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I often read phrases like 'boxer puncher' and 'pressure fighter'. But what is a great pressure fighter? What elements does he need to master? What is a great boxer puncher? What elements is needed to be an elite at that style? I want to go more in depth and show what it's like at the pinnacle of certain styles.
Pressure Fighter:
The Ultimate Pressure Fighter
Julio Cesar Chavez Sr.
Guard
Chavez' guard is crucial to his game. Obviously, we know he was excellent at slipping and picking off punches, but those are really skills more than technical observations. From a technical perspective (which is what this thread is all about) there are certain things about his defence that are particularly noteworthy. If you watch Hopkins' KO of Trinidad closely, you'll see something interesting. The finishing sequence actually occurs when Hopkins misses wildly with a left uppercut from the outside (almost unheard of for him) and Trinidad tries to counter with (you guessed it) the left hook. The left hok is actually quite nicely placed, and does land on Hopkins. However, because Hopkins has his hands close to his head and his chin tucked in, it just bounces painlessly off his forehead and takes no effect (to the uneducated observer, as if the punch hadn't landed at all). This allows Hopkins to counter with a right hook ("full mustard"), and his less prepared opponent doesn't have his hands up and doesn't have his chin tucked in, leaving him open for the money shot. The difference in the way the two men defended themselves habitually was the difference between a punch glancing harmlessly off and a punch causing a KO.
Now, this is a good analogy for what Chavez accomplishes with his guard. In many of his fights against less distinguished opponents, he actually gets in exchanges where he's taking shots himself, but they have no effect at all. His guard is always kept close to his chin, leaving little or no room for the shots to do damage, and his chin is for the most part down. This means his opponents end up wearing themselves out on his guard, or end up with their shots bouncing off all over the place and leaving them wide open for counters. You could hit Chavez in the temple as much as you want; he allows you to and it doesn't hurt. But when he hits you back, your chin is exposed and he's going to be doing the damage, even if his connect rate isn't the same.
Right Hand
Basically, Chavez had a wicked right hand. Partially, he used it so much just because it was a really great punch - so great that he could easily out-time bigger and longer opponents' jabs with a lead right hand from the outside. The technical advantage with the blow is that a right hand involves turning your whole body forward with it and following through, meaning your momentum naturally carries you forward as you let it go. For Chavez, this was a natural mechanism for him to get inside seamlessly after throwing a shot. He doesn't have to crudely step in or try to bull his way inside with head movement; he just throws the right hand and his body naturally slides up close where he is at home. This isn't achieved by a jab, which if anything leaves you even more emphatically on the outside than you were before, especially if you "step in" with the lead foot while throwing it, preventing your body squaring up for you to come in. Plus, the right is a stronger, more damaging blow in the exchange.
Balance
There's a strong divide in pressure fighters, the way I see it. Obviously, all pressure fighters are trying to pressure. But there are different styles at work. There are Frazier types, who are constantly marching forward. They literally never stop unless you beat the brakes off them. They don't wait to get off, but just keep charging in until they get to the right distance to let go. Then there are Chavez/Holyfield types, who are looking to pressure you, but aren't always moving forward. They often wait just outside of range, waiting for an opportunity to counter their way in, or lead with something that will allow them to follow up by going inside. Now, adopting the style of the second category carries the advantage of being able to constantly maintain balance, something which Chavez was pretty good at. He wasn't anywhere near Napoles or anything, but he was always in position to throw the right hand or the left hook to the body, and always had his feet well planted so he could afford to take a shot without getting thrown around all over the place. If you're exchanging with someone regularly, as pressure fighters must, having the ability to attack or defend at all times is essential, especially for in-fighters, and that's what the above achieves.
