Inspired by the most boring fight thread, most of the responses were either clinch heavy fights or fights where a lot of running happened. Which is more boring though?
Watching someone constantly clinching is more painful to watch. I’d rather watch someone that fight negatively while on their track shoes over someone that spoils by grappling too much.
I don’t mind watching roughhouse tactics during a clinch but if it’s purely just clinching it’s not good viewing.
Depends If you are fully disengaged out of range of an opponent then running is the worst to watch but hey it's a fight if you've been in a fight you understand you gotta do what you gotta do. Same with clinching in a full clinch where a break is required is also terrible to watch...but it's just how styles match sometimes. But both are an artform with lot of elements. It's like watching the little guys fight...don't expect brutal KO's expect 12 rounds.
Movement means you're stopped the other guy from cutting the ring. Clinching in an era when inside game is almost dead is just cheap. An easy way out.
Easily clinching. Great movement is an art that is extremely difficult to achieve. It's sad that simpletons don't understand it and simply label it as "running".
Running is worse. It’s literally the antitheses of fighting. At least in a clinch a fighter who is being held can usually work with a free hand or pivot and create an angle to throw punches.
There are mitigating factors, of course. A fight could have many clinches but still have some solid infighting and great action when they are at longer range. Running is somewhat subjective what some people call running might just be very good footwork. I tend to only really use the term running when someone totally disengages and is going from corner to corner. i’d say a fight with a lot of movement at least has boxing tactics and strategy whereas clinching is really just stopping action. Obviously there are guys that are great clinching and use it as a way to punch and that’s different. at least if a guy is very mobile or running, the other fighter has a chance to cut off the ring and counteract that. If a guy just reaches out and clinches, sure the other fighter could choose not to accept the clinch and fight inside, but that’s not always easy.
Clinching has its place in boxing for taking a breather or seeing out a round but it has no place as a tactic to avoid engaging that is just spoiling a fight, and there is no skill involved by just clinching, but some fighters use it as way to encourage their opponent to fight inside. The worst culprits are the ones who lead with their head or their elbows, this is despicable behaviour and the exact opposite of what boxing is about. This is the worst clinching with the intent to injure your opponent. This is lowest of the low in boxing strategy. running is never really running, it’s being evasive and it’s not easy to do, it can be used to frustrate your opponent or to tire your opponent out by making them miss, but you have to be throwing shots on the move or on the back foot and this can be impressive in some situations. There’s a place for both in boxing but it all about intentions and execution. But if I had to choose between the two then I’d choose clinching every time.
Clinching in the 21st century is not the same as in the 20th, so my vote goes to clinching. These days clinching means just holding onto for dear life, waiting for the ref to restart the action.
