The Sabaki Challenge was held in Denver last weekend. For those unfamiliar with this tournament, it is what is referred to by many as "Extreme Martial Arts": Full contact fighting, open to any martial arts style.
Our organization does not participate in the Sabaki Challenge, although a lot of people from our group have been to see one or more of them. There are rumors that some people used to participate, but from what I understand, this is frowned upon. I don't really know for certain because it's never spoken of in an "official" setting, it's just talked of by karate-ka when the Senseis aren't around. When that's the case, I'm certainly not going to be the one to ask Sensei about it!
So why isn't it talked of? Why don't we participate? Obviously I have no official answers, but I've been pondering the question, and I think I have a few ideas.
The Sabaki, and other extreme martial arts challenges, don't really fit into the traditions of Shotokan. They do have rules, but those rules are different than the rules which govern our regulated tournaments, and the judging is also quite different. Acceptable levels of contact in Sabaki would get you disqualified from an ISKF tournament. Some of the rules we agree with (no direct strikes to the knee, no kicks to the groin), others are a mystery to me (no hand strikes are allowed to the head, but kicks are). Unlike traditional karate tournaments, there are weight divisions for men (not women). Mouth guards are required, but no fist guards or any other type of padding are allowed. The winner is decided by points, by judge's decision, or awarded if he knocks out his opponent (which of course will disqualify you in one of our tournaments).
So in other words, Sabaki seems to be like a bare knuckles martial arts boxing match, with kicks. It seems to me that it's similar to a Muay Thai match, but I will be the first to admit I don't know very much about Muay Thai beyond the fact that it's bare knuckles and I've seen a few matches on TV.
Some people believe this is a great test for a traditional martial artist. We've all heard the karate dissenters, the ones who claim that karate is just a sham, that dojo fighters can't win against street fighters and can't really fight. Those people would probably regard Sabaki as a better test of skill -- although they'd still rather see you in a ToughMan tournament, or better yet a street rumble!
Other people argue that a tournament which encourages stunning kicks to the head proves nothing except that you can kick head level and maybe not have it be blocked. That you risk various types of injuries which could put you out of training for several weeks or longer, for no real purpose. The risks far outweigh any possible benefits from "proving" yourself in this way.
I'm a karate purist. I believe that a talented and well-trained karate-ka can hold their own against anyone. I also believe that we are supposed to avoid violence. I'm not a big fan of tournaments that openly encourage you to kick someone in the head hard enough to knock them out. I'm not a big fan of deliberately inflicting any kind of potentially disabling injury on someone else unless your life is on the line, and I certainly don't think it proves how great you are. I don't think that taking repeated kicks to the stomach without getting an internal injury proves you're a good martial artist. So clearly I'm not planning on entering Sabaki anytime soon!
This year's Challenge came a week or so after a woman from this area was killed during an officially sanctioned, refereed boxing match. The woman was experienced, she was wearing protective headgear, and the blow she took was perfectly legal. Nevertheless, she died a day or so later from brain swelling.
One of this year's Challenge organizers was interviewed, challenged on the safety of having a match that encourages head blows and does not allow any protective headgear. He pointed out that in the entire history of the Challenge, no one has ever been seriously injured, whereas such injuries are commonplace in the universally accepted (and padded) sport of boxing. No one's ear has ever been bitten off, no one has ever died! And that's a perfectly valid point to make.
So, is Sabaki a good, bad, or indifferent thing for a traditional karate-ka?
On a strictly personal level, I don't know whether I think it's necessarily good or bad. I've watched video clips from past Challenges. From a martial arts perspective, I don't gain much from watching people repeatedly kick each other in the ankles, or grab someone else's gi and knee-kick them to the face. As I said earlier, I don't see much point in a tournament that encourages potentially serious injuries such as being knocked out. I've been knocked out. It's no fun. I didn't learn anything from it either, except that I had no respect for the person who had such poor control that they hit me full power to the head during a routine dojo sparring drill, and didn't care to train with them anymore. So I can definitely say Sabaki is not for me. But then, neither is boxing or most kick-boxing.
On a deeper level, I think I am leaning toward saying the same thing: It's not necessarily either good or bad, but why bother? At the end of the day, what have you proved? That you can take hard blows and walk away from it? Well, that's good I guess. That you can deliver hard blows to someone else? I suppose that could be a good thing, depending on the circumstances.
But the true martial artist is supposed to be striving for something more, something better. Martial arts are supposed to be something past pure thuggishness, and more of an "art", aren't they? In karate, in my style, we learn of "kime", the killing blow. Ideally, the perfect blow, perfectly executed, and it should only take one blow. A martial arts boxing match does not seem, in my opinion, to really do anything to help you achieve that desired end goal of perfect timing, perfect distance, perfect execution. Whether or not this is at all possible, it's something we're supposed to be striving for. That's why we're awarded points on that basis, rather than on injury inflicted. Like karate itself, it's the journey, not the end result. It's how you fight, not whether or not you hurt the other guy.
So, while I'm not against the Sabaki Challenge, and I'm sure it's good entertainment for many people, I'm of the opinion that for the serious martial artist, it just doesn't offer much.
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