This vid features Ali, Walcott, Whitaker, R.Jones and Hamed, did any of these fighters prove unconventional tactics work, obviously Ali did amazingly well in his career but did these guys only do well using these methods because of their speed or do unconventional techniques work? This content is protected
They'd work for the same reason facing a south paw causes problems! As you fight you get used to seeing certain things a certain way! So I say sure if its effective it works!
they work in proportion to your opponent. the better the opponent, the less it works. boxing has been perfecting every move for over a century. the best techniques for power, defense, energy management, etc... have all been tried and the most effective have remained. for every unconventional move a fighter makes, there is a conventional one to beat it, it just comes down to talent level in the match up.
Unconventional styles work but it has an expiration date. If you are no longer motivated (Hamed), you don't take a break between weight class changes (Jones Jr.), or you get old Walcott, Ali, and Whitaker then those styles are no longer applicable. Lomachenko for instance has a very exhausting style of fighting and we are witnessing the toll it's taking in his past 3 fights where he is getting dropped and injured. His style is unique but he won't make it to 35 in the sport without taking a beating a few times as he slows down. These 2 were not in the video but big shout out goes to Nicolino Locche and Emmanuel Augustus who both deserve as much praise for being stylistic masters as the most recognizable names in boxing. This content is protected This content is protected
When unconventional style is mentioned the first person I think of is Emmanuel Augustus Unconventional styles really only work when the fighter has exceptional speed and reflexes. For example, Roy Jones Jr or Prince Naseem Hamed However once your speed and reflexes goes- that is the end of you as an elite fighter. Roy Jones is a great example of this. Roy Jones at 95% of his speed and reflexes coming down from HW- is no longer an elite fighter and ended up getting bounced by Tarver and Glen Johnson. No way would a 100% physically fit Roy Jones ever have any issues with the likes of Tarver or Glen Johnson!
Eubank Jr's still trying to popularise leading with the face. Little evidence as yet that this will replace the majority view.
Jones didn`t counter Tarver`s southpaw jab very well, I think his reach bothered him, he also had problems in the first Griffin bout until he just came out swinging in the rematch and overpowered Griffin.
Unconventional and spectacular looking skills/moves/styles get a lot of attention but are not easy to copy and emulate. I will take an excellent conventional boxer with perfect footwork, a solid jab and a nice long right hand any day over some eccentric zero-guard idiot who solely relies on his reflexes and showboating.
And, boy, Ali's unconventionality didn't work against everyone. Frazier clocked Ali with so many left hooks in The Fight of the Century I am convinced it is that fight that led to Ali's future brain damage. My god he took a lot of heavy shots from Frazier. Also, Barrera showed how to catch Hamed. This content is protected
They pretty much do, but not always and there's usually something you give up. It's a trade off, which can work very well depending on different circumstances.