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Thing is: Shotokan isn't nearly as useless as some people (who are somehow stuck in the early 1990s) believe.
I can attest to that statement. Story time, it's kind of long, sorry:
I have basically transitioned from boxing to Shotokan. I have sparred, and competed in boxing. I am not an expert but I am competent, and confident in a fight. However, I had to don a white belt like everyone else despite having previous fighting experience. When it came to sparring, and athleticism I have an edge up on mostly everyone.
Even as a white belt (I've been promoted) I was more or less toying with my fellow karateka. However, I sparred a black belt who is in his 60s. This black belt admits he is not big on fighting, and prefers kata. We sparred, and I am giving him some work full contact (obviously not with ill intent) and he doesn't seem to have a response. Then he steps off my center line and propels himself in the air into a snap kick, "Mae tobi geri"--- I think that is what he called it, I haven't been formally taught it. Anyways, for restraint purposes only he chose not to follow through, and connect with it.
I am big on analyzing when I fight, the only thing I could think in that moment was "It's over". I've been hit with some big shots by some heavy handed people in boxing, and when you're about to get gone you know. It happens fast but it seems like time slows, like watching the moments before a car accident. Furthermore, they were not propelling their entire body into the strike.
I admitted to him afterwards that he would have got me out of there if he wanted to connect, and he said "that was the only move I could think to catch you with, you have me beat on everything else." lol. This was an older black belt who almost exclusively practices kata. I am honest enough to admit that the technique he used would have been far from useless if he wanted to connect.
Shotokan is helping me a lot.