Skill over the decades

Has anyone put forth Wilder as example of progressing skill, though? I'd say that Wilder is universally regarded as having the worst overall skillset of the top HWs today. By a margin. I don't think anyone claims he'd be competitive if it wasn't for his height and reach and right hand.

 

So Duran is the standard for how skilled a HW should be? In that case every HW who ever lived fall shorts.

Ruiz is much more skilled than Fury. From a technical standpoint he does virtually everything better.

 

Yes, but that is because of his size and power not his skill.

 

Erm... No he doesn't?

 

I don't think Ruiz imitates Duran at all, and if you're talking about dipping under punches and coming back with counters Ruiz does that really well. And his body punching is excellent, so I'm not sure what you're going for.

For me Ruiz is the most technically skilled top HW today. Fury on the other hand hasn't really a complete skill set. On mid-range he is quite poor and often uses arm punches. His foot work and balance at that distance isn't all that either. He dominated Wilder at mid-range, but Wilder is very poor at that distance.

 

What do you think Fury does better? I e what would work better for him if he was was 6'2 and fought guys 6'4 and taller than it does for Ruiz?

For if your skill set is dependent on size advantage it is by definition not complete. It can still be effectively suited for your particular style in most circumstances (when you have the size advantage), but it's not complete.

 

Defense. Feints. Footwork.

That's just off the top of my head.

 

You really think his defense would work against Joshua if he was 6'2`?

I personally believe that AJ would pound a 6'2 Fury into the canvas without breaking a sweat. That's because leaning back with hands low and retreating in straight lines isn't good technique since it doesn't work if you don't have the size advantage.

 

I think you're coming to conclusions based of imagination and assumptions.

The fact is he isn't 6'2, so he can use the defence he has. That doesn't make him less skilled, it's a skill in itself to know how to use size.

 

As I said earlier, a skillset is by definition not complete if it relies on you having the size advantage. Because when you no longer have the size advantage, you don't have the necessary set of skills to deal with that.

It's hardly imaginary that you will face opponents with advantages in height and reach. That's why the fundamentals in boxing is geared to work either way. I'm sure that the instructors at your gym doesn't tell you to pull your head back or keep your hands low or retreat in straight lines.

And Ruiz leveraged punches at mid-range is better than Fury's often slapping punches at that range no matter what size you are. Also I haven't seen Fury put together many combos other than the 1-2.

Fury is very tactically adept and excellent at using his size advantages. But that shouldn't be confused with a complete skillset.

 

They're the product of the Murderer's Row and as a collective group probably progressed both the level boxing and the skillset within. As good as he looks here, Moore's cross over defense didn't work too well in range against Marciano.

 

I mean looking at every type of fight, there's pretty much nothing that universally good in terms of technique, beyond a few very abstract principles.

Dancing and jabbing like Larry Holmes isn't going to be of much use to a unit of WWI troops trying to take a trench.

Seeing different types of boxing in the wider landscape of fighting, it's easy to see that technique optimal in some types of boxing, is poor or outright unusable in others. The technique has to fit the conditions, equipment and rules.

Letting yourself get knocked down easilly, repeatedly was a technique in bareknuckle boxing, used with great success to win matches, used atleast from the 1780's, until the last days of the prize ring 100 years later. Doing it in a modern boxing match would get you dq'd thrown out of the ring, and probablys stripped of your pay and banned.

Approriate defence is likewise heavyilly altered by what's on your hands, and what the ref allows. Using your gloves to block punches, will be much less effective with small or no gloves.