Ring examples of individual techniques as "proof" of effectiveness is a non-starter. Ring examples are of the "1000 monkeys at typewriters" variety. Given enough examples you will see many things. Even this.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v9WHr0e8dV4&feature=related
Yes. parkour is an effective self-defense style IF YOU TRAIN IT RIGHT. LOL!!!
That's simply not true and that kick ISN'T parkour.Both of your assertions are demonstrably short on logic.You usually have sharp posts,Archangel M. Not this time. The "ring examples" are dependent on what level of combatant is in the ring and how permissive the rules are. But truth is? A high end point fighting guy like Mike Pombeiro or Raymond Daniels will ALSO defeat you in h2h self defense because these guys have honed skill,an arsenal and ability clearly beyond the norm.Any kickboxing world title holder or contender will crush you in h2h combat (the unarmed variety) without question. Tell the kali tudo guys about how ineffective they are,then pull a knife or stick on them.Just be sure that your Last Will and Testament is completed beforehand. Hop skip and jump your way on over there to Floyd Mayweather,laugh at his inadequate ring examples of defensive skill,try to kick or punch him...and be thoroughly destroyed by Floyd's "in ring" examples of punches. Swagger your way on down to the USA Olympics Team,and have at the nearest wrestlers judoka boxers and tkd folks,fresh from the mat (that's their ring,except boxers are in the squared circle).See what joy you receive. Ease on down to the Kudo or Kyokushin tourneys and laugh it up at the karateka there before you try to get your whale on with your vaunted self-defense techs.Observe the massive lack of success you achieve. Break out your kali espada and guffaw derisively like plundering pirates har har har before slashing lustily at...the Olympic saber fencing champs. Explain to Lyoto Machida why you're not sweatin his elusiveness or karate because he scraps in a cage and a ring...while the rest of us watch and just do the "smh" as he Crane kicks you into oblivion like he did the one and only legendary Randy Couture.
Your logic is flawed.Your conclusion is flawed.
What sports is very good at is performing very well under a set of rules.Self-defense has a much broader set of circumstances,but in general the people performing are significantly less skilled,conditioned and athletic than sports combatants are.All sports combatants need to do is train under broader conditions which include self-defense circumstances and they'll outshine these average shmoe types too in S-D...and innovate extensively in the process. Remember how for the longest time old skool CQB guys felt you had very limited shooting options and mobility while grounded? We're talking guys from WW2 to Vietnam and even quite a few (not as many but still way too many) thereafter?
And then Russian Spetsnaz and other forces began rethinking things.And stuff like THIS happened:
Remember how--even now--most martial arts instructors focused on dealing with weapons including guns BEFORE they were drawn because the general feeling was it's "game over" when a weapon is drawn? And then THIS happened:
And along comes a Twin Fist,a Yorkshirelad,and an Archangel M who swear that head kicks don't work.And THIS happens:
They swear that twirly kicks don't work,and THIS happens:
But WAIT. Navy SEALS and Taiwanese SWAT and Soth Korean ROC teams do head kicks and...GASP...stuff that works in the ring just modified it for their environment (which is what I've been asserting from day one...cuz yes,Archangel M...IT WORKS IF YOU TRAIN IT RIGHT). Say it ain't so,TwinYorkAngel! But waitiaminnit it IS SO!!
So what a surprise (not); all your claims that "ring sports" are inapplicable to self-defense is also inaccurate.Proveably so. Proof in the pudding.It's all over done and it's a wrap.
Now you can say that these head kicks,spin kicks,etc. aren't frequently used. Agreed.You could say that--in comparison to the opportunities to shoot stab punch knee elbow low kick etc. safely--the opportunity to execute say a cartwheel kick safely is significantly more rare.I agree there too. You can then forcefully conclude that it's your opinion that it's better to omit these techs altogether.Cool I can see and respect your reasoning there.
What you CAN'T say FACTUALLY is that these techniques are without self-defense merit and that units who are a thousand times better than you will eeever be in S-D don't use these techs.These best of the best fight more like me than they fight like you.Now THAT'S a FACT. Just so happens that my opinion more accurately reflects these facts than yours do...because it IS true that the facility of a technique is based directly upon its quality functional training. In other words,like my sig says...
"IT'S NOT JUST WHAT YOU KNOW,IT'S HOW YOU TRAIN."