Circling away from the right? (the left causes most knockouts!?)

[AlexKid]

Why do most trainers advise circling away from the right hand as an orthadox fighter against another orthadox?

Its the left hook that causes the most KO's in boxing statistically, wouldnt it be smarter to circle the other way away from the left hook?

Also what causes more knockouts to a southpaw the left hook or the straight right? People always think the straight right is a southpaws main danger, but I heard somewhere the left hook is just as dangerous if not more dangerous to a southpaw fighter!?

[_original_]

Do you have anything to back up the claim to those statistics?

[mconstantine]

Why do most trainers advise circling away from the right hand as an orthadox fighter against another orthadox?

Its the left hook that causes the most KO's in boxing statistically, wouldnt it be smarter to circle the other way away from the left hook?

Also what causes more knockouts to a southpaw the left hook or the straight right? People always think the straight right is a southpaws main danger, but I heard somewhere the left hook is just as dangerous if not more dangerous to a southpaw fighter!?

A few things...

First, assuming the left hook does create the most KOs for orthodox/orthodox fights, that may be as a result of the general practice of moving away from the right. The left hook just may be what's most available. So that isn't necessarily an argument for circling to the right hand. At the end of the day, unless the orthodox fighter is naturally left handed (DeLa Hoya) or just has a wicked left hook (Donaire), you probably have more reason to fear the right hand than the left hook.

Second, I box southpaw. I've heard people yell at guys to throw the straight right at me all the time and I just laugh. It is very easy for a southpaw to adjust and defend against the straight right. Plus it has to travel so far, it's easy to see. But the left hook? MUCH more dangerous to me. Plus as a naturally right handed southpaw, my lead right hook is my best weapon. Because of the foot placement between Southpaw/Orthodox...it makes the lead hook harder to see. The lead hook is WAY under utilized against opposite handed fighters in my opinion.

Third, circling in one direction the whole fight limits your offense. I'm not a fan of circling in one direction the entire fight in any circumstance. Better to get proficient at defending against power punches no matter your direction. Should a orthodox fighter be circling into a southpaw's left 80% of the fight? No. Should they be circling away from it 90% of the time, No. If you know how to counter punch, you may want your opponent to throw right hands to make them miss and counter them. There are all kinds of reasons to break rules in boxing if you're thinking and you have a reason as to why you want to do it.