Sparring (videos)

[Sano]

So, the moment of truth! Lol

Anyway, I've been back training MMA for a few months now. It was sunday today and a pretty relaxed atmosphere, so I was told it was alright to record a little(it was the basic team and none of the pros were there).

Round 1:

This guy is tall, probably around 6'4-6'5, which is always fun. Has pretty good knees and kicks, and he's a cool guy too.


Round 2:

Well, this needs a little explaining. This guy is from Holland, and I first got introduced to him yesterday. He seemed a little odd and had this very torqued, unorthodox style. We sparred and he went pretty hard, a little too hard. I told him to take it down, but he kept going. I got a little pissy and the instructor told me, if he's hitting you hard, you hit him hard back.

Anyway, today he was there again and we sparred. It doesn't look bad, but he is extremely tight and you just get the sense that he doesn't know how to control himself. It was also way worse yesterday. It's hard to see, but he hit me at 2:23 with a cross with some weight behind it and I was like "okay..", I got a little pissy at 2:30 at hit him too hard. Felt really bad about it.

Talked to some of the other guys and they felt the same way and everyone was pretty mad about it. At one point he threw knees at some guys face three times while being instructed not to throw knees without a knee pad. ANYWAY, I talked to him afterwards and he is actually a pretty cool guy with his heart in the right place. So it was straigthened out. Again, feel bad about that punch and I never try to hurt my sparring partners, and I've never rocked someone in sparring before.


Round 3:

This was pretty fun. A lot more movement. This guy is a lot smaller than me and he has a background in TKD so he has some pretty fun and cool kicks. Good technique work here.


Round 4:

Good sparring. You can't really see when his back is against the fence because it's out of frame. I REALLY like getting someone against the fence and going high/low. Love bodyshots there.


My phone went out, which is too bad, because had a 5th round against a short compact guy which was basicly pure infighting. It as probably the most fun round and he was pretty good inside.

Anyway, feel free to comment and critique. I can take it. I know some things I want to do better, but I'll leave my own critique for a little while.

 

[clashnat]

Round 2:

lol cute ...let's stop fighting and talk it out instead.

I can't gather much from this, it's a lot of pitty pat, except from this one nasty brutal scene at 2:30. But you have a tendency to drop your lead hand after you throw it, and I think also before you throw it at times. Haven't seen the rest yet.

 

[Sano]

lol cute ...let's stop fighting and talk it out instead.

I can't gather much from this, it's a lot of pitty pat, except from this one nasty brutal scene at 2:30. But you have a tendency to drop your lead hand after you throw it, and I think also before you throw it at times. Haven't seen the rest yet.

I don't know how you're sparring, but I am not there to hurt someone. Notice how wobbly he got, and I could see in his eyes that he was dazed. These guys are not training for fights, and neither am I atm, and I definitely wont hit someone after they wobble like that. I wanted to end the round right there, but he wanted to keep going so we did. You don't have to prove how tough you are in this class, there are the advanced classes for that and even they have respect for each others health.

And yes dropping my lead is a problem. More when I'm moving forward, otherwise I roll the straight okay, but still.

 

[j123]

So, the moment of truth! Lol

Anyway, I've been back training MMA for a few months now. It was sunday today and a pretty relaxed atmosphere, so I was told it was alright to record a little(it was the basic team and none of the pros were there).

Round 1:

This guy is tall, probably around 6'4-6'5, which is always fun. Has pretty good knees and kicks, and he's a cool guy too.


Round 2:

Well, this needs a little explaining. This guy is from Holland, and I first got introduced to him yesterday. He seemed a little odd and had this very torqued, unorthodox style. We sparred and he went pretty hard, a little too hard. I told him to take it down, but he kept going. I got a little pissy and the instructor told me, if he's hitting you hard, you hit him hard back.

