothing in a ring or the street.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

Then stop watching. lol

[@calonordstoast]

@@StrykeTeamOfficial get rid of the clickbait title and no one would be watching, like the rest of your vids lol

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@calonordstoast love you to big man

[@calonordstoast]

@@StrykeTeamOfficial keep up the shit content 👍

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@calonordstoast just be sure to come back to the next one and comment again. Helps with the algorithm

[@davetozin9502]

I've been following Gabriel Varga's career for almost a decade, and I was prepared to be dismissive of this video. However, I watched it through and found myself agreeing with the points that you laid out. I'm not a Karate practitioner. I've trained in San Da, and Muay Thai.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@davetozin9502 thank you for taking the time to really listen to it. That’s rare on KZbin and I appreciate it! I train Muay Thai myself as well. Never San Da even though I like the incorporation of the takedowns a lot.

[@WadeSmith-oe5xd]

I hardly ever kick above solar plexus level, and I used to beat two Okinawan 2nd dans in a 1vs2 handicap in a Full Contact "Close to no rules" fight.. However, that was 23 years ago. However, I am heavily trained in the following fighting styles and techniques. Sanchin kata Seisan kata Isshinryu Karate 1st kyu Judo Brown Belt equivalent Japanese Small Circle equivalent Brown belt BJJ can tap out some BJJ black belts and brown belts on the ground. I agree do not throw away technique. Ridge hands can be trained to break a baseball bat, so that means it can theoretically crack a human skull. Gabriel is just wrong. I sometimes uses a backfist in combination with a front snap kick in a "two strikes simultaneously" situation. I was literally taught the concept of simultaneously blocking and counter-attacking or simultaneously double-attacking. Toe kicks can easily be adjusted to be a kick with the ball of the foot and you only lose an inch or so of reach, so whatever. I think Gabriel is wrong again.

[@TetaroSeth]

I watch a lot of karate videos on KZbin. This is my favourite one I have seen in a long, long time. Subscribed.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

Thank you! I hope I can live up to that standard!

[@utv96]

As an experienced karate-ka, why would you ever agree with anyone saying that one technique is “more useful,” or “better” than another? Saying that an overhand right is “better” than a ridge-hand is equivalent to saying that an adjustable wrench is better, or more useful than a Phillips head screwdriver. Those are two different tools, designed for two different purposes.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@utv96 because if I am going to fix a problem and I am only given two options, a sturdy and well made 5mm wrench vs an adjustable wrench, maybe the adjustable wrench is a bit more bulky and difficult compared to having a wrench that is a perfect match to the job. However, if I am unaware of what tool i will need (similar to a fight) I would rather come in with the adjustable wrench than hope I just happen to have the perfect wrench in the right size. The overhand can do pretty much everything a ridgehand can do with a few exceptions to where the overhand might be in a slightly better range for the KO. But if I went into a fight and was only allowed to choose one I would pick the overhand because its range is both farther but also easier to adjust to closer ranges in a fight. I am not saying ridgehand can’t have a place and a specialist can’t demolish people with it. But if I had to pick one I think it’s a very clear choice.

[@utv96]

@@StrykeTeamOfficial : Ok…

[@andreamarcelli9456]

