Styles That Do Fine Against Tall Southpaws?

I've always thought the best way to fight any southpaw is to crowd them and eliminate that southpaw advantage. Against a tall guy of any stance, that would be ideal anyway.

 

If you're chest to chest like that the angles don't mean as much. The backwards nature of what makes a southpaw so unorthodox is lessened.

 

And stay outside his right foot.

 

If that doesn't work, try reasoning with him.

 

Swarming styles that negate the footwork and reach and don't allow the southpaw to get a breath.

Also fighters who can make the southpaw over reach and then step in and counter it then spin off or throw a combination while still inside the southpaw's reach.

 

good answers. it's always baffled me why southpaws are such a ***** to fight but it's true. yeah, i imagine staying in close or someone who can circle to the right and has a good counter right hand could do some good to

 

This is very important and will keep your right hand (assuming you throw it straight) inside the southpaw's left and should keep you landing first, or at the least with more authority.

 

I always did better circling to my left against southpaws. It keeps them circling into my right and I was moving away from their left.

It depends on the fighter. I've been fortunate in being successful against southpaws and can only remember two ocassions (same fighter) where I didn't come out on top. That fighter was simply better than me and would've lit me up if he was orthodox too, though.

I've done well at all ranges against them depending on the style. Things that I found effective against ones that were taller were slipping under their jab and throwing my own hard into their rib cage and looking to follow with a right down the pipe to the head. This naturally left me vulnerable for a right hook, but I was also fortunate enough to have them weary of my power and not eager to throw in give and take situations. I also had the chin to take it when they did trade, and I could follow with my left hook and work from there.

I also found it effective to come over top of their jab with my own and to set up more punches from there. Again, I was able to make such situations work because I hit hard and they were weary to do much in the way of really comitting to a counter attack that would've surely made my life a lot more difficult.

I found aggressive countering to really work and forcing them to lead because of my pressure. It also helped that I had good enough punch placement to throw and land if they didn't lead.

Again, this is what worked for me due to my own style and strengths. I could never pull off a Hopkins-Tarver like strategy.

 

atschyou're right, wrong direction

 

Honestly, any style can work, and I mean any. But there are some key fundamentals a fighter has to keep in mind. A southpaw doesn't dominate an orthodox fighter because of any special lefty advantage- It's because he does things the righty doesn't counter, can't anticipate, and simply does incorrectly.

1. The lead foot. The lead foot. The lead foot. I can't say it enough. The fighter with the inside track lands the cross much easier. A southpaw has trained his entire career to land his cross on you; He's also not as uncomfortable circling left as you are, because right hand leads are an acquired skill that many people he's fought and sparred just don't possess. This means that if you let him get his lead outside yours, HE WILL.

Taking away a southpaws cross forces him to beat you with his jab and his movement. A true left-hander will find this difficult, as his right hand will, usually, suck. A slow, forced right jab can be keyed off of. And if he's right handed, he's still well in line for your offense flowing from the right hand.

2. Keying off the jab. This is SO important against a tall fighter, and even more against a tall southpaw. If a fighter gets set at his preferred range, in this case, longer than yours, and gets you at the end of a steady jab, it is mighty hard to stop his offense. He'll just peck, throw left hands, and can even hook in combinations all night long. You'll freeze, you'll get tentative, he'll get comfortable, and it goes to a beating REAL quick; We've all seen the fighters, evenly matched in skill, who end up just eating an asswhipping on the outside in short order. It's not because of some huge skill discrepancy, it's because one guy got comfy and the other got confused.

When a southpaw throws, he's looking to do two things most often; Score, or set up the left hand. He's either dependent on his right jab as a weapon(Wright), or as a blinder(Pacquiao). Rare indeed is a southpaw who has a good, stiff, sharp jab he uses in both capacities, to hook off of, and to begin, punctuate, and fill in combination. If he throws it the hard way, GET OFF LINE. Move to the damn side. Don't just duck, he'll time you; Get OFF to your left, throw left hook/right hand combinations RIGHT off of it. If it's weak, literally key off it: Parry or block it, and the second you feel contact, explode forward or into an angle and starting throwing. You're inside, congratulations. Rock his world.

3. KEEP YOUR HAND UP. Keep your hands up is generic advice, but most fighters have predictable bad habits; In my experience, the rear hand is the lazy hand in a majority of fighters. It's thrown less, so it drifts; It's the power hand, so it's thrown harder and longer, and it comes back to the face slower.

Here, your left will get you in trouble. Jab with a slow return? Your getting hit. Lzy, slow jab? You are getting hit. Low, lazy left? You are getting hit ALOT.

Mix it up, stay tight. Throw lead rights. Lead left hooks must ALWAYS be followed by movement and evasion. NEVER single jab. End combinations w rights.

4. Stay busy inside. This is a tall fighter thing. A taller guy who likes his height will do two things inside unless he's top shelf or world class; He'll wrap you up, or you'll notice him trying to get lower than you. If he's trying to wrap you up, stay busy with your punches, because you'll hit him while he's reaching and trying to grab. These are FREE punches, which 99% of fighters forget to throw. If he's getting low, he's looking to come up with an uppercut and take your head off. Get lower, and MOVE your hands. He's looking, your punching.

 

Fight southpaw yourself... though that might be hard.

 

Unless you are mad comfortable, I never advise any fighter to change stances against any opponent of quality.

Boxing is a game of inches, and all of a sudden, the amount of defensive mistakes you are making skyrockets. See: Manny Pacquiao tearing Erik Morales a new one in the 12th of their first fight.