I've always view that as Vegeta stating that Jiren wasn't as tough as before rather than him using less power on him.
Well Gohan did defeat Kochierator, who gave Blue Goku and Vegeta a descent amount of trouble.
Look at the narrative. Even before the fight, we are conveyed that Gohan could be a threat to Goku. Tenshinhan tells Goku to take it easy or else they (Gohan and Piccolo) would be hurt. Goku's response to that was that he and Tenshinhan may be the ones getting injured instead. Furthermore, Roshi acknowledges Goku as the strongest martial artist and claims that Gohan seeks to reach those same heights. Those statements establish the intention behind their fight. That is, Gohan would be reaching a similar level as Goku was in that fight.
No, it's really taking the narrative for what it's worth instead of coming up with your own explanations. The narrative and Goku's acknowledgment of Gohan's statement make it clear that Goku treated it as a serious fight. He was absolutely hesitant on using his full power and then ultimately had to when we see him overpower Goku. Blue Goku is never shown to overpower Gohan. In fact, the opposite is shown so from what we are given, we are led to believe that Gohan was stronger than Pre-ToP Blue Goku. That's the only inference we can make with the evidence we are given by the writers before we start inserting our own convoluted assumptions into it.
Your comment makes me believe that you're not open to official sources neither possible valid explanations and what you suggest is something absolute, okay... Of course, Goku considered it as a serious fight... to what exent? Is something that according that actual data that are brought to us is something unknown.
I'm not open to interpretations that constantly dance around the subject and question the narrative when it's clearly laid out in front of us. You'd need to provide actual evidence that suggests why Gohan was inferior to Blue Goku in that scene. From what we are shown, there is none. All we can go off of is what we are told and shown and what we are conveyed tells a different story.
Well, this actually confirms my doubts, even then, everything on the story is there to be questioned and analyzed it's respective validity, but I think we just view it from different ways.
You mean the most straightforward and consistent way of thinking? You're suggesting that questioning the authors' narrative when the message is clear is a valid interpretation but it's not.
The way you look it makes it appear that you're just trying to look just how you think the narrative is developed, even though it is not, without searching different alternatives and how your premises and your conclussions have little to nothing to do with what the scripters are actually intending.
I am merely taking the narrative as it is. Everyone says this is a serious fight between Saiyans, Gohan asks Goku to use his full strength, and Goku eventually does despite hesitating initially once backed into a corner. Goku goes Blue but is then pushed back. All of this points towards Goku needing his full strength to fight Gohan as he deliberately chose to break through his limits with Kaioken for that final clash. Was this something I made up or something blatantly stated and shown in the narrative?
Hmm, yes, Gohan was stronger than SSJ2 Goku and I am not contending that. Goku isn't pushed back, but decides to use Kaioken to fulfill Gohan's wishes of Goku going all-out, not neccesarily because he felt in need to. No, that wasn't something you made up, but Ssj Blue Goku vs Ultimate Gohan isn't anything that we can make conclussions of as the fight is too short to even judge.
That isn't a compelling enough argument. There are plenty of instances in Z and Super where disparities in strength are conveyed in an instant. The fact that Blue Goku doesn't even overpower Gohan at any moment while being claimed to be engaged in a serious fight would certainly suggest they were around that level. That is why he used Kaioken. Prior, he hesitated because he didn't feel the need to conform to Gohan's request but was ultimately proven wrong.
Hmmm, how do you expect someone to dominate another one on a fight from 2-3 blows? It was a serious fight? It was just a fight of practice, none of the fights that take place on the recruitment ever went serious fights.
Narrative and what the authors are intending are by far the kind of arguments that lacks of sense the most and is pretty much a weak position to be in. Gohan being enough to handle Goku like he did isn't portrayed to be the case when he got dominated by Base Toppo, as well as Goku not being confident enough on either of the team managing to defeat Freeza, other than him or Vegeta, and a several amount of factors that also include promotional material of Goku and Freeza being the strongest participants of the U7. Don't get the wrong idea, I am not saying that Gohan would lose here, but your position lefts a lot to desired.
As well as is too short to even judge, unless we take into account him getting oneshooted by Kaioken Goku, which doesn't say much.
Actually, we can tell. Gohan losing the clash with Kaioken Blue Goku means he was weaker. Your subtext is that it's too short to judge but that's obviously not how the writers feel when an outcome can be determined in a single clash.
I agree, the writers can tell that Gohan is oneshot material for Kaioken Goku, they just don't cared about showing a fight between Ssj Blue Goku and Ultimate Gohan in which we can make proper conclusions.
That's literally your personal feelings without addressing anything. Since that's personally how you feel, I'm not sure how to respond to that honestly.