Peace and love. I apologise if my retoric sounded offensive; english is not my mother language. I myself been practicing and studying this matter for a couple of decades. I am aware that we can look at this topic from multiple perspectives. I suppose, at the end it doesn' really matter what one practices as long as he enjoys it and gets some phisical and mental benefits. Practicing karate you get great conditioning, you learn commitment, discipline, consistency, mental toughness and it is fun. As well as some effettive strikeing skills. It's also esteticly beautifull. And surely any other martial art, combat sistem, combat sport and so on can give some of those benefits. Some more some less. And again the average practitioner won't ever be confronted with real violence situations, so it doesn' t really matter which one is more effective. And again, we know that there is also a great degree of subjectivity ( phisical structure, strenght, atleticism, fighting intelligence, fighting experience, aggression and so on). One iconic example of karate effectiveness is Wonderboy Thompson in the UFC Don't get me wrong, i'm not trying to belittle enything nor enybody. However if we approce the matter from the maximum rational perspective possible, as, for example, Bruce Lee did we can't avoid to recognize macroscopic flaws expecially in the traditional martial arts. They tend to be dogmatic. The most iconic example is Aikido. You will probably object that it was designed to be used by the samurais in battle to defeat spear attacs. Ok but then whats the use of decades long practicing of something that I won't ever be able to implement in real live situations. Though i'm sure there is someone that, due to their fighting genius, be able to use effectively, sometimes, an Aikido tecnique, most of the people won't. The problem is: what do we seek in a martial art? What is the purpose of a martial art? The aswer is probably not so pleasant. And the most realistic examples of real martial arts (lethwei)are not acceptable by most of the people. Martial derives from Mars the god of war. War is extreme violence, is kill 3:02 or be killed. The teality of war has nothing to do with romantic fantasies. It is the capacity of committing atrocities, inflicting and taking extreme phisical and psicological damage. It goes far beyond been able to execute some movements. To be a war man takes some uncommon features. It takes to be something near to a psicopath. Even in the military elite corps we see a high rate of PTSD after real battle engagements. That is because a normal human been is not designed for those scenarios. Thats why we ear that martial arts such in street fights or self defence. The problem is not tecnical it's mental.The ones that are most likely going to attac you have those mental features that the average people lack. If what we seek is to make us capable of defendig ouselfs against someone capable of real violence then i suppose we better take the matter damn siriously. There is no room for our national pride, cultural preferences romantic suggestions and so on. It is a matter of seeking the truth. Because if you run a dojo you are seen as a mistical figure and your students relay 100%(most of them haven't got a clue of what we are talking about) on your informations. And theyr expectancies depend on your informations. And if your informations are misleading and they get falsly confident the implications could be drammatic. Said this should you quit practicing Karate? Of cours not, go on and have fun but be aware of your limitations, and don't try to become a war man, you probably won't and the world is already such a sad place. Yours Andrea P.S. Andrea is a male name in my own country.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

It’s not offensive, however, I don’t think most of what you said connects to my channel at all. And I don’t think you understand my perspectives at all, especially after your aikido comment. I just made a video about it and how the way it’s taught is totally awful because of dogma. We agree on many points on traditional martial arts. I also think that your language barrier might have missed what this video was explaining. While I agree the most important difference between a normal person and an assailant is a mind set I disagree that every martial art has to do with war. A police officer and a soldier would need very different tools depending on the situation and self defense is not always the same as what a soldier needs or what a sport combatant needs. However, in the context of facing a violent attacker the mentality is most important. And I agree that karate has some dogmatic things that hold it back. Talking about those things and fixing those things is the actual point of this channel. On the argument of war, I am not a soldier and I don’t think I have the heart for that so I don’t mean this with disrespect. But i am actually training marines here in Okinawa. To be fair I am training them for kickboxing/ muaythai not karate or combatives, but I train a solid 15 of them or so. I’ve also worked with both security and police. I fight full contact competitions in Muay Thai and kickboxing and I’ve regrettably been in a few real fights as well (and lucky enough to not have lost any). I do understand the pressures of real fighting. I’m not exactly sure what the point of your message was as you did not directly ask a question so this is the best response I have to it as I am sort of confused. I also don’t think you really understand what my videos are for based on the comment you made. However, I will clarify if you do have a question. Have a good new year.

[@andreamarcelli9456]

I know that the issues that I brought up go far beyond the topic of your well krafted video and i am sure that what you say is true and tecnically correct though i find it much easyer to tilt the foot when i kick downward rather then when i kick upward. What I was trying to communicate is that I find theese discussions about technical aspects or better said the way theese discussions are carryed forward... I know you were just countering a critic and i know it' also business but sometimes it gives me the feeling of women bitching. And moreover i consider the technical side less decisive then other aspects first among all the mental. Said this, it' s not your video or yourself, you seem to be a nice guy. It is a case i'v chosen your video to express my wiews, it could have been eny other. Andrea

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@andreamarcelli9456 oh ok… well I mean yes these videos are a technical critique and mindset is more important than pretty much anything I said. But I think half of the interest in martial arts is historical and informational which is more what this video is about. I took Gabriel’s video and used it as an opportunity to teach the historical contexts of karate because I enjoy it. It also wasn’t really about Gabriel because I know he was talking about sport. I took his wording hyper literally to create an opportunity to teach about karate’s historical context. I do it because I enjoy it and I think it can spread the love of karate for those who are interested. I try to make it clear in the video that I don’t truly disagree with Gabriel from the context he was approaching it. The videos are meant to be fun. The “bitching” is meant to be sarcastic. And on tilting the foot… I agree with you there, aiming down is easier.

[@andreamarcelli9456]

Respect broo.

