This is an uncomfortable question, but it’s one that needs to be asked honestly if karate is going to have a future. Karate is not being destroyed by MMA, boxing, or modern combat sports. It isn’t being erased by changing trends or younger generations losing interest. If karate is struggling at all, it’s largely because of how it is being protected, enforced, and frozen in time by some of its own practitioners. This doesn’t mean tradition itself is bad. It means that protecti

Which Model Was Right for the Past — and Which One Fits 2026? This is a topic I’ve spoken about many times, and I’ll keep speaking about it because it sits right at the centre of why traditional martial arts are struggling in the modern world. The argument is simple on the surface: Traditionalists believe rank should be earned by time served, age, and seniority. I believe rank should be earned by ability, contribution, and real competence — regardless of age. And after lookin

This wasn’t a rushed decision. It wasn’t made to be controversial. And it wasn’t made out of disrespect for karate. It was made out of honesty. After reviewing my syllabuses properly — not emotionally, not traditionally, but functionally — I’ve removed formal combinations such as junzuki lunge punches with mawatte gedan barai and jodan uke, including their kette and tsukkomi variations, from all grading requirements. These movements are not evil, dishonest, or pointless in th

We’re pleased to share that our head Sensei, Sensei Liam Musiak, is launching a new YouTube channel titled Sensei Liam. This channel is a personal education platform where Sensei Liam shares his understanding, experience, and approach to fighting, combat skills, self-defence, awareness, criminology, law, ethics, and training — the same depth of knowledge and principles taught at Voracious Karate, presented in a personal YouTube format. Voracious Karate is one way Sensei Liam

When people think of danger, they usually imagine force, aggression, or obvious threat. John Reginald Halliday Christie shows why that assumption is dangerously wrong. Christie didn’t rely on sudden violence or intimidation. He relied on authority, calmness, and compliance — and by the time violence occurred, his victims were already powerless. This case matters not because it is shocking, but because it is quiet. Who John Reginald Christie Was John Reginald Halliday Christie

Why Uncertainty, Normality, and Politeness Are the Real Danger This photograph was taken at Lake Sammamish on a warm summer day in 1974. At first glance, it looks entirely unremarkable — cars parked closely together, people enjoying the lake, a normal public space filled with ordinary life. Nothing looks threatening. Nothing looks unusual. Nothing demands attention. That is exactly why this image matters. In the photograph, I’ve marked one Volkswagen Beetle with an arrow. As

Bundy frequently used an injury — a cast, a sling, crutches — to appear vulnerable and harmless. He asked for small favours. Help loading something. Assistance carrying an item. Just a moment of time. What he was really doing was this: Testing compliance Collapsing distance Moving people into positions of disadvantage Gaining control without force His success depended on one thing above all else: Most people would rather risk their safety than risk being rude. That is not wea

This is a question I’ve spent years asking myself — not out of doubt, but out of responsibility. Anyone can claim they teach “real self defence”. Anyone can show techniques, drills, or war stories. What actually matters is whether what you teach reduces the chance of someone becoming a victim, and whether it helps them survive without destroying their life afterwards. So I want to answer this properly and honestly. What I Mean by Self Defence Self defence is not about winning

When people look at the Red Belt in my system — Jissenkō Ryū Karate at Voracious Karate — they often assume it’s “just the first belt after white”. It isn’t. In fact, the Red Belt is deliberately designed to expose a problem I’ve seen repeatedly across the UK: students progressing through multiple belts without ever being pressure tested. I’ve trained at, visited, and observed many karate clubs in this country. In most of them, sparring is not required for the first few belts

While developing the syllabuses for Voracious Karate and Jissenkō Ryū, I made a decision early on: I would never ask a student to complete anything I hadn’t completed myself. Not once. Not partially. Not “in theory.” Every drill, every conditioning test, every pressure scenario, every written requirement, every mental demand—I completed them physically and mentally, to the same standard required of my students. This wasn’t about proving toughness. It was about integrity. Why

In Part 1, I explained how the ranking system punishes outliers instead of recognising them. In Part 2, I showed how unrealistic training leaves students unprepared for real violence. Now we come to the third major issue weakening traditional Karate in the modern era: instructors who stop training, stop learning, stop evolving — and yet still hold complete authority over those who do. This is not about every instructor, and certainly not a criticism of all Wado Ryu teachers.

