Ivan
Black Belt
- Joined
- Apr 8, 2018
- Messages
- 672
- Reaction score
- 395
Hey guys, how's it going? I was recently allowed to try out for the Amateurs Boxing team in my gym by attending a session. At the end of the session, we had a couple of rounds of sparring. I always look to pair up with people who seem bigger or more skilled than me, as I believe that I should always be sparring at a disadvantage - I learn more from sparring with those who are better than me. I paired up with a guy who was taller and more muscular than me, and he was my age. I don't know much else about him.
When sparring began, he instantly started throwing out jabs. I usually don't mind jabs, and I have experience against taller opponents, but this man was giving me a lot of trouble. His jabs were extremely fast, to the point that my normal head movement and perception weren't fast enough to react to them. Outboxing or counter punching was not successful either as he had a very big reach advantage over me. Logically, the only option I had left was to go in, but his jabs were simply too fast to slip or parry. In terms of weight categories, I am 81kg which is bordering on Light Heavyweight here in Scotland I believe, and I am certain that he was taller and bigger than me which put him in as a heavyweight.
I have sparred with a similar opponent before. He was my sparring partner this summer; a very jab-heavy fighter, with short and powerful jabs. But three things set my experiences with him and the other guy apart. For starters, my older opponent was a bit gamier and liked to taunt as a way to discourage me, but it created a lot of openings and pauses in his rhythm that I was able to use to my advantage. Secondly, my older opponent was much heavier, and so his jabs weren't as fast. They were still fast enough for me to encounter the same issues, but not this fast. Lastly, I always sparred my other opponent in the ring, whereas today we were just using general space around the gym.
This meant that I couldn't even back him up against the ropes as I did with my other opponent, or use the ropes as a way to maneuver laterally. The entire sparring session consisted of him walking backwards and jabbing. He didn't take a single step forward. The few times that I manage to slip his jabs, he pulled back quick enough before I got to push inwards, and he began to feint them too. My entire experience was reduced to me walking into his jabs and blocking them with my hands up, or my forehead and face like a cheap imitation of Rocky from the movies.
I feel like the fear of his power also set me back too, but that's not my concern. I've faced the fear of opponents before, and when I was much younger and more inexperienced too. The few times the distance between us somehow got shortened, he did his best to dig into my body. He got good shots in, but I am very proud of my ability to absorb body punches so that's not a concern. Is there something I should be focusing on? This guy pinged my head off, and I know that he definitely has the capability to take me out because he barely used his right hand.
When I spoke to my coach later, he told me the reason he found his target so easily was because of my footwork - I tend to be very flat-footed when I box because it allows me to get a lot of power into my punches, specifically my hooks and uppercuts. But in this case, my footwork slowed me down and made me a very easy target. I do have experience in using lighter footwork to outmaneuver opponents, but I am only experienced in using it against people with a shorter or similar reach to myself. Please, I would really appreciate any advice on how to deal with this type of fighter. It feels like I am dealing with someone who has an advantage in everything - weight, speed, reach, and power. I don't mind fighting at a disadvantage, but I am not experienced in dealing with opponents who hold all the cards.
When sparring began, he instantly started throwing out jabs. I usually don't mind jabs, and I have experience against taller opponents, but this man was giving me a lot of trouble. His jabs were extremely fast, to the point that my normal head movement and perception weren't fast enough to react to them. Outboxing or counter punching was not successful either as he had a very big reach advantage over me. Logically, the only option I had left was to go in, but his jabs were simply too fast to slip or parry. In terms of weight categories, I am 81kg which is bordering on Light Heavyweight here in Scotland I believe, and I am certain that he was taller and bigger than me which put him in as a heavyweight.
I have sparred with a similar opponent before. He was my sparring partner this summer; a very jab-heavy fighter, with short and powerful jabs. But three things set my experiences with him and the other guy apart. For starters, my older opponent was a bit gamier and liked to taunt as a way to discourage me, but it created a lot of openings and pauses in his rhythm that I was able to use to my advantage. Secondly, my older opponent was much heavier, and so his jabs weren't as fast. They were still fast enough for me to encounter the same issues, but not this fast. Lastly, I always sparred my other opponent in the ring, whereas today we were just using general space around the gym.
This meant that I couldn't even back him up against the ropes as I did with my other opponent, or use the ropes as a way to maneuver laterally. The entire sparring session consisted of him walking backwards and jabbing. He didn't take a single step forward. The few times that I manage to slip his jabs, he pulled back quick enough before I got to push inwards, and he began to feint them too. My entire experience was reduced to me walking into his jabs and blocking them with my hands up, or my forehead and face like a cheap imitation of Rocky from the movies.
I feel like the fear of his power also set me back too, but that's not my concern. I've faced the fear of opponents before, and when I was much younger and more inexperienced too. The few times the distance between us somehow got shortened, he did his best to dig into my body. He got good shots in, but I am very proud of my ability to absorb body punches so that's not a concern. Is there something I should be focusing on? This guy pinged my head off, and I know that he definitely has the capability to take me out because he barely used his right hand.
When I spoke to my coach later, he told me the reason he found his target so easily was because of my footwork - I tend to be very flat-footed when I box because it allows me to get a lot of power into my punches, specifically my hooks and uppercuts. But in this case, my footwork slowed me down and made me a very easy target. I do have experience in using lighter footwork to outmaneuver opponents, but I am only experienced in using it against people with a shorter or similar reach to myself. Please, I would really appreciate any advice on how to deal with this type of fighter. It feels like I am dealing with someone who has an advantage in everything - weight, speed, reach, and power. I don't mind fighting at a disadvantage, but I am not experienced in dealing with opponents who hold all the cards.