[@nathanieltillman2355]

I'll listen to the combat athlete thanks.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

Did you even watch the video. lol

[@JDezi4BVlog]

Calling Ali's flicking jab a Karate/Kung Fu back fist is a bit of a reach... Not sure if I trust Witherspoon's recollection of events. And I HIGHLY doubt Ali learned about it from Bruce... I mean, it's a pretty basic variation of a jab any out fighter would accidentally discover. That being said, general applications aside, that punch would do absolutely nothing considering Varga's style.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

A flicker jab and a back fist are mechanically almost the exact same. It obviously depends on style but they are literally the exact same mechanics if we’re talking the side ways version and not the American karate (which is actually the taekwondo version). The fact that you can find it in boxing doesn’t mean it can’t also be found in kung fu and karate. The body cross is also the same between boxing and karate. One style doesn’t own the move. And I’m not going to doubt the only person between the 3 of us who was actually there but that’s on you. (Unless you actually happen to know either of them). And while I actually agree this punch doesn’t fit Vargas style that doesn’t have anything to do with if the punch can be used effectively or not. Since making this video it was brought to my attention that many others use it including Fury which is hyper obvious once it was brought to my attention. That alone proves the point. It’s really not a reach at all. And again, the high ranking pro boxer calls it a punch inspired by kung fu. Why is it people don’t want to give traditional arts any credit when it is this obvious. Like you don’t even have to say that he specifically learned it from kung fu but to say kung fu and karate doesn’t have this punch is ridiculous.

[@lusitanus6504]

I thought the ridge hand was to be applied with the radius bone of the forearm.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@lusitanus6504 it is.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@lusitanus6504 if it lands perfectly. If the angle is a bit off it may land on the hand a bit

[@lusitanus6504]

@@StrykeTeamOfficial Thanks

[@bullfrog8221]

7:54 that was a hook not a ridge hand, he hit with his fist not the side of his hand.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

I looked again and Im not sure I agree with you there. But even so it was thrown as a ridgehand so if it did hit with the knuckle (which I don’t think it did) that seems more like an aiming mistake.

[@TreyYork1]

Fight Gabriel Vargara!! If you are serious enough to back up your claims, you can make it happen! If he ducks you, make it known and force him to admit it!! Otherwise, silly algorithm!! I'll never suffer fools, don't waste all of our time

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@TreyYork1 the only fool here is you for commenting on a video before watching it. This is actually one of my favorite comments I’ve had on this video because not just was it dumb but instead of making me mad it just made me laugh. Im saving this one for later. It’s just to good 😂.

[@capey676]

i would listen to someone with numerous belts, before listening to someone with no titles at all.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@capey676 I mean… you could also listen to the video before posting on it… which we know you didn’t by the comment 🙄

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@capey676 I mean… you could also listen to the video before posting on it… which we know you didn’t by the comment 🙄

[@father5946]

Varga whooped lerdzilla and a few other champions. I think I'll listen to someone I've actually seen fight, instead of martial arts hobbyists.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

Ahhhh another person who commented without watching the video. Amazing. But calling me a hobbyist when I train 4hrs ish a day and compete is pretty rude.

[@gh0rochi363]

One of the best kickboxers and over all strikers in the world should not be listened to about your to whoop someone? You think varga can't beat a dude in the street.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

You....didn't watch the video. Or if you did your comprehension is low. At no point in this video does it make any sort of claim that Varga cant fight in the street or otherwise. That would be stupid.

[@ciaracet0716]

Gabriel varga started with karate first

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

I'm aware, but from his own videos I don't believe he went to a school that focused on kata application.

[@vyronphillips4568]

Most those techniques you have learned works against people who know nothing but when it comes to people who practice martial arts then most those techniques are useless. Karate combat exposed how lots of karate moves were useless. Karate combat changed the rules because Karate combatants had no clue how to fight once it hit the mat

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@vyronphillips4568 the mat true. But you could say that about Muay Thai. And the idea that the techniques I went over here don’t work on trained people is simply wrong. I have landed every strike in here, with a few adjustments for safety, against trained people who have fought in a cage.

[@ulhasanzk2249]

I think you have some good points but the format is too long

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

You may be right. might be a good idea to shorten up the videos a bit.

[@arpad-istvanozsvath6195]

He was wrong indeed. Actually there's way much more bullshit in karate than he said and you might think. Go fight full contact to see how it works out.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@arpad-istvanozsvath6195 I do. I have a kickboxing title and fight Muay Thai 😂

[@boreragnarok4680]

I agree with almost everything except the double strike thing. Even if it's self defense you still don't have much power and if you throw your hook without loading it up it'll be essentially just as fast as a double strike. Good vid otherwise tho.

