Holding when hurt

Some boxers cling like they are trying to shag some bird. Others man up and fire back. Some are encouraged to hold and praised for it, whilst others are criticised and abused. When some fire back (and get away with it) the are praised. When some fire back and get knocked out in the process, they are criticised. Fickle nature of boxing so called fans.

Greatest holders - Hearns, Ali.

Macho guys - Gatti, Benn

What would you recommend your boxer do (assuming you are a trainer) when hurt. We saw Mitchell try to fight back in R4 with 10 seconds left and paid the price (would have got splattered in 5 anyway).

Hold and keep holding, if you are badly hurt. Martinez did the opposite last weekend, but at least he was mobile. Mitchell stood there like a punching bag.

BoxingFan88 wrote:Hold and keep holding, if you are badly hurt. Martinez did the opposite last weekend, but at least he was mobile. Mitchell stood there like a punching bag.

This kid knows his stuff!

When you're badly you're hardly likely to think coherently. Bruno stood there like a weather vane, hands by his side soaking up the punches until the ref halted the slaughter. Others have the wherewithall to hold for dear life. I've seen Mitchell (v Johanson) fight back when hurt and hold also.

Personally I like the Hearns (v Kinchen) approach. Just grab the guy and grab some more when the ref separates them. Ali did it with some aplomb also.

Chad dawson did a great job in the Pascal fight. Someone compared it to a drunken school girl at a prom...

Irritates me that people are to brave for their own good and don't try to spoil. There are many fights in the past where holding has saved a fighter early and they have gone on to win.

Some here said Khan should have at least had points deducted or at worst disqualified for holding against Maidana. He got criticised for (trying) fighting back against Garcia. No win situation there. Personally I reckon he should have held.

I was not one of those complaining about Khans holding all though I remember Jim Lampley saying...

'Will he hold!? will he hold!? He will not hold!'.. or something like that..

So doesn't seem like Khan did too much holding in the Maidana fight, he went to war when he was hurt. Khan also did a bad job of tying up since he only managed to get one of Maidana's hands. This meant he got hit with the other.....

To me its instinctive based on mindset going into the fight. Against Maidana he knew he was in with a dangerous puncher so he held for dear life. That gave him confidence in his chin. It possibly led to him having a false of security with it and decided to macho it out against Garcia. He thought if he could take Maidana's punches without dropping, he can take a supposed moderate puncher in Garcia.

He should have held.

azania wrote:When you're badly you're hardly likely to think coherently. Bruno stood there like a weather vane, hands by his side soaking up the punches until the ref halted the slaughter. Others have the wherewithall to hold for dear life. I've seen Mitchell (v Johanson) fight back when hurt and hold also.

Personally I like the Hearns (v Kinchen) approach. Just grab the guy and grab some more when the ref separates them. Ali did it with some aplomb also.

"To be Frank" every time Bruno got whomped he just stood there like he was ready to get bummed by the guy out of deliverance.

azania wrote:When you're badly you're hardly likely to think coherently. Bruno stood there like a weather vane, hands by his side soaking up the punches until the ref halted the slaughter. Others have the wherewithall to hold for dear life. I've seen Mitchell (v Johanson) fight back when hurt and hold also.

Personally I like the Hearns (v Kinchen) approach. Just grab the guy and grab some more when the ref separates them. Ali did it with some aplomb also.

just re watched Hearns v Kinchen, and IMO Hearns got away with murder, after all holding is against the rules, but Lane did nothing- at one point Hearns was even holding him! You could make a case for disqualification when the holding is that blatant and persistent.
The other thing it did was confirm my belief that at 160 McClellan would have splattered him. Hearns was all over the place almost every time Kinchen hit his whiskers.

(Sigh)

So once again a Khan victimisation theory from the guy who wanted him to retire...

Fighters should get about 30 seconds max to hold then uses their footwork and punches to clear their head. Holding for almost the whole round and spoiling (which khan did in the 10th against Maidana) shouldn't be aloud. If you can't fight back then you shouldn't be in there. I like it when fighters tie themselves up whilst fighting in the inside, effectively stops any real power shots from teeing off while it also tires the opponent and frustrates them. Khan can't fight on the inside so he resorted to his lower upper b-level plus C minus gameplan that az talks about.

When you are hurt....human beings resort to type......Obviously the brain is thinking " I'm hurt " and comprehending how badly and ways to improve the situation...obviously with other things to think about ie survival the brain is acting on autopilot because it has to multiskill at that point..

So it does what comes natural hence the diference between a hugger in Holmes....wild abandon with Holy/Khan....and just standing there like a ally like Frank Bruno.....

End of the day..you are what you are...

All depending on the degree of "hurt"..