Looking at great defensive boxers past and present a lot of them seem to have great head movement compared to the majority of MMA fighters, why is this? Eusebio Pedroza was a legendary boxer from the 80`s who had amazing reflexes: This content is protected
side to side head movement and slips work. but those Whitaker, James toney bob and weave will catch you a head kick./knee.
Conor has well rounded take down defense, he can afford to move around like a gazelle with grace, since he can avoid or stuff takedowns.
Moving your head when you're not punching is part of having an active guard, tho. If you don't have an active guard you will be feinted into big shots by your opponent.
Surely you need head movement as part of an active guard in kickboxing too. This content is protected
Or weave directly into a high kick. This content is protected When you try to be like Mayweather in MMA. https://www.ufc.com/video/ko-week-dustin-poirier-vs-bobby-green-0 See King Mo's emberassing KO losses for more of the above if necessary. While MMA striking on the whole may have been hilariously bad in the past, it's definitely shown improvment and apart from that I don't think boxing purists understand or appreciate that striking needs to be modified for all of the different variables in MMA. High kicks, knees, elbows, takedowns etc.
That guy got KO'd because of bad execution, not because what he tried can't work. Most boxers will get KO'd using that kind of defense against good opposition as well, because it's so hard to master properly.
I love boxing, my first love, that don't change the fact that boxers have evolved for 100 years plus aware that if a opponent ducks and grabs your leg or kicks you etc etc etc, well that don't count, thus boxers have evolved specifically with the reality that those types of moves are illegal and that's obviously why a boxer then going into a MMA fight with a experienced/skilled mma guy is going to get his arse kicked, unless of course if that boxer is equally well trained in MMA fightings,, no big deal, makes perfect sense, don't make a thing out of it you young hyped up goofs
It's simple. Bobbing and weaving works in boxing because in boxing punches to the head are your primary concern. In MMA, the dangers are far more. If an MMA fighter exhibits excellent top defence, his opponent has a ton of other ways to deal with him, from kicks to the body and legs, to dirty boxing out of the clinch, to a variety of takedowns and submissions. Basically, unless a fighter picks up slipping techniques extremely quickly, he's best off rounding his skillset off rather than practising boxing techniques that are only useful in a specific set of circumstances.