Anyway, today he was there again and we sparred. It doesn't look bad, but he is extremely tight and you just get the sense that he doesn't know how to control himself. It was also way worse yesterday. It's hard to see, but he hit me at 2:23 with a cross with some weight behind it and I was like "okay..", I got a little pissy at 2:30 at hit him too hard. Felt really bad about it.

Talked to some of the other guys and they felt the same way and everyone was pretty mad about it. At one point he threw knees at some guys face three times while being instructed not to throw knees without a knee pad. ANYWAY, I talked to him afterwards and he is actually a pretty cool guy with his heart in the right place. So it was straigthened out. Again, feel bad about that punch and I never try to hurt my sparring partners, and I've never rocked someone in sparring before.


Round 3:

This was pretty fun. A lot more movement. This guy is a lot smaller than me and he has a background in TKD so he has some pretty fun and cool kicks. Good technique work here.


Round 4:

Good sparring. You can't really see when his back is against the fence because it's out of frame. I REALLY like getting someone against the fence and going high/low. Love bodyshots there.


My phone went out, which is too bad, because had a 5th round against a short compact guy which was basicly pure infighting. It as probably the most fun round and he was pretty good inside.

Anyway, feel free to comment and critique. I can take it. I know some things I want to do better, but I'll leave my own critique for a little while.

Looks okay, I would end the combinations with a kick though. Lots of times you came in with hands, and your partners were either blocking or backing up (or both). Those are both great opportunities for a leg kick. If the guard is high, body kick opportunity is just waiting there.

Unless of course, this day you were specifically trying to work your hands.

As for round 2, it happens. Its sparring, and with all kinds of characters coming in and out, you're bound to run into some folks. You mentioned he's not local, every gym has their own culture.

 

[Mongoosemk12]

Guy in round 2 just looks very tense and new to me. Good call on stopping it at 2:30 imo. As you said, it is just sparring. And when it is someone new (especially if things escalated a bit previously), it doesn't hurt to take a quick break to check your partner if either of you accidentally or intentionally whacks the other one too hard. I have regular sparring partners I will go hard with, but these are guys I have trained extensively with and we both know each others intentions. If somebody gets tagged a bit hard we know it isn't coming from a place of malice.

Good videos, thanks for sharing! I really enjoy these threads because I almost always learn something. I also noticed you dropping the lead hand after a jab, and your stance seems... off to me. And I'm not sure exactly what it is lol. The stance seems really wide to me, and a lot of times your front and rear foot are almost directly in line with one another with a lot of weight on the front knee (especially in round 3 I noticed this). Hopefully someone more knowledgeable will chime in on that and either explain it better or say if I am just out of my mind lol.

 

[Sano]

@j123
No not working on hands here, it's just my style. I'm not a very good kicker, but working on it. I can throw an alright low kick and front kick and that's about it. Definitely should end some of those combinations with low or body kicks. I like to pressure and often they expose their body and/or fall back as you say.

@Mongoosemk12
Yeah he is extremely tense, but I don't think he is completely green. Talked to him afterwards and he's at least sparred in Holland. Thanks, I thought it was the right call too. It's not that I don't like going hard, I actually enjoy it, but when you wobble someone you need to consider what the next shot will do.

I do like to stand a little wide and sideways at times. Depends really. I try to change up my style according to who I'm sparring. Usually I try to be in the range they are good at and make it harder for myself. Unless I'm working on something like closing the distance against the tall guy OR I'm sparring someone who is better and getting my ass beat

Yeah I always enjoy other sparring videos as well. I know it's not balls to the wall, but hopefully there is still a little feedback to get from it.

 

[Run1981]

That Dutch guy is pretty green. Especially compared to you. You have much more control over your movement, kicks and punches than he does. He is constantly off balance during your sparring session.

New guys tend to spar "hard" like this. I've been taught to avoid their attacks and when I got hit, then it would be my mistake. My trainer would get mad if I hit them back as hard as you did.

