Development of "Crazy" (per your request WillW):

[Sinister]

I like how all of your fighters have different styles, yet there's something very similar about them. It's almost as if they had the same trainer...

They're all a pleasure to watch -- boxing at its finest, with plenty of subtleties. Nothing's random, their fundamentals are solid, and they very clearly know what they're doing instead of just plodding forward and hoping for the best.

Defense has always interested me more so than offense, which is why I particularly enjoy seeing your guys fight. No chaos because their system's got a logical answer to everything. As opposed to a lot of boxers whose defense seems to be an afterthought and picked up by trial-and-error.

Just sayin', since you mentioned in another thread how no one's replied here - even if people aren't saying anything, I think it's safe to say it's not because no one's interested.

Yes most of them have my "signature" in that you can tell right away they're trained by me. There's only one who is high level who doesn't so much "look like" I built him, because I didn't. But there's a lot of my refinement in what he does. But he still looks distinctly like himself. That's my other Southpaw Za-Quan. This was from the Gene Lewis tournament, he won his division and ended up covered in this guy's blood:



Weird style, but he was hired by both Tim Bradley and Jesse Vargas for their respective fights against Pacquiao.

P.S. - Yes I did say that, because while I know most people who know who I am will read and pay attention to what I post, if there's no discourse I end up feeling as if I take the time to come here and drop diamonds for no real reason.

 

[Bekim]

Yes most of them have my "signature" in that you can tell right away they're trained by me. There's only one who is high level who doesn't so much "look like" I built him, because I didn't. But there's a lot of my refinement in what he does. But he still looks distinctly like himself. That's my other Southpaw Za-Quan. This was from the Gene Lewis tournament, he won his division and ended up covered in this guy's blood:



Weird style, but he was hired by both Tim Bradley and Jesse Vargas for their respective fights against Pacquiao.

P.S. - Yes I did say that, because while I know most people who know who I am will read and pay attention to what I post, if there's no discourse I end up feeling as if I take the time to come here and drop diamonds for no real reason.

Your input to this forum is invaluable. A diamond is still a diamond, even if the people passing it by do not know it's worth.

I'm not a boxing guy but grew up down the road to a then up and coming boxer called, Nigel Benn. A friend of the family was a boxer called Gary Mason (RIP). It was some of the better years for UK boxing in my opinion.

I sort of stopped taking an interest in the game over the years, not because of the lack of good boxers but the idiot parasites that follow them around and sometimes manage them, too much a money game at the higher level.

I do occasionally take in a lower level boxing event and enjoy it a lot better.

 

[n.diazismylife1999]

Weird style, but he was hired by both Tim Bradley and Jesse Vargas for their respective fights against Pacquiao.

No wonder, made me think of Pacquiao almost instantly. How long's he been training under you?

 

[Sano]

P.S. - Yes I did say that, because while I know most people who know who I am will read and pay attention to what I post, if there's no discourse I end up feeling as if I take the time to come here and drop diamonds for no real reason.

I think it's a few different things. One of them is that it can be hard to decipher for many people. Most of us are not at that level and need things broken down a little bit. When you mention tendencies of certain fighters of yours and post 3-4 round sparring videos it can go over some of our heads. The less advanced someone is, the more you have to pinpoint it (spoonfed them). Also, people have short attention spans, especially on the internet. It's not necessarily good or bad, it's just how it is sometimes. Lastly, I honestly think they might be intimidated of you, maybe even see you as a bit unapproachable, and in turn fear sounding dumb.

That said, I'm sure most everyone appreciate you posting here. It's a huge plus for this forum to have you. The majority might be silent because they find it hard to contribute anything meaningful to the conversation (lack of knowledge), but anyone paying attention is learning.

It would be great to have more discussion though.

 

[Sinister]

Your input to this forum is invaluable. A diamond is still a diamond, even if the people passing it by do not know it's worth.

I'm not a boxing guy but grew up down the road to a then up and coming boxer called, Nigel Benn. A friend of the family was a boxer called Gary Mason (RIP). It was some of the better years for UK boxing in my opinion.

I sort of stopped taking an interest in the game over the years, not because of the lack of good boxers but the idiot parasites that follow them around and sometimes manage them, too much a money game at the higher level.

I do occasionally take in a lower level boxing event and enjoy it a lot better.

Yeah, I just like to get something for my diamonds. Even if it's a "hey that's a diamond!" What I really like is not just complimenting, but when people try things they see and mention how it went. That someone picked up a diamond and used it. That's why I try to stay reachable, because it's about the integrity of the Sport. Which, yes, often suffers on account of money. But I could do a whole essay on that.

No wonder, made me think of Pacquiao almost instantly. How long's he been training under you?

