Mike Tyson on friends and enemies:
"Everybody you fight is not your enemy and everybody that helps you is not your friend"
Showing posts with label Mike Tyson. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mike Tyson. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 24, 2013
Mike Tyson on friends and enemies
Mike Tyson on friends and enemies:
"Everybody you fight is not your enemy and everybody that helps you is not your friend"
Tuesday, July 30, 2013
Mike Tyson, Roy Nelson and Mario Balotelli on doing their jobs
Roy Nelson was once asked what he did to pump himself up for a fight, and he said he didn't need to do that because it's his job. Just like one doesn't need to pump themselves up to go to work every morning, he feels the same way about fighting.
That attitude of just doing your job, and looking at an athletic competition as such, is something that can take the negative stress away from the situation. It's also something that just allows one to let the greatness they've trained for flow out of them easily. Like Italian footballer Mario Balotelli, who doesn't celebrate, because there's no point in celebrating doing your job:
“I don’t celebrate because I’m only doing my job. When a postman delivers letters, does he celebrate?”
Baolotelli just expects that foot to go into the top corner when he kicks it.
Mike Tyson, one of the great boxers of all time, had a similar attitude as seen in this video on Jim Rome's how. Tyson was inspired by his trainer Cus D'Amato, who felt it was ridiculous to celebrate because winning and achieving your goal was what you expected to do. It shouldn't be a surprise. That's not to say it's bad to celebrate your win or to not be happy, but in general, having a work-man-like attitude and treating the victory as just a part of the job which you expected to happen, can make that climb to the top seem like it's one that is out of reach; rather it's something you expect to occur.
–
That attitude of just doing your job, and looking at an athletic competition as such, is something that can take the negative stress away from the situation. It's also something that just allows one to let the greatness they've trained for flow out of them easily. Like Italian footballer Mario Balotelli, who doesn't celebrate, because there's no point in celebrating doing your job:
“I don’t celebrate because I’m only doing my job. When a postman delivers letters, does he celebrate?”
Baolotelli just expects that foot to go into the top corner when he kicks it.
Mike Tyson, one of the great boxers of all time, had a similar attitude as seen in this video on Jim Rome's how. Tyson was inspired by his trainer Cus D'Amato, who felt it was ridiculous to celebrate because winning and achieving your goal was what you expected to do. It shouldn't be a surprise. That's not to say it's bad to celebrate your win or to not be happy, but in general, having a work-man-like attitude and treating the victory as just a part of the job which you expected to happen, can make that climb to the top seem like it's one that is out of reach; rather it's something you expect to occur.
–
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
The Lever Punch or Doubling Up
Doubling up is the act of throwing two successive blows with the same hand, and can be extended into tripling up, quadrupling up or to any number imaginable - limited only by speed, ambition and arm cramp. The term Lever Punch or Crowbar punch was coined by Soviet Boxing Team Head Coach K. V. Gradapolov in his "Tactics of the Foreign Masters" to describe the legendary black pugilist Peter Jackson's seemingly unique tactic of throwing a hard left hook and without drawing his shoulders back completely throwing another one immediately afterward. This action served to break the opponents guard and concentration as after a hard left hook a hard right punch is almost always expected. The second punch did not matter much to Jackson who simply used it to "lever" open some space in which to fire his powerful right hand, but in recent years it has been possible for the second or third successive punch off of one hand to be used as a damaging blow. A brilliant example of "doubling up" or "lever punches" is Manny Pacquiao's fight with David Diaz:
Manny Pacquiao throughout his career had experienced the advantage of being a southpaw - awkward and unseen by most fighters with savvy managers. Against Diaz he fought another southpaw - effectively neutralizing Pacquiao's ability to lead with his left hand. As a southpaw against an orthodox fighter it becomes a contest of power punches seemingly as both sides find it much easier to land a straight with their rear hand (usually their power hand) than with their jab. Jabbing in a contest involving a southpaw and an orthodox fighter is usually largely ineffective unless one participant fights with their lead hand and shoulder down as Diego Sanchez made the mistake of doing against Martin Kampmann a few months back. In this fight Manny had to prove he could fight with his lead hand, and he did it VERY convincingly. At 0:25 Pacquiao uses a slapping lead hook to jump to the side of Diaz, following it with a short uppercut off of the same hand, bringing Diaz's head up for a hook off of his rear, left hand. Manny lands a lead uppercut to the body followed immediately by a lead uppercut to the head at 0:38. By not bringing his hand back to his guard in between Manny is able to bring the punch through Diaz's blind angle, the point down by his feet that he cannot see through his peripheral vision, and so the punch lands with surprise and good effect. Emmanuel Steward - a far wiser man than most in combat sports - breaks down the combination in slow motion at 1:00 noting it's rarity even in modern boxing. Pacquiao again doubles up later in the fight, this time using a jab to lead uppercut combination that lands flush at 1:43 of the video.
