infused with Aiki principle
https://rivashotokan.com/sensei-rick-hotton/Rick Hoton is doing clean cut traditional Shotkan, it’s super clear he’s been a Shotokan practitioner for several decades.
Anyone knows who’s his (main) Shotokan teacher/branch is ?
Shotokan is of course outwardly stylistically close to Okinawan shorin ryu karate since the founder Gichin Funakoshi studied under legendary Anko Itosu, however mentality/spirit wise it’s very close to Japanese kenjutsu(sword”art”) such as Jigen ryu school.
Funakoshi was also close friend to Jigiro Kano, and it’s said there was some collaboration between the two exchanging ideas of atemi and nage waza(striking and throwing techniques). “Aiki” principles probably has been around in the very founding of Shotokan ryu, and many of Funakoshis students were already skilled in different Japanese jujutsu/kenjutsu when the began study under Funakoshi.
This is why Shotokan came to take its specific style flavor compared to Okinawan Karate