Keeping your hands up in MMA

JustOnce said:
I am confused and perplexed about this. MMA gloves are tiny as is, so it appears that best defense is to use your footwork and head movement. Lots of people shit on Rockhold's defense and not keeping his hands up, how many elite level fighters really keep their hands up like boxers or kick boxers with threats of takedowns?

The reason why Rockhold got knocked the fcuk out by Bisping was not because he had his hands down, but it's because he was fighting like a dumb cocky teenager and then he was off balance and Bisping came in hot and caught him right on the button.

And everyone can get caught in exchanges, especially if you are fighting a dude like Romero....

I just don't get it sometimes....
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No he got knocked out because he stepped into a jab and didn't bring it back to his chin. I mean how can you even argue this.
 
headkicktoleg said:
Keeping your hands up is hard. Like actually really hard. Like the first thing that goes when you're the least bit tired.
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The hardest and most important thing to do is bring each of your hands right back to your face in the middle of a combo. Dillashaw does it really well but he’s one of the few.
 
AJ Garcia said:
The hardest and most important thing to do is bring each of your hands right back to your face in the middle of a combo. Dillashaw does it really well but he’s one of the few.
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Add Rampage to that list too
 
Every now and then a simplicius asks such. Dancing around with inefficient footwork is much analogous to the farmhand who wears fine silk. It temporarily hides deficiencies but eventually the underlying weakness will be exposed. True defense is being rock solid, perfect positioning of the head, arms, and knees.

Of course this is not suited to everyone. Many are too frail and must rely on more movement. They can be good, but never the apex of magnificence.
 
Maybe his intended defense was just delayed....sort of like the assessment of a stoppage that happened nearly 2 years ago.









Also, this:
<mma4>
 
fortheo said:
whatever it was, it was ugly. I remember he himself calling it a jab, so who knows. Looks like a sloppy jab that he didn't retract fast enough to me.

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it was a jab, it wasn't so much as that he didn't retract fast enough. it's more of the fact that he did exactly what you're NOT supposed to do as a southpaw.

as a southpaw you need to be aware of your feet. Rockhold wants his lead foot outside of Bisping's, it's clearly not. in fact, he steps INSIDE of Bisping's foot AND over commits on the jab.

he gives away the superior position, over commits on his out-of-position punch, and THEN tries to pull DIRECTLY BACK, instead of trying to duck and pivot like most real southpaws do.

example:
giphy.gif


see, it's not just his boxing defense, or his chin. in my opinion, he doesn't even understand the basics of how to fight and defend himself as a southpaw.
 
Hands up obscures your vision and means your punches originate from a far more obvious place/predictable angle.

Hands low gives you sneakier shots, BETTER balance and better vision.

Hands up is only a last resort. Boxers don't keep their hands up unless they need to
 
Kassitus said:
Every now and then a simplicius asks such. Dancing around with inefficient footwork is much analogous to the farmhand who wears fine silk. It temporarily hides deficiencies but eventually the underlying weakness will be exposed. True defense is being rock solid, perfect positioning of the head, arms, and knees.

Of course this is not suited to everyone. Many are too frail and must rely on more movement. They can be good, but never the apex of magnificence.
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Exactly why mayweathers hands are always up rofl.
 
"The reason why Rockhold got knocked the fcuk out by Bisping was not because he had his hands down, but it's because he was fighting like a dumb cocky teenager and then he was off balance and Bisping came in hot and caught him right on the button.

And everyone can get caught in exchanges, especially if you are fighting a dude like Romero..."


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This article provides a good analysis/explanation...


https://sports.vice.com/en_us/artic...ve-luke-rockhold-helpless-against-yoel-romero
 
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OvaryPunch said:
Rockhold's problem is his superiority complex doesn't match his head movement.
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Yep I'd agree, he thinks he can fight like Fedor/Moose/Dillashaw/Cruz but doesn't have the boxing ability to do so.

Should really be keeping things are arms length much more than he does but to me seemed like he got goaded into mostly boxing with Romero rather than exploiting his kicking advantage.
 
Can we add a gif of Romero taking Cockhold's soul just to add to the debate...?
 
Hands up is a good way for random people to make it sound like they know what they are talking about..
 
Pancake Sprawl said:
it was a jab, it wasn't so much as that he didn't retract fast enough. it's more of the fact that he did exactly what you're NOT supposed to do as a southpaw.

as a southpaw you need to be aware of your feet. Rockhold wants his lead foot outside of Bisping's, it's clearly not. in fact, he steps INSIDE of Bisping's foot AND over commits on the jab.

he gives away the superior position, over commits on his out-of-position punch, and THEN tries to pull DIRECTLY BACK, instead of trying to duck and pivot like most real southpaws do.

example:
giphy.gif


see, it's not just his boxing defense, or his chin. in my opinion, he doesn't even understand the basics of how to fight and defend himself as a southpaw.
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Exactly, pretty much just left his chin in a horribly predictable and hittable place.
 
Pancake Sprawl said:
it was a jab, it wasn't so much as that he didn't retract fast enough. it's more of the fact that he did exactly what you're NOT supposed to do as a southpaw.

as a southpaw you need to be aware of your feet. Rockhold wants his lead foot outside of Bisping's, it's clearly not. in fact, he steps INSIDE of Bisping's foot AND over commits on the jab.

he gives away the superior position, over commits on his out-of-position punch, and THEN tries to pull DIRECTLY BACK, instead of trying to duck and pivot like most real southpaws do.

example:
giphy.gif


see, it's not just his boxing defense, or his chin. in my opinion, he doesn't even understand the basics of how to fight and defend himself as a southpaw.
Click to expand...
It is a combination of things. Hands up is what you're taught day 1 but a more accurate statement would be "protect yourself at all times" since often you leave your lead hand low but hold the other in position to protect yourself and while doing this anticipate rolling with any punches. It is relative to the current distance.

He did everything wrong at once. Lunging jab inside the lead foot, chin straight up in the air, hands down, held his jab out instead of flicking and returning it. It was fundamentally wrong in every aspect. Alarming really for a guy that's been training standup for so long.
 
ithinktheymad said:
It is a combination of things. Hands up is what you're taught day 1 but a more accurate statement would be "protect yourself at all times" since often you leave your lead hand low but hold the other in position to protect yourself and while doing this anticipate rolling with any punches. It is relative to the current distance.

He did everything wrong at once. Lunging jab inside the lead foot, chin straight up in the air, hands down, held his jab out instead of flicking and returning it. It was fundamentally wrong in every aspect. Alarming really for a guy that's been training standup for so long.
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A big part of it had to be how little he regarded Bisping,but jeez way to gift wrap it for him.
 
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