Another beautiful example of doubling up from the boxing world is Mike Tyson's famous combination of the jab, rear hook to the body and rear uppercut. He used this to effectively finish tough British heavyweight and all around nice guy, Frank Bruno. At 9:37 Mike has had Bruno reeling but has failed to finish by swarming on him, so he takes a step back and reconsiders his strategy. Pushing Bruno against the ropes he sinks the right hook to the body and immediately follows up with the right uppercut. Again as the punch had started down by Bruno's trunks, Tyson's uppercut was not telegraphed in the usual way by his glove leaving his own chin and dropping below his shoulders.
The professional kickboxer and K-1 superstar Gokhan Saki has some of the fastest hands in his division, also being one of the smallest men in it. Gokhan Saki throws some of the most inventive combinations of any fighter in the world, let alone at heavyweight. In his fight with "Flashy" Freddy Kamayo, he completely outshone his opponent and upstaged Kamayo's moniker by throwing heavyweight power in lightweight combinations. At 0:55 he throws a jab, cross, left hook to the head and a left hook to the body, following it with a hard low kick, and Freddy's night only gets worse from there. After stunning Kamayo with a solid counter hook, Saki follows him to the ropes and immediately begins using smoke and mirrors to baffle his opponent rather than swinging wildly for the finish. At 2:03 Saki quadruples up by throwing a left hook to the body, a left uppercut (through the blind angle) and a double left hook to the head in rapid succession. At 2:31 Saki tops off his performance by tripling up with his left hand, throwing a right hand, tripling up the left hand again, then rolling his left hand over his opponent's head, using it to rip down Kamayo's left glove and land a right hand that sends Freddy sprawling across the canvas. Kamayo is game and makes it to his feet but the damage is done and a stoppage follows seconds later.
Mention is needed for how this underused tool appears in MMA. It is rare that you see it used but when it is, it almost always scores and I believe that fighters will pick up on this soon. The Diaz brothers, Nate and Nick are exceptional at throwing multiple punches off of one hand in quick succession. Nick's hands are so hyperactive throughout the fight (though in a strangely slow rhythm) that I won't even attempt to pin point all of the double ups he performs but I'll observe a few just to illustrate the point. At 4:00, 4:15, 6:48, 9:51 and 9:53 and 9:54 Diaz throws two punches off of the same hand in rapid succession. There are numerous other examples of doubling up in this half of the fight alone, but good luck counting. Diaz's work rate is incomparable and on most of the occasions he doubles up a punch one of the two lands, and by the 9:50 mark both are landing.
A few honourable mentions: Takanori Gomi was a fierce MMA puncher in his prime and doubled up to great extent against the (on paper at least) much better striker Jens Pulver - using a lead hook to the body to bend Pulver towards the following lead hook to the head. Fedor Emelianenko also used a beautiful combination against Mirko Cro Cop that consisted of a right straight to the southpaws sternum, a left uppercut to meet him as he bent forward and a left hook to loop around Cro Cop's guard as he attempted to defend himself.
Finally no article on doubling up would be complete without a mention of Roy Jones Jr., I am not even going to attempt to offer individual times for this video as I believe anyone who hasn't seen it should watch the entire three minutes; it's pretty inspiring. If you're really pushed for time just forward to the end, but you'll be missing some of the best left hook work in boxing history.