 

[Sano]

That Dutch guy is pretty green. Especially compared to you. You have much more control over your movement, kicks and punches than he does. He is constantly off balance during your sparring session.

New guys tend to spar "hard" like this. I've been taught to avoid their attacks and when I got hit, then it would be my mistake. My trainer would get mad if I hit them back as hard as you did.

I know exactly what you are saying. I still feel bad about it. Usually I just let someone new hit me, but it was a problem, which is not really apparent in that short clip. Honestly I actually think he has a few years behind him doing dutch kickboxing. We talked afterwards about his sparring in Holland, and he thought he was going light with everyone, including the one he kneed in the face. Anyway, enough about that, it was my mistake.

 

[Run1981]

This guy could have been training for some years but still what do years of training exactly say? If he trains once a week compared to guys that train 3 times a week? This guy's hands are everywhere when he kicks...

OT: You are in control during sparring, moving a lot, creating angles. Looking good!

 

[Albe]

Lol everytime I see those sparring videos I feel kinda jealous you guys actually know how to spar lightly. In my gym most of the times someone is going 100% trying to kill you, especially the newer guys.

Of course this lead to a number of injuries, including me breaking some guys nose last week on a counter uppercut (got him going foward, pretty ugly break). And I dont really feel like I can get them to adjust to a lighter level.

 

[Albe]

On the sparring videos, I can point a few things.

The lead hand got everybody's attention, but your right hand is too low and relaxed sometimes. I really like how you distribute your weight, and your movement is nice also.
I feel like you could throw some leg kicks, or maybe a body kick from the front leg, to mix up a bit on the combos.

 

[Sano]

@Albe
Thanks man, work in progress. I do have a hard time kicking with my left/front leg, as I have to base on my right knee to throw it and it just doesn't feel comfortable right now. I'm coming back from an ACL injury, so hopefully I'll trust it more as time goes on.

 

[biscuitsbrah]

Your hands seems pretty smooth and fast. Cool light sparring videos. I know you are just returning but id like to see some harder sparring videos with people more your skill level.
Whats your weight?

 

[Sano]

Your hands seems pretty smooth and fast. Cool light sparring videos. I know you are just returning but id like to see some harder sparring videos with people more your skill level.
Whats your weight?

Hey buscuit my man! Thanks.

Yeah I'll probably start going to the advanced classes in a few months if all goes well. Don't worry, I'll get my ass kicked plenty. There are few amateurs at our gym, mostly pros and hobbyists. However, I'm not sure how much I can record with the pros. We have 3 UFC fighters currently, it's a shark tank, and they don't want their training and sparring out there.

I'm already grappling those guys and I'm getting destroyed so much that I actually had to do a gut check and almost thought about quitting. I'll keep at it, but I have a lot to learn on the ground.

Hopefully I'll get some videos up, but I have to get permission first for the juicy ones. Sometimes more experienced guys are at the basic classes, so perhaps I'll get something interesting there.

Oh, and I'm pretty heavy atm. About 92-93kg(~204lbs), but I'm fatish. I'll probably slim down to 88-90kg(~196lbs) naturally in a few months.

 

[biscuitsbrah]

Hey buscuit my man! Thanks.

Yeah I'll probably start going to the advanced classes in a few months if all goes well. Don't worry, I'll get my ass kicked plenty. There are few amateurs at our gym, mostly pros and hobbyists. However, I'm not sure how much I can record with the pros. We have 3 UFC fighters currently, it's a shark tank, and they don't want their training and sparring out there.

I'm already grappling those guys and I'm getting destroyed so much that I actually had to do a gut check and almost thought about quitting. I'll keep at it, but I have a lot to learn on the ground.

Hopefully I'll get some videos up, but I have to get permission first for the juicy ones. Sometimes more experienced guys are at the basic classes, so perhaps I'll get something interesting there.

Oh, and I'm pretty heavy atm. About 92-93kg(~204lbs), but I'm fatish. I'll probably slim down to 88-90kg(~196lbs) naturally in a few months.