Close to 2 years. But he comes from a boxing Family. Father is a trainer, Brother is a Pro who just suffered his first loss. But he came up by himself, Father didn't help him until he already knew how to fight. He's a good student, though, always eager to learn and not terribly stubborn.

I think it's a few different things. One of them is that it can be hard to decipher for many people. Most of us are not at that level and need things broken down a little bit. When you mention tendencies of certain fighters of yours and post 3-4 round sparring videos it can go over some of our heads. The less advanced someone is, the more you have to pinpoint it (spoonfed them). Also, people have short attention spans, especially on the internet. It's not necessarily good or bad, it's just how it is sometimes. Lastly, I honestly think they might be intimidated of you, maybe even see you as a bit unapproachable, and in turn fear sounding dumb.

That said, I'm sure most everyone appreciate you posting here. It's a huge plus for this forum to have you. The majority might be silent because they find it hard to contribute anything meaningful to the conversation (lack of knowledge), but anyone paying attention is learning.

It would be great to have more discussion though.

I notice a lot about the approaching thing in real life. But IMO it has a lot to do with etiquette gone by the wayside, particularly among Americans. When a kid from here wants to know something, it's almost always in the form of a hypothetical, or a direct challenge. Like "you always say _____...but what about _____?" That shit gets irritating. Non-Americans are much more inclined to just genuinely ask: "Hey so I'd like to know why _____ is true most of the time"...and without an attitude. Questions are always good. But a guy like me can smell a loaded question from a few thousand miles away.

 

[Jaime81]

Yeah, I just like to get something for my diamonds. Even if it's a "hey that's a diamond!" What I really like is not just complimenting, but when people try things they see and mention how it went. That someone picked up a diamond and used it. That's why I try to stay reachable, because it's about the integrity of the Sport. Which, yes, often suffers on account of money. But I could do a whole essay on that.


I notice a lot about the approaching thing in real life. But IMO it has a lot to do with etiquette gone by the wayside, particularly among Americans. When a kid from here wants to know something, it's almost always in the form of a hypothetical, or a direct challenge. Like "you always say _____...but what about _____?" That shit gets irritating. Non-Americans are much more inclined to just genuinely ask: "Hey so I'd like to know why _____ is true most of the time"...and without an attitude. Questions are always good. But a guy like me can smell a loaded question from a few thousand miles away.

I haven't posted too much in this portion of the forums. What I have done is spend a lot of time going over the training info and threads you post. I'm a big believer in shut up and listen because you will grow if you just pay attention. I greatly appreciate how much I have learned from all of your posts. Hell I spent a lot of time just looking at your instructional threads and training of the pros threads. Thank you for helping me get better, not just with technique so but with great actual communication of those techniques.

 

[Sinister]

No problem

 

[n.diazismylife1999]

Close to 2 years. But he comes from a boxing Family. Father is a trainer, Brother is a Pro who just suffered his first loss. But he came up by himself, Father didn't help him until he already knew how to fight. He's a good student, though, always eager to learn and not terribly stubborn.

Reason I asked is because he's come a long way from here:





His infighting in particular, he looked a bit lost there before.

 

[Sano]

I notice a lot about the approaching thing in real life. But IMO it has a lot to do with etiquette gone by the wayside, particularly among Americans. When a kid from here wants to know something, it's almost always in the form of a hypothetical, or a direct challenge. Like "you always say _____...but what about _____?" That shit gets irritating. Non-Americans are much more inclined to just genuinely ask: "Hey so I'd like to know why _____ is true most of the time"...and without an attitude. Questions are always good. But a guy like me can smell a loaded question from a few thousand miles away.

I see what you are saying, but if you walk around with a chip on your shoulder expecting people to be idiots, they'll pick up on that real quick too. Doesn't even matter that most of us are idiots lol, you might scare away some of the meeker, or more thoughtful, guys. The ones who would actually ask well mannered questions. Again, not saying it's good or bad necessarily, but people respond to it.

I really don't mind if an authority figure I respect gives me a hard time. I think some sort of hierarchy is important, and brings a flock together. Show respect to your teacher. At the same time I respond poorly to people who I perceive as arrogant, even if they are great guys when you get to know them. I usually become withdrawn and quiet, or at times confrontational. It depends on the setting. I think that's why I put a lot of stock into being approachable with clients, while not going overboard. You have to be professional too. There's a lot of people out there who's not very bright, but they are still people. Stern but approachable, openminded but resolute, that's what I'm aiming for, but I still haven't figured out the balance yet. Not saying it's inherently important, and I'm projecting here, but it matters a lot to me.

