Fighters Who Couldn't Throw A Combination...

Thank you. The first words of reason on this thread.

 

Hamed could throw combos but that's the main reason he lost against barrera - he was looking for the one big punch instead of just boxing and using combos to make the opening (this happened more in his later fights - he thought he could take anyone out with one punch). wrong tactics against the very best who don't leave those openings.

 

Ray mercer before he improved.

 

no, the first 'no **** sherlock' post in this thread.....

The TS is obviously wanting ppl to discuss famous fighters, world class fighters or contenders! Not some bums no one has heard of.....

 

you must have never seen witherspoon fight in his prime because he threw excellent combinations. However, if your'e talking about "spoon" way past his prime then that would be true because his speed and reflexes were shot.

 

No, this is just a horrible concept for a thread. Every boy who walks into a gym is shown a jab-cross-hook and throws it until they could do it in their sleep. This goes for schlubs like myself and goes ad nauseum for trained professionals who could actually win a fight or two.

 

i've heard laporte wasn't too into combos

 

Floyd Mayweather Jr.

 

George Foreman. Single heavy right haymakers and a jab that 'pushed' the opponent to the right distance.

 

After he starched Lockridge, he always looked to me as if he was seeking to plant one huge bomb.

 

Colin Jones wasn't much of a combo puncher.

Juan Roldan either.

 

Significantly, the biggest knockout of his career came with a double jab-right combination on Frank Fletcher.

Look for orthodox right hand oriented punchers lacking a decent jab and hook.

Andy Ganigan was a pure southpaw bomber whose entire plan was based upon getting in the straight left, but when he decked Arguello, that straight left followed a huge right hook to the body. After their war, Alex repeatedly mentioned that hook to the body, lending emphasis to the understanding that Ganigan was no one armed puncher. (Ganigan's style was so "weird" to Arguello that he kept referring to this right as a "left hook.")

Cuevas might be argued as not being much of a combination puncher, despite his hooking proficiency. Through much of his time as champion, every punch was an intended loaded knockout blow.

Marciano and Shavers might be argued about as deficient in this respect. Rocky did knock out Matthews with a stunning double hook, but he was mostly right hand oriented. Ingo was also right hand oriented, although he was known to win a few decisions behind his jab in Sweden.

Buster Drayton won some decisions using his right like others use their jabs. When orthodox stance offense begins and ends with the right lead, it's kind of hard to be any kind of proficient combination puncher.

During his comeback, Louis was no longer throwing combinations, a glaring change from his championship days. Even then, he was only defeated by two peaking all time greats (marking up both faces in the process), and was still clearly a top five heavyweight. (Aside from Marciano, Walcott and Charles, who was clearly better than Joe in 1951?)

Foreman was capable of multiple hooks, though he didn't do this as often as he should have. The key moment in Kinshasa came during the fifth round, when he applied a hard right and succession of hooks to Ali's body to set him up for the big right to the chops which he expected to close the show with. It was the hardest combination of his career, and that's when Muhammad psychologically ruined him by asking, "Is that all you've got?"

 

Good to see you Russ. I've been around, and following your work here. Unless I have something potentially useful to offer though, I tend not to post. You know my preference for trying to submit quality over quantity, and my ability to attempt this seems to have tapered off. (Also, it's been over a couple years since I've been able to really get my dander up over the abolition of the 15 round distance, my pet issue, and the subject of my best received and most infamous posts.)

After Seamus commented on what a lousy thread idea this was, I was wondering if I could spur some further discussion. No world class slugger is completely lacking in skill. Even Shavers was able to outbox a credible stylist in Henry Clark. Still, there have been some contenders and championship caliber fighters who had great difficulty being able to make use of combinations at the world class level, so I didn't want that to go unchallenged.

Concerning whether or not any of the names I submitted have merit, youtube is out there, so anybody can check these guys out for themselves. (Calling someone a youtube warrior is no insult where I'm concerned. Beats hell out of boxwreck.)

Somebody else who might be considered is Danny Lopez, a monstrous puncher, but also someone whose relative lack of hand speed cost him dearly against Sanchez. Slow hands didn't prevent the likes of Jim Watt from throwing combinations, but it could be a factor sometimes. Watt himself was an unusual example of a converted righty who was simply more comfortable boxing out of the southpaw stance. (That's also my personal preference, as I don't hook very well with my left out of the orthodox position, though I can rake uppercuts with it somewhat like Ambers did.)

George Chuvalo seemed to do a lot of singular punching. As he had a fine hook, this is again somewhat surprising.

On the flip side, Jerry Quarry had a great trigger, and could use it on the inside to double up on his right, bringing it up from the body to the head the way others do with a great hook. It didn't look at all funny or awkward when he did this, a rare knack.