Manny Pacquiao throughout his career had experienced the advantage of being a southpaw - awkward and unseen by most fighters with savvy managers. Against Diaz he fought another southpaw - effectively neutralizing Pacquiao's ability to lead with his left hand. As a southpaw against an orthodox fighter it becomes a contest of power punches seemingly as both sides find it much easier to land a straight with their rear hand (usually their power hand) than with their jab. Jabbing in a contest involving a southpaw and an orthodox fighter is usually largely ineffective unless one participant fights with their lead hand and shoulder down as Diego Sanchez made the mistake of doing against Martin Kampmann a few months back. In this fight Manny had to prove he could fight with his lead hand, and he did it VERY convincingly. At 0:25 Pacquiao uses a slapping lead hook to jump to the side of Diaz, following it with a short uppercut off of the same hand, bringing Diaz's head up for a hook off of his rear, left hand. Manny lands a lead uppercut to the body followed immediately by a lead uppercut to the head at 0:38. By not bringing his hand back to his guard in between Manny is able to bring the punch through Diaz's blind angle, the point down by his feet that he cannot see through his peripheral vision, and so the punch lands with surprise and good effect. Emmanuel Steward - a far wiser man than most in combat sports - breaks down the combination in slow motion at 1:00 noting it's rarity even in modern boxing. Pacquiao again doubles up later in the fight, this time using a jab to lead uppercut combination that lands flush at 1:43 of the video.
Another beautiful example of doubling up from the boxing world is Mike Tyson's famous combination of the jab, rear hook to the body and rear uppercut. He used this to effectively finish tough British heavyweight and all around nice guy, Frank Bruno. At 9:37 Mike has had Bruno reeling but has failed to finish by swarming on him, so he takes a step back and reconsiders his strategy. Pushing Bruno against the ropes he sinks the right hook to the body and immediately follows up with the right uppercut. Again as the punch had started down by Bruno's trunks, Tyson's uppercut was not telegraphed in the usual way by his glove leaving his own chin and dropping below his shoulders.
The professional kickboxer and K-1 superstar Gokhan Saki has some of the fastest hands in his division, also being one of the smallest men in it. Gokhan Saki throws some of the most inventive combinations of any fighter in the world, let alone at heavyweight. In his fight with "Flashy" Freddy Kamayo, he completely outshone his opponent and upstaged Kamayo's moniker by throwing heavyweight power in lightweight combinations. At 0:55 he throws a jab, cross, left hook to the head and a left hook to the body, following it with a hard low kick, and Freddy's night only gets worse from there. After stunning Kamayo with a solid counter hook, Saki follows him to the ropes and immediately begins using smoke and mirrors to baffle his opponent rather than swinging wildly for the finish. At 2:03 Saki quadruples up by throwing a left hook to the body, a left uppercut (through the blind angle) and a double left hook to the head in rapid succession. At 2:31 Saki tops off his performance by tripling up with his left hand, throwing a right hand, tripling up the left hand again, then rolling his left hand over his opponent's head, using it to rip down Kamayo's left glove and land a right hand that sends Freddy sprawling across the canvas. Kamayo is game and makes it to his feet but the damage is done and a stoppage follows seconds later.
Mention is needed for how this underused tool appears in MMA. It is rare that you see it used but when it is, it almost always scores and I believe that fighters will pick up on this soon. The Diaz brothers, Nate and Nick are exceptional at throwing multiple punches off of one hand in quick succession. Nick's hands are so hyperactive throughout the fight (though in a strangely slow rhythm) that I won't even attempt to pin point all of the double ups he performs but I'll observe a few just to illustrate the point. At 4:00, 4:15, 6:48, 9:51 and 9:53 and 9:54 Diaz throws two punches off of the same hand in rapid succession. There are numerous other examples of doubling up in this half of the fight alone, but good luck counting. Diaz's work rate is incomparable and on most of the occasions he doubles up a punch one of the two lands, and by the 9:50 mark both are landing.
A few honourable mentions: Takanori Gomi was a fierce MMA puncher in his prime and doubled up to great extent against the (on paper at least) much better striker Jens Pulver - using a lead hook to the body to bend Pulver towards the following lead hook to the head. Fedor Emelianenko also used a beautiful combination against Mirko Cro Cop that consisted of a right straight to the southpaws sternum, a left uppercut to meet him as he bent forward and a left hook to loop around Cro Cop's guard as he attempted to defend himself.