Someone who feels comfortable asking you questions about how to improve, that's someone who's listening. That or someone who just doesn't give a damn, as per your first example. Maybe it is different over here (there's a fair share of shitheads here too though).

 

[a guy]

Gonna bump a couple of old threads since you guys seem to like seeing progression. Right now the subject of this thread, Jonathan, is training for a bout in a little over 2 weeks. This was taken yesterday, and he's sparring a guy who used to beat the fuck out of him when I first met him. The orthodox fighter had I think 8 or 9 Pro fights, Jonathan has 13 Amateur fights. I figured to update on him because he's a departure from Daijon and Joseph. He's aggressive, kinda guy who hates taking a backwards step:



And here's one from First Friday. You'll keep hearing a "WHAT!?" in the background. That's Mike (as in McCallum) remarking on Loco's newfound defense:

I really like the efficiency of his movement. Most of his boxing doesn't look particularly fast, but he's constantly taking small steps to change the angle and moving his head subtly with the hips defensively. Like, he doesn't get where he's going at blistering speeds but damn does he know exactly where he needs to be. I think he might be the best of your fighters at looking like he's right in front of you at all times, but not actually being there to be hit.

 

[sourdiesel209]

I really like the efficiency of his movement. Most of his boxing doesn't look particularly fast, but he's constantly taking small steps to change the angle and moving his head subtly with the hips defensively. Like, he doesn't get where he's going at blistering speeds but damn does he know exactly where he needs to be. I think he might be the best of your fighters at looking like he's right in front of you at all times, but not actually being there to be hit.

His defense is subtle, but effective. I like how he rolls with the punches and takes the sting of most of them that do land, looks very comfortable in the pocket like he almost doesnt mind getting punched in the face.

 

[Sinister]

I really like the efficiency of his movement. Most of his boxing doesn't look particularly fast, but he's constantly taking small steps to change the angle and moving his head subtly with the hips defensively. Like, he doesn't get where he's going at blistering speeds but damn does he know exactly where he needs to be. I think he might be the best of your fighters at looking like he's right in front of you at all times, but not actually being there to be hit.

I JUST realized today that he has a gift of smoothness. I don't know why I never spotted it before, probably because I think even I was confusing it for slowness. Now I have an even bigger level to take him to because with smoothness AND that he has very good hand-eye coordination, now I understand how he can beat speed without relying on pure toughness.

His defense is subtle, but effective. I like how he rolls with the punches and takes the sting of most of them that do land, looks very comfortable in the pocket like he almost doesnt mind getting punched in the face.

He really doesn't mind being punched in the face.

 

[Sinister]

Sparring with seasoned Pro (with two Regional Titles) Rashad Ganaway, this session was another breakthrough as this is pretty much the closest he's ever looked to his ideal self. We're preparing for Nevada Golden Gloves:

 

[zapataxiv]

Sparring with seasoned Pro (with two Regional Titles) Rashad Ganaway, this session was another breakthrough as this is pretty much the closest he's ever looked to his ideal self. We're preparing for Nevada Golden Gloves:

wow loco looks amazing right there his pivots are so clean.
also loco's a good dude i am glad he's got more ways to defend now then just with his face.

 

[Sinister]

Update:

Jonathan has had a few ups and downs since I posted in this thread. He's been to National tournaments a few times, the first time was a referee stoppage. Second time he rolled his ankle, and they ended up giving him a 6 month medical suspension because of being stopped more than twice in a calendar year. However, he's never had it easy in the Amateurs. Every reason to not give him the nod seems hit on, despite the fact that the officials are never outright mean to him. He also had an opportunity to fight in Canada, but the funny part was the opponent was Russian, and had over 100 fights in Russia. Jonny didn't win but he put up a Hell of a fight and was punch for punch with the guy in the first round and a half. But over the past year he's really shown moments of levity. The first can be seen in this video, sparring a guy taller and faster than he is:



Then he had this pretty awesome ass fight where the crowd rallied behind him. And he agreed to fight a guy a weight division above. His opponent had won a championship for the City of London, but is originally from Africa:



However, the best developments have been in the past 6-8 months. I've wanted to get him back in the ring to push to the 25 fight mark as an amateur (he's standing at around 15), just to demonstrate he can pull stuff off under the pressure of a fight that he does in the gym. But this session that happened a couple of weeks ago was the biggest leap he's ever made. Again the opponent is bigger, stronger, just generally much more athletic, and under the guidance of a former U.S. National Team member/Cruiserweight Champion:

 

[DoctorTaco]

He came to Portland and hit mitts with me 6-8 months ago and then we ate some donuts.

I’m going to invoke the “dan the wolf man” rule and take full credit for all of his accomplishment from that moment forward. His jump in skills was because of me and the donuts.