the pac man in action - check out the handspeed

My feelings toward Pacquiao are mixed. The clips you provided aren't impressive to me the same way his fighting isn't as far as speed goes.
While I do like his left straight punch and his tenaciousness, I don't like the fact that he shows poor combination skills (IMO). I am partial to guys who are fast and can cover body and head shots back and forth, (from all over) while running circles around you at lightning speed, and with some pop. To me he appears to be a small guy fighting like a bigger slugger. Not a bad thing, but enough to give me mixed feelings about him. The speed he demonstrates on the clips are all the same punches....no combos and very little in the way of body shots. His fight with Marquez was the same. I guess the bottom line is that s worked! (this time)


Tommy

admit that he doesnt have the finesse of roy jones or mayweather. To me. he looks fast, but maybe because im still inexperienced . My belief is that alot of guys that look like they have alot of holes in their game have become champions due to their physical attributes and unorthodox style.

who pops in your mind when you are talking about good defence, speed, technicality, etc? so i can check it out. thanks

Jones and Mayweather are two but off the top of my head Sugar Ray Leonard springs to mind as well as Meldrick Taylor.

Being unorthodox is a good point and for that Michael Spinks pops into my head.

Tommy

thanks man. I will check out taylor . Sugar ray leonard is fantastic.

Chuck liddell (eventhough we are talking about boxing) springs to my mind being a champion in the ufc but really leaves himself open for shots, and only a few people have capitalized on that. He incorporates alot of kenjukenbo techniques and looping punches, which are very different from what fighters are used to, i think thats what makes him special - no sparring partners can duplicate his movements, so his style actually catches them off guard from their regular training for striking.

on a topic of boxing. is there a rule that you cant use a spinning backfist.If there isnt, then why isnt it used? sorry if i sound like a chump

Well Chuck Liddell is in a different category being a mixed martial artist. The hand techniques are a little different in that arena. The punches used are a bit more straight due to the danger of clinching/takedowns (for the fighter that doesn't want to get into a grappling situation). It wouldn't be a good thing to have a fighter duck under your hook and go for a double or single leg! Although all punches can be used, the strategy has to be carefully considered according to the opponent due to the nature of the fight ("mixed" martial arts). Uppercuts have you in a little too close also if you are in that free movement phase of a fight. That quickly becomes clinching territory. I guess good boxing skills come in handy against the cage or ropes for dirty boxing combos.

Spinning backfists aren't allowed in boxing.

Tommy

thanks for answering some of my questions . Much appreciated

Very interesting Tommy P that you mention Sugar Ray Leonard. There are defining moments in our growing up and developing our related interests that we are inspired by people, and of course our memory lingers on those inspirational characters. I remember the exciting fights that saw Leonard slug it out over fifteen rounds with Duran, who incidently came to London for a weekend training session in the late eighties before going on to Europe for a fight. I travelled up to see his workout and, although he was past his best, was as charismatic in the gym as I had hoped, yet he spoke to no-one. I missed the next day when Nigel Benn sparred with him and fell over trying to nail him!! And I was a fan of Benn too.
I was also impressed with Ali because of the way he could handle bigger guys, like Jerry Quarry, Al Lewis not to mention Foreman, Frazier, Norton.
Far more opposition back then to test any champion at any weight. I'm no historian but I well remember these warriors who could both box AND fight and once they had some-one in trouble could finish in devastating style. There are others that inspired me in martial arts, anyone want to jump in and pick this one up?

Ali....ahh yes, I remember well those fights with Frazier, Quarry, Foreman when I was a kid. I would lay in bed with the radio to my ear. Ali was impressive in his ability to punch with authority while moving backward!

I have always been a fan of those who could put together quick combos that attack the body and head effortlessly and seamlessly as if they knew beforehand where you would be open. They whittle you down and distort your body. Mike Tyson surprisingly enough (for a heavyweight) was good for that (in my book.) I also liked Evander HolyField "at times" for the same reason.

Unfortunately these days I have to pay to watch fights so don't have the channels! I see very few and especially MMA stuff unless it's on Spike (but then I have to "be home" to catch it) Life is tuff

Tommy

Another memory jerker for you in the seventies was Benny Urquidez, after the Bruce Lee phenomenon we had World Of Sport screening a lot of the 'full contact Karate' fights and Benny 'the jet' was the full contact fighter of the decade mixing up punches kicks and throws from all angles, against all opponents worldwide. They loved him in Japan even though he was virtually unbeaten over there.