Soccer Ball Theory

The way I see it, Tyson's inability to fight on the back foot or going backwards was a major flaw. He lacked the fluidity and the ability to adjust when him coming forward was getting him beat.

 

Coming forward wasn't to blame for getting Tyson beat, inadequate preparation, an incompetent corner, badly deteriorated head movement, combination punching and footwork was what got him beat.
Do you really think that backpedaling would be appropriate considering his 5'10" height and 71" reach?

 

Question: How much dose one's build play into what works best in avoiding and taking punches?
For example I'm kind of long. By that I mean I have long legs and long arms on a 6' frame. In defending my self I prefer to keep my distance. I have no problem taking a step back to avoid a punch. It is leaning back that causes problems to the defender. I also would like to keep my foe at the end of my jab. If he is shorter than me punching down is not a problem.
No If I was stocky say like Marciano or Tyson. My method might be diffrent. I would not have the luxury of a long jab. My oppoent might be talier than me, and I would have to punch up to land a head shot. In defending myself it might be eiser to duck and come forwards.
So dose size matter in derterming what method works best?

 

You ever buy Sushi at a fancy Italian restaurant?
You ever rent a car from a Mercedes Dealership?

I mean a great chef should be able to pull off at the very least "mall sushi" or Daimler AG could certainly make a few extra bucks by renting out a small percentage of their unsold inventory from their proprietary dealerships. The point is that is not their core business and in many cases it would not suit either party.

This is precisely the case with Mike Tyson; with his knowledge of boxing and understanding of styles I'm sure he could have backpedaled at some point in his career but his job is the be the best at his particular style and to maximize his effectiveness by playing into his strengths. If he were to backpedal, even if he were reasonably effective, given his dimensions, he would be putting himself at a disadvantage each time he did. You can't change a player's game in the 9th inning nor do you put someone on the pitch on the 92nd minute with 30 seconds left of stoppage time when you are desperate for a goal. You do what works and what got you there in the first place.

As for him getting beat, it has more to do with his preparation.

With Lewis he was far gone but

Douglas and Holyfield were winnable fights. It wasn't a technical mismatch; he was outworked, outfoxed and outboxed.

 

Maradonas left peg or SRR left hook?