Punching Style
This sort of straddles the divide between a skill and a technical factor, but I think is still worth mentioning. Chavez was arguably the most accurate puncher of all time, especially in combination, similar to other offensive greats like Robinson and Louis. This obviously makes it easier to score points and do damage, but also has the advantage in terms of pressure of not giving your opponent opportunities to counter. More interesting, though, is the way Chavez throws his punches. For instance, he could throw perhaps the shortest left hook I've seen any fighter throw. It's a sneaky punch that he doesn't need any leverage to get off, and because it's so short, he doesn't have to step back to get room to punch. Consequently, his opponent doesn't realise it's coming, and hasn't got the space to get Chavez back anyway, as Chavez can throw it and quickly get back on his opponent's chest. (Foreman mastered this sneaky hook technique later in his career - see the Cooney KO.) All of Chavez punches, not just the hook, were thrown in a super-efficient, compact, tight way, so he never left himself open unnecessarily for counters and could keep the pressure up without fear of retaliation. Further, he could rattle off attacks to the head and body with tihs crisp, accurate punching style, giving you no respite until you caved in.
The 'Ideal Boxer-puncher'
Alexis Arguello "El Flaco Explosivo"-
Arguello is one of those guys, along with Louis who immediately spring to mind when you hear the term "Boxer-Puncher". From a body perspective, Arguello was tall and lanky for the weights he fought in, and that translated very well into his style.
Style
Arguello was a well rounded boxing strategist. Took a stance similar to Louis, hands held high and chin down. He would stalk his opponents with a subtle pressure similar to Louis, stalking his opponent until they opened up or made a mistake, and then he would light them up from the middle range or outside with picture-perfect combinations.
Offensive Weapons
His left jab and powerful right cross formed the basis for a great deal of his offense, as well as a lethal left hook. Arguello would throw them as single shots and even more effectively as combinations, which he would flow into after finding weaknesses in his opponent's boxing. Those combinations were typically the catalyst for many of his KOs, but along with combination punching Arguello could counter and had excellent body work.
Ring Behavior and Rhythm
As mentioned before Arguello typically stalked his opponents around the ring with a subtle pressure driven by his jabs. At lower weights his power was very real and even his single shot straight punches dissuaded a great deal of fighters from bringing the fight to him in sufficient fashion. Arguello began a fight slower, countering and shoulder blocking and jabbing and would gradually open up into a flurry of combinations, eventually devastating his opponents.
Defensive Weapons
Countering, shoulder blocking, jabbing, and crisp, clean fundamentals drove Alexis' defense. His footwork was good enough to get him where he needed to be, and undoubtedly aided in the delivery of a great deal of his knockouts via proper footing. He also possessed a pretty good chin. It took someone like Pryor with a lot of volume and power to take him out.
Pressure Fighter:
The Ultimate Pressure Fighter
Julio Cesar Chavez Sr.
Guard
Chavez' guard is crucial to his game. Obviously, we know he was excellent at slipping and picking off punches, but those are really skills more than technical observations. From a technical perspective (which is what this thread is all about) there are certain things about his defence that are particularly noteworthy. If you watch Hopkins' KO of Trinidad closely, you'll see something interesting. The finishing sequence actually occurs when Hopkins misses wildly with a left uppercut from the outside (almost unheard of for him) and Trinidad tries to counter with (you guessed it) the left hook. The left hok is actually quite nicely placed, and does land on Hopkins. However, because Hopkins has his hands close to his head and his chin tucked in, it just bounces painlessly off his forehead and takes no effect (to the uneducated observer, as if the punch hadn't landed at all). This allows Hopkins to counter with a right hook ("full mustard"), and his less prepared opponent doesn't have his hands up and doesn't have his chin tucked in, leaving him open for the money shot. The difference in the way the two men defended themselves habitually was the difference between a punch glancing harmlessly off and a punch causing a KO.
Now, this is a good analogy for what Chavez accomplishes with his guard. In many of his fights against less distinguished opponents, he actually gets in exchanges where he's taking shots himself, but they have no effect at all. His guard is always kept close to his chin, leaving little or no room for the shots to do damage, and his chin is for the most part down. This means his opponents end up wearing themselves out on his guard, or end up with their shots bouncing off all over the place and leaving them wide open for counters. You could hit Chavez in the temple as much as you want; he allows you to and it doesn't hurt. But when he hits you back, your chin is exposed and he's going to be doing the damage, even if his connect rate isn't the same.
