I never said Gracie JJ or Thai Boxing wouldn't work, only that they are not the only techniques that would. I understand full well that these styles train primarily for self defense. What I said was that they seem to think they have the market cornered on self defense. They do not.
And I can name a few myself that think the same thing. I'd wager that anyone could talk to any MA, and they would all say that their system is the best. Why would anyone want to say that they have a flaw in their style?
The spinning and jumping kicks of Tae Kwon Do get a lot of publicity because they are nice to watch. They are not the only techniques we do. I can't speak for all TKD schools, but we emphasize the basics-front, side etc. Don't forget, different styles approach different situations in different ways.
Sure, there are lots of things in many arts that are nice to watch. But, I kind of look at it like this. If its something that you'd not use in an SD situation, then why train it that hard? Sure, there are things in Kenpo that I have to do due to the fact that its part of the rank material, but there are other things that I give more attn. to.
I'm curious as to how a grappler would handle 2-3 attackers at once. The beauty of TKD is that it is designed for these type of situations. Traditional TKD is made for situations where the defender is at a disadvantage (i.e. woman vs. man, smaller vs. bigger, 1 vs. 2,3,4 etc.). In a situation where you need to be able to move, say 1 vs. 2, I think jumping and spinning techniques are definitely possible to use. I didn't say you SHOULD use them, I said it would be possible to use them.
Ahh...the ground vs mult attacker debate. Well, like I've said many times before. Not every fight you have is going to be against mult. attackers. Grappling can infact be used....only difference is that it'll be done standing. If you can grab onto an attacker, use him as a shield against the others, while at the same time, pounding the s**t out of him..well, there ya go!!!
I often wonder about people that make those statements. My counter is usually, "What makes the stand up arts any better at taking care of that situation?" Keep in mind, we're not talking about a Van Damm movie, where the attackers come at you one at a time. Instead, it'll be more like 2 or 3 at a time. Now, you'd really want to turn your back and try a kick in a situation like that? Good luck.
And yes, we do train with elbows and similar techniques for one-step, drills etc. We don't use them in sparring because of the danger of accidents, but we do use them.
Unfortunately, going all out requires some pretty heavy padding. But, I suppose that if you want to train some full power shots, you're gonna need the proper gear.
Mike