Nice dude. I definitely think you belong in the advanced classes. Why the hesitation?

You seem like a pretty big guy, I like the way you use your hands with light combinations, shows speed and control. Most people I know around your size have a very hard time with this, they mostly are just straight sluggers. As others have said as well, maybe implement more kicks at the end of your combos. You have their hands up completely blocking their face every time, it's great that you go to body shots, but mixing it up with a kick seems like a good idea to me

 

[Sano]

Nice dude. I definitely think you belong in the advanced classes. Why the hesitation?

You seem like a pretty big guy, I like the way you use your hands with light combinations, shows speed and control. Most people I know around your size have a very hard time with this, they mostly are just straight sluggers. As others have said as well, maybe implement more kicks at the end of your combos. You have their hands up completely blocking their face every time, it's great that you go to body shots, but mixing it up with a kick seems like a good idea to me

Yeah I'm relatively big, not huge or anything. About 188cm(6'2) and as I said around 90kg(200lbs) atm.

Thanks. I really try not to use any power, or real explosiveness, as I feel it is a crutch to rely on it. It took some time to learn to do that though. Now I purposely don't put any sting into it, especially my jabs, as I want to be able to have a reserve you know, when the going gets tough. I do actually have pretty quick hands for my size, untill I get tired that is ha! My power is semi, nothing amazing. Only time I put something in to it, is to the body. I really do love bodyshots, and I tend to drop the newer guys on them if I'm not careful.

The reason I wanted to wait a bit before going to the advanced class is because I didn't want to be a hindrance to the guys. As I said, they real high level(btw two of them are fighting in the UFC event in Zagreb this weekend). But I think I'll take the jump sooner rather than later.

Yep, bodykicks. I feel like I need to work on the following:

Upping my kicking game overall and work on my flexibility(I can hardly do a bodykick).

Implement said kicks more, especially after combos.

Not be lazy with the jab in the pocket. I close the distance well and do well with my shots on the outside, but I like to pressure and I have a tendency to throw pitter patter straights with little regard up close, and get tagged as a result. I feel like I need to throw more hooks from here, and not just to the body. Also I need to get my hands back to my chin, have a tighter guard and absorb/roll with the punches better. Either a peak a boo guard and weave style/absorb in close OR I need to go with a cross armed defense in close. Either, or both I think.

Also... everything else

 

[Sinister]

Hey Sano, I don't have time to review your footage but I just wanted to let you know I'm training Norwegian light heavyweight Alexander Hagen, he's going to be fighting over there in May against Abel Gevor, the nephew of Khoren Gevor, the German. Might want to check out that fight if you want to see someone I've worked with in person. Oh an by "over there" I mean they're fighting IN Denmark.

 

[clashnat]

AFAIK Abel and his brother Noel, also a pro boxer, are Khoren's stepsons.

 

[Sano]

Hey Sano, I don't have time to review your footage but I just wanted to let you know I'm training Norwegian light heavyweight Alexander Hagen, he's going to be fighting over there in May against Abel Gevor, the nephew of Khoren Gevor, the German. Might want to check out that fight if you want to see someone I've worked with in person. Oh an by "over there" I mean they're fighting IN Denmark.

Hey Sinister! Well, if you get the time to look at them let me know. I know you're a busy man.

I looked through the fights I could find on YT and they both look very good! Interesting matchup, they have different styles but both have good fundamentals. Seems to me like Alexander has fought the better opponents and is a bit more fleet footed, with a bit more speed, range and eagerness. Abel seems like he grounds himself very well and does some solid bodywork, going both high and low. Good fight and one I would definitely like to see in real life.

I can't find any information on where exactly it's being held just yet, but maybe it'll pop up soon. I take it your'e not going to be there?

 

[Sinister]

AFAIK Abel and his brother Noel, also a pro boxer, are Khoren's stepsons.

Stepson, nephew, whatevs.