[@iforgotitlol]

The double karate punch actually breaks the two punches separately into two, the first is the upper punch is a block against a punch to the face and the lower punch is a punch to the body.

[@rafaelivanircostaoliveira1354]

Great vídeo and working Senseis!

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

Thank you!!!

[@ikust007]

I despise sport karate .

[@solomonherskowitz]

Why don't you play the thing you're critiquing rather than the thing you actually agree with and then say but he also says blah blah blah and that's wrong

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

What?

[@robertfildes5559]

i dont always agree with gabriel but these newbies havent made a video yet without at least 5 mistakes.cant believe that they do uechi ryu-they should learn from gabriel and others

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

What???

[@squeezylo]

I kinda agree, the case they made for the side kick with the blade of the foot and when to use it is kinda like grasping. I get it but there is better options when you are that close in the pocket. I think it just adds to the point that Gabriel is trying to make. Kind of why I have respect for sensei Seth and Jesse enkamp. When they cross train they either are able to use a karate technique in sparring and it works and they’re right or it doesn’t work. And are accepting of other techniques and why other “more effective” options are used

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@squeezylo I've used it in sparring. Not on the knee but on the hip. It does work, similar to how it would if i used a knee to make space in a Muay Thai clinch. The issue with only using sport as a metric is what the kick symbolizes is an illegal strike in most sports. You can't do that move in Muay Thai, which is what I compete in. However, I am not saying you can not pressure test it or use it in training. You definitely can, but it requires adaptation. When it comes to better options, in some instances you could use a basic stomp, however using the kick from the bladed area makes sense in its context and is better for unbalancing and works better in general depending on the positioning. I am not saying all of these are always the best option in every situation but I am pointing out where they are designed to be used and not every technique is designed for sport or designed for safe use. An exaggerated explanation is how you can't practice a growing strike in sparring but we all know it works. May not end the fight but no one will say it doesn't hurt. The same goes for a side knee stomp or a bladed side kick to the knee which is what this is for. Can't spar it safely but you know you can land it based on your general sparring skill and you know it will hurt if you do.

[@squeezylo]

@@StrykeTeamOfficial I do get what you’re saying for sure. I’ve seen in your kickboxing fight that was from 2020 you are using different technique because of rule set I’m guessing. You throw more of a traditional leg kick( low roundhouse kick). You can kick to the knee in MMA. The foot sweep for sure makes sense at that range in most contexts. I guess the main point is just that there are better overall techniques that work in most contexts that don’t necessarily require someone to be at a higher skill level than their opponent to make them work either. Again, I think that’s more of the point of Gabriel’s videos in general. In a street scenario, with shoes, kind of changes how it will land too. Like soccer kicking someone, I know I should use my shin my top of shoe ends up landing. At the end of the day, use the techniques for you in those high pressure situations. You don’t want to have to think TOO much about what you are doing when someone is genuinely trying hurt you or your friends. Even though I can kick, I stick to hands and front kicks. If I can’t handle then I use grappling. Same concept, would rather go for the choke instead of a heel hook.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@squeezylo I guess for this particular move my issue is that this is easy for me. This kick to the knee would probably be my preferred method. And in Mma I don’t think you can kick the side of the knee with a stomp. I might be wrong there. You can do the John jones to the front (which half the fighters want to be made illegal because of how damaging it is), but the side of the knee I’m pretty sure is illegal. You have to go front or behind I think. And Gabriel is right for a sport context. All of these are very low likelihood in that situation. But I disagree there needs to be a skill gap to land something like this. May not be everyone’s favorite and everyone may not like the technique. But of all the techniques I started with this one because it’s easiest for me personally, but not for everyone I train with. That’s why I don’t like the idea of throwing them out. If you drill the techniques in a realistic way so the average student can actually land them with a high percentage I feel like allowing them to decide what they do and don’t like is the way you should go. Just be honest about where it should be used.

