Again, I'm unfamiliar with Karate techniques, so I'll take your word for them being commonly disparate from application. One of the tenets I was taught was "keep application close to Classical". In keeping with this, as I adjusted application for Shojin-ryu, I also changed the Classical forms to keep them close to application. I specifically designed the forms to be reasonably close to application - the primary difference being the level of movement (our forms are intended for more sedate movement, to allow practice when first learning, injured, etc.).
Because it's a sport, and trying to hurt someone for sport is a d*** move.
He said Jones wasn't hitting the right place. That either means he wasn't aiming there or has bad aim. It looked like good force, and he kept his balance well, so I'm inclined to think he wasn't aiming directly for the knee. Hitting directly on the knee with a slight miss (without shoes) would seem to expose the foot to more danger, so he may have intentionally been working around the knee to protect his foot. Given the comments I've read about him, that seems more likely than him avoiding hurting the other guy.
I'm incapable of being a fan of someone who routinely cheats and tries to hurt people (beyond what the sport calls for) in any sport. I do admire his technique, though.
It's always about who is better with you. My thoughts about him doing the kick is that he doesn't do it with the possible maximum force. To me it looks like the kick lacks forward movement which means that he's cutting that power off on purpose or he doesn't know how to connect the forward movement in or to maximize the force of the kick.
Then I guess this is nonsense too. Because this is just what this guy did
Most forms are like this. There is always a base for techniques and from that bases proper movement is taught and that movement will deteriorate when done in application when application is applied, but it will still be the most efficient move against that specific resistance. If the technique flies through without contest then it will be the most effective strike.
The majority of the video was showing how they develop their footwork and timing, then it showed them doing one-sided sparring where one person attacks and the other defends. The sparring session is geared towards sports. The only thing the video shows are students learning how to use their techniques.
Your bias shows, and your lack of knowledge concerning Karate is understandable. You obviously are a cherry picker. If you would have read my entire post...you would have understood, that I stated that the applications, will look different than the forms.
That lines up with my understanding of the way we use forms, they are the "perfect" application of the technique - perfect situation, perfect movement, etc. Application in sparring or fight will never quite match it, since you'll never get those exact optimal circumstances and will often have to make some compromises on the perfect movement to accommodate whatever appears to be next.
Student and martial artists in general will only use the techniques that they feel comfortable with. As the student gets better, they begin to add on more advanced techniques to their list of techniques to use in a fight. I wouldn't expect children to have a large comfort zone of karate techniques for use.