Right Hand
Basically, Chavez had a wicked right hand. Partially, he used it so much just because it was a really great punch - so great that he could easily out-time bigger and longer opponents' jabs with a lead right hand from the outside. The technical advantage with the blow is that a right hand involves turning your whole body forward with it and following through, meaning your momentum naturally carries you forward as you let it go. For Chavez, this was a natural mechanism for him to get inside seamlessly after throwing a shot. He doesn't have to crudely step in or try to bull his way inside with head movement; he just throws the right hand and his body naturally slides up close where he is at home. This isn't achieved by a jab, which if anything leaves you even more emphatically on the outside than you were before, especially if you "step in" with the lead foot while throwing it, preventing your body squaring up for you to come in. Plus, the right is a stronger, more damaging blow in the exchange.
Balance
There's a strong divide in pressure fighters, the way I see it. Obviously, all pressure fighters are trying to pressure. But there are different styles at work. There are Frazier types, who are constantly marching forward. They literally never stop unless you beat the brakes off them. They don't wait to get off, but just keep charging in until they get to the right distance to let go. Then there are Chavez/Holyfield types, who are looking to pressure you, but aren't always moving forward. They often wait just outside of range, waiting for an opportunity to counter their way in, or lead with something that will allow them to follow up by going inside. Now, adopting the style of the second category carries the advantage of being able to constantly maintain balance, something which Chavez was pretty good at. He wasn't anywhere near Napoles or anything, but he was always in position to throw the right hand or the left hook to the body, and always had his feet well planted so he could afford to take a shot without getting thrown around all over the place. If you're exchanging with someone regularly, as pressure fighters must, having the ability to attack or defend at all times is essential, especially for in-fighters, and that's what the above achieves.
Punching Style
This sort of straddles the divide between a skill and a technical factor, but I think is still worth mentioning. Chavez was arguably the most accurate puncher of all time, especially in combination, similar to other offensive greats like Robinson and Louis. This obviously makes it easier to score points and do damage, but also has the advantage in terms of pressure of not giving your opponent opportunities to counter. More interesting, though, is the way Chavez throws his punches. For instance, he could throw perhaps the shortest left hook I've seen any fighter throw. It's a sneaky punch that he doesn't need any leverage to get off, and because it's so short, he doesn't have to step back to get room to punch. Consequently, his opponent doesn't realise it's coming, and hasn't got the space to get Chavez back anyway, as Chavez can throw it and quickly get back on his opponent's chest. (Foreman mastered this sneaky hook technique later in his career - see the Cooney KO.) All of Chavez punches, not just the hook, were thrown in a super-efficient, compact, tight way, so he never left himself open unnecessarily for counters and could keep the pressure up without fear of retaliation. Further, he could rattle off attacks to the head and body with tihs crisp, accurate punching style, giving you no respite until you caved in.
The 'Ideal Boxer-puncher'
Alexis Arguello "El Flaco Explosivo"-
Arguello is one of those guys, along with Louis who immediately spring to mind when you hear the term "Boxer-Puncher". From a body perspective, Arguello was tall and lanky for the weights he fought in, and that translated very well into his style.
Style
Arguello was a well rounded boxing strategist. Took a stance similar to Louis, hands held high and chin down. He would stalk his opponents with a subtle pressure similar to Louis, stalking his opponent until they opened up or made a mistake, and then he would light them up from the middle range or outside with picture-perfect combinations.
Offensive Weapons
His left jab and powerful right cross formed the basis for a great deal of his offense, as well as a lethal left hook. Arguello would throw them as single shots and even more effectively as combinations, which he would flow into after finding weaknesses in his opponent's boxing. Those combinations were typically the catalyst for many of his KOs, but along with combination punching Arguello could counter and had excellent body work.
Ring Behavior and Rhythm
As mentioned before Arguello typically stalked his opponents around the ring with a subtle pressure driven by his jabs. At lower weights his power was very real and even his single shot straight punches dissuaded a great deal of fighters from bringing the fight to him in sufficient fashion. Arguello began a fight slower, countering and shoulder blocking and jabbing and would gradually open up into a flurry of combinations, eventually devastating his opponents.
Defensive Weapons
Countering, shoulder blocking, jabbing, and crisp, clean fundamentals drove Alexis' defense. His footwork was good enough to get him where he needed to be, and undoubtedly aided in the delivery of a great deal of his knockouts via proper footing. He also possessed a pretty good chin. It took someone like Pryor with a lot of volume and power to take him out.
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