[@cadkls]

Gabriel varga, a 4th degree shotokan black belt, multiple world kickboxing champion... sorry but I'm gonna take his word over yours, nothing personal. This just seems like you're salty about someone criticising your favourite martial art, which I'm guessing is probably your first serious martial art, so anchoring bias is going to play a factor. You said that Gabriel claimed the side kick should be dropped, he didn't say this, he said that particular way of doing the side kick should be dropped and modified to use the heel as a kicking surface, not the blade of the foot. It doesn't matter if it's a combat sports context or self defence context, physics is physics, if you kick with an angled foot, it's more likely to bend and become injured than if you kick with the heel. Low kick or not, the heel is still going to be better than the side. At about 4:00 you try saying you have to twist your body for a side kick with the heel, but you don't even have to twist your body for a side kick with the heel, literally just angle your foot. The angle change is entirely centered around the ankle, not the body. You've made up a problem to counter a criticism. That single instance of a ridge hand working looks like a hook to me. Even if it wasn't, a single instance of something isn't a statistic. It needs to be repeatable. There are thousands of instances of hooks working, vs a single instance of a ridge hand. This isn't a strong argument. The classic "I know someone who [goes against the common wisdom or scientific practice] and they're totally fine" I hear this a lot when dealing with anti science conspiracy theorists. You hear it with smokers "my grandma smoked 8,000 cigarettes and hour and she lived to be 973". Anecdotal evidence is not evidence and can be safely dismissed.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@cadkls first off… its not my first martial art. I also spend more time training kickboxing and Muay Thai than karate since those are the sports I compete in. Second, you missed the actual point of the video. For the side kick, the bladed Angel of the foot has a specific purpose and it is significantly easier to land it when in close range in the manor it was originally designed than the way Gabriel is talking about because it’s not just changing the ankle. Try landing a side kick from close range and using the bottom of the foot. Both the hip turn and the foot angle needs to change or the kick becomes slower which is dangerous when you’re that close. And if you actually listen. I didn’t say you shouldn’t listen to Gabriel about the side kick in general. I actually said he’s mostly right. Gabriel however gets the context of a lot of the techniques a bit wrong probably because his black belt is in shotokan which was founded by the main guy who started changing contexts for schools. And next you commented on me showing one instance of a ridgehand… there’s more than one. I’m simply pointing out how Gabriel says he’s never seen it but it does happen. The reason Gabriel never sees it is landing a strike with the ridge hand part of your arm is actually illegal in most combat sports as it’s not covered by the glove. However, my very next statement is me saying the ridgehand is dumb and Gabriel’s right… so I actually am not even truly disagreeing with him on this one. Even bringing that up is a strong sign you weren’t really trying to comprehend the video without bias because the only thing I said about that is, it can work but Gabriel’s still right… that’s not an argument worthy statement unless you’re not really paying attention to what I said.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@cadkls not to mention throwing the kick with the bottom of the foot from the range I’m talking about will jam the foot. There’s quite a few reasons you don’t do it the other way in the context it was originally made for.

[@Ivanofkoshinkaisokanryu]

I thought the back fist was ban boxing and if where throwing things away based on getting hurts where going to trow out the jab a boxing fracture is so come its named after the sport

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

Hitting with the back part of the glove is banned but if you adjust it to land with the knuckle on impact it’s ok.

[@timwitherspoon1378]

You can't scrap the hand across the face, the back fist/flicking jab are fine as long as you don't drag them across the face

[@andrewmcewan8081]

you need to reread your okinawan martial art history my friend

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@andrewmcewan8081 which part exactly

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@andrewmcewan8081 if I’m legit wrong on something and you sight a source and post is here I’ll actually pin it to the top. Im pretty sure I can sight all of my claims here, either with a book or historian. However, I’m not infallible.

[@andrewmcewan8081]

@@StrykeTeamOfficial 40 odd years since I was into this but it'll be in the literature about shuri naha or tamari te .I think that's the names or theres a book from the 1700s I think on techniques including some grappling in illustration.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@andrewmcewan8081 I have the book if you’re talking about the bubishi. The author actually just helped me for a video I’m going to do in the future. And those are 2 of the 3. There’s also Naha-te and the two you mentioned, Shuri and Temari, are almost impossible to tell apart at this point due to Temari being mostly lost. But again I’m confused on what the mistake was specifically. Edit: I said those are two of the 3 but miss read. You did have Naha in there. My bad

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@andrewmcewan8081 and by author I mean translator for the most popular English version.

[@UmarAmriyev]

The side kick you are saying sucks. If you don't rotate you don't gain power. And in that close range side kick ain't used instead knee is welcome and way more efficient. All you said is bullshit

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

I mean… it’s not, I’ve used it in sparring on the hip and it works for what it’s designed to do which is shift weight. The other option is a knee strike which doesn’t need much power to buckle a knee. But again based on your need to compare it with the knee strike you either didn’t actually listen to my reasoning or don’t care and just enjoy talking shit. Either way I don’t care.

