The Qualities Which Seperate Great Amatuer Boxers From Great Pros

I went last night to view some golden gloves fighters and was thinking about the qualities that set some of the fighters apart throughout the night. Over the past few years I have seen a lot of amatuer boxing and here is a list of some observations:

Style: this is the most obvious one to get out of the way. The amatuer format favors quantity punchers and does not weigh the effectiveness of shots. This tends to favor speedy combination punchers and hurts body punchers. At the pro level, of course, this changes because body work catches up to fighters most in the later rounds of a 10 or 12 round contest.

Timing: All the fighters I watched were class fighters in terms of technique, however only a few understood effective use of timing. Those who did were able to seperate themselves from their opponents who in many fights were of equal skill.

Ring Generalship: In several amatuer fights I have seen fighters warming up on the pads and demonstrating blazing hand speed and seemingly good power. But when the fight begins, its the boxer who controls distance, tempo of engagement, and the space inside the ring that inevitably wins when all this are seemingly equal.

Affect: This is an issue with many amatuer fighters, and rightfully so because it is difficult to control emotions in this sport. But many fighters spend about 20-40% of their energy before a fight even begins because of their inability to manage their emotions and energy level effectively.

BTW, for those of you who don't watch amatuer fights, I implore you to go out and support your local scene. Its the best 5 or 10 dollars you will ever spend, and it may remind you of why you love boxing. Its the grass roots level of our sport and if not supported by us fans it won't continue to be great. Just my 2 cents.

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