Finally no article on doubling up would be complete without a mention of Roy Jones Jr., I am not even going to attempt to offer individual times for this video as I believe anyone who hasn't seen it should watch the entire three minutes; it's pretty inspiring. If you're really pushed for time just forward to the end, but you'll be missing some of the best left hook work in boxing history.
Sunday, January 1, 2012
Tyson's Crazy Right Hook
Greetings and welcome to this blog wherein I hope you'll join me delving through the archives of boxing, kickboxing and other combative sports' greatest fights. I hope to provide a good number of tear ups for those fans who love back and forth action, and a few technical breakdowns of some of the greatest finishes and techniques of all time. Everything stated on this blog is absolutely my own opinion or interpretation and I stand to be corrected by readers, and would love to hear the views of all those who make their way here on the footage I link.
A Mike Tyson knockout is a good way to start any day - viewing one that is. Maintaining one of the highest knockout ratios of any fighter, the stocky heavyweight is one of the best known and most divisive personalities in boxing history for good reason. The second match in Tyson's comeback following release from prison in 1995 for rape charges, Mathis was undefeated at the time of the fight and gave Mike some problems in the first and second round, but only in so far as remaining on his feet against Tyson's fury.
While Tyson's comeback is remembered mainly for Mike's abandonment of the slick combinations, head movement and footwork that made him so fearsome in his prime; this fight had a couple of truly phenomenal moments. Those with more than a passing familiarity with striking martial arts or the sweet science will be well familiar with the term "angles". Angles, referred to seemingly constantly by colour commentators but are rarely used in the modern boxing game, are a position where a fighter can land blows on his opponent without them being able to throw back at him. If an opponent acquires an angle on a fighter, the latter has no choice but to 1) back off, or 2) turn to face his opponent again, leaving time and space for the former to punch him.
Mike's angle in this fight is one you'll rarely see used. At 0:24 and 2:15 Tyson leaps to his opponent's right side, switching into a southpaw stance and loading up an enormous right hook. While moving into an opponent's right hand is not encouraged by most good coaches, Mathis is squared up so that he cannot put much power behind his right hand, and Tyson is able to move safely past his opponent's right shoulder; leaving Mathis to simply cover up. Surviving the first attempt through his wits alone, Mathis is too slow to adjust the second time and is sent sprawling to the canvas by one of the finest unique blows I've ever witnessed.
A Mike Tyson knockout is a good way to start any day - viewing one that is. Maintaining one of the highest knockout ratios of any fighter, the stocky heavyweight is one of the best known and most divisive personalities in boxing history for good reason. The second match in Tyson's comeback following release from prison in 1995 for rape charges, Mathis was undefeated at the time of the fight and gave Mike some problems in the first and second round, but only in so far as remaining on his feet against Tyson's fury.
While Tyson's comeback is remembered mainly for Mike's abandonment of the slick combinations, head movement and footwork that made him so fearsome in his prime; this fight had a couple of truly phenomenal moments. Those with more than a passing familiarity with striking martial arts or the sweet science will be well familiar with the term "angles". Angles, referred to seemingly constantly by colour commentators but are rarely used in the modern boxing game, are a position where a fighter can land blows on his opponent without them being able to throw back at him. If an opponent acquires an angle on a fighter, the latter has no choice but to 1) back off, or 2) turn to face his opponent again, leaving time and space for the former to punch him.
Mike's angle in this fight is one you'll rarely see used. At 0:24 and 2:15 Tyson leaps to his opponent's right side, switching into a southpaw stance and loading up an enormous right hook. While moving into an opponent's right hand is not encouraged by most good coaches, Mathis is squared up so that he cannot put much power behind his right hand, and Tyson is able to move safely past his opponent's right shoulder; leaving Mathis to simply cover up. Surviving the first attempt through his wits alone, Mathis is too slow to adjust the second time and is sent sprawling to the canvas by one of the finest unique blows I've ever witnessed.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