[@joshpotectan6028]

@@StrykeTeamOfficialI agree with Gabriel with using the bottom of the foot in using the sidekick. I sprained mine. So yeah, I don’t use the blade “if” I were to fight full contact or hitting the kick bag. Now your explanation about using the blade of the foot is not a side kick, that’s a side snap and makes total sense using it against a knee. Sidenap is not as powerful as a sidekick so hitting joints with it is much better. But for sidekick, I agree with using the bottom of the foot.

[@williamogisi8750]

I like this video

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

I'm glad you enjoyed it!

[@andreamarcelli9456]

See? You karate guys always try to explain or justify something. You teach things that don't make sense and you don't know the use of them, assuming that one day, in a situation of need your body will know by itself how to use them. Or you try to guess the use of a technique. Don't you think that the eastern traditional way of communication and teaching of things has lead to a lot of misunderstandings and loss of information, let alone the illusion of esoteric secret knowledg.why do you spend your time learning how to move kick and punch in a certain way but then in the kumite you do it in a complete other way. It remains a mistery for me. It seems irrational.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

While some of your critiques here actually do have a legitimate point, they don’t for this video. Every technique I covered when talking about their actual application are not hidden, secret or special techniques. Every one of them in the context I talked about is the traditional accepted use and shows up in books and pictures from over 100 years ago. The techniques I talked about in this particular video don’t fall into the list of things you mentioned here. My statements in this video about what karate was used for and how are also from old books and aren’t really debated at all. On your comments on “teach things that don’t make sense and thinking it will magically work” or “misunderstood loss of information and secret knowledge without training that way in Kumite…. Well dude that’s actually the entire point of my channel. You would have to watch more videos to understand but that’s the entire reason it exists. While I could take it personally, that statement is accurate maybe 70-80% of the time. But that’s what a lot of the KZbin channels like mine are trying to promote to fix. When it comes to “why do it with karate” the answer is to long to go into in a comment but if you know the history of the art and what it was originally made for a lot of the Katas start making sense, but most of the more realistic training stuff was lost in the 20s and after due to political stuff in japan and Okinawa being destroyed in a war. Technically if you learned open handed strikes, judo, and some wrestling you would have 85%-90% of the karate moves down. But karate actually teaches it, for the 20% of us that try to look at it practically, from a perspective that most modern arts don’t do and in a way we find valuable. Also, those of us looking to use it in that way do spar and drill using the techniques. It’s different than sport competition but it can be made competitive and we actually have a guy in Arizona working on a rule set to see if we can make it into a real competitive sport. It’s true for the older kata there is some guess work involved, however it’s not purely made up guess work and more looking at was most probably like a historian. Can you find a lot of this stuff outside of karate, yes you can. But we enjoy it. If you listen through the video you will understand why some moves that show up in self defense don’t show up in combat sports. However, I have used every move in this video in sparring including the ones that are not really suitable for sport combat like the double punch for example. I only say that to express that I do drill and use these in sparring, not saying others should.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

The entire practical karate movement coming out right now is attempting to fix all the issues you pointed out. And we simply do it because we enjoy the art. It’s really that simple. KZbin is the medium we use to talk to each other and work it all out. I truly hope in 50 years or so the way we have begun to approach it now is more common.

[@rafaelivanircostaoliveira1354]

Ossu!

[@EthanNoble]

I notice a lot of these white western guys acting as if they’re some authority on all artist arts holding UFC/MMA as the gold standard. Forgetting they fight and train under a given COMP RULESET where you wear gloves. When in reality the best fighters in the world are people they’ve never heard of

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

Ufc and mma is the most tested for mom of combat possible at the moment so I understand where that comes from. It’s just many people forget the difference between a fight and what might be used in self defense

[@EthanNoble]

@@StrykeTeamOfficial I think you see better striking in One FC tbh. A lot of sloppy striking in UFC by comparison.

[@StrykeTeamOfficial]

@@EthanNoble I agree with that in general. Their kickboxing and Muay Thai is amazing

[@ps5622]

What does the colour of skin have to do with anything here?

[@EthanNoble]

@@ps5622 as I said. I notice a lot of this perspective from white westerners who haven’t trained the martial arts vs other people. Speaking as if they’re an authority.

[@nicholasnj3778]

OSS

[@ikust007]

20:37 agree . It works. But rarely will someone react like that. « Street » fight is the real world .