In Part 1, I spoke about how the ranking system in traditional Karate was designed over a century ago for a completely different type of student and a completely different society. This second issue is just as serious — and just as damaging — because it affects every student, every dojo, and every instructor. If ranking is one of the top three problems in Karate, this is without question another: traditional Karate often fails to prepare students for real violence. For a syst

I’ve spoken about this subject many times, and I’ll keep speaking about it, because it remains one of the most serious issues in martial arts today — easily one of the top three challenges facing Karate in the modern world. It’s the issue of how our ranking system treats outliers. Before anything else, I want to be fair. The ranking rules themselves are not “bad.” In fact, the majority of the time — genuinely around 99% — they work exactly as intended. They help prevent belt

People always ask me what the real  secret is behind my karate. Why I fight the way I do. Why my students develop such unique styles. Why Jissenkō Ryū became its own system instead of staying Wado. Here it is: Clay. Yes — clay. Let me explain 👇 For me, clay represents everything  that real martial arts should be. 🟣 1. Clay can become anything Raw clay starts soft, shapeless, adaptable. That’s how I see students. You don’t force them into a mould — you shape  them based on w

At Voracious Karate, people often ask why our minimum ages are: 16 years old for 1st Dan 18 years old for 2nd Dan Here is the simple, honest explanation — without the politics, without the outdated rules, and without pretending everyone develops at the same speed. ———————— 🟣 1. These ages are standards , not restrictions Most people — physically, mentally, emotionally — are not ready to take on the responsibility and pressure of black belt level until around these ages. They

The boxing world recently gave us one of the clearest, cleanest examples of why the traditional karate ranking system — based on age, years trained, and waiting periods — is fundamentally flawed. That example is simple: Moses Itauma (20) vs Dillian Whyte (37). Before the fight, traditionalists would have made every excuse imaginable: “Whyte has trained longer.” “He’s more experienced.” “He’s older, so he must be higher ranked.” “He deserves seniority because of his years in t

Founder of Voracious Karate • Founder of Jissenkō Ryū Karate One of the biggest problems in traditional martial arts is the idea that rank must be earned by time instead of ability. At Voracious Karate, we do things differently — not out of rebellion, but out of realism, fairness, and respect for the student’s actual skill. Here is why. ———————— 🟪 1. Time Served Does NOT Equal Skill or Growth In many systems, a student cannot grade simply because: “You haven’t been a yellow

Before I begin, let me make something absolutely clear: I am NOT  saying I am as good as Bruce Lee. I am NOT  comparing skill levels. I am comparing the path  — the timing, the mindset, the philosophy, and the decisions that shape a martial artist. With that out of the way, here’s something I’ve realised over the past year: In many ways, my early journey mirrors Bruce Lee’s more than anyone else in martial arts today. And here’s why. ⸻ 🔥 1. We both started young — and didn’t

Every time I talk about merit-based progression, outliers, realistic training and leaving outdated systems behind… some people say: “But that’s not how traditional Karate does it.” Exactly. That’s the problem. And Bruce Lee said it decades before I was even born . Recently I came across a summary of Bruce Lee’s views on the Dan ranking system. It confirmed everything I’ve been saying for years — and everything Jissenkō Ryū is built on. Here are the key points Bruce believed:

People often ask me who inspires my martial arts philosophy. Who pushed me to think differently. Who gave me the courage to build my own system instead of staying trapped in tradition. The answer is simple: Bruce Lee. Not because he was perfect. Not because he was unbeatable. But because, in so many ways, I see myself in him. The way he thought. The way he questioned tradition. The way he refused to accept “because that’s how it’s always been done.” The way he innovated at an