Striking Fundamentals Don't Matter 

This will be a rare case where the guys who *can* fight will be just as mad at you as the guys who can't.

I was told, “practice the fundamentals, get good at them, then spar and learn what works for you and change from there.”

A couple of things to consider... 1) Any good instructor is not teaching punching mechanics in a vacuum. They're teaching them integrated with footwork and strike selection (part of what you call strategy in the video). The fundamentals of punching link to the fundamentals of footwork and both of those link to the fundamentals of strategy. 2) Also, one of the reasons you practice "exquisite" technique in training is because you are anticipating the breakdown of technique under stress. Those clips of Ngannou, McGregor, and Fury that you showed had them throwing punches that were 75% right. They're able to throw a 75% punch under extreme stress because they practice it to a 99% standard in training. 3) You might have also shown videos where picture perfect form allows a fighter to deliver with winning precision. Look at the Chandler's knockout of Ferguson. That was a picture perfect front kick. Perhaps a less well executed kick does not hit Ferguson right on the chin, at full leg extension, as he's shifting stances, etc and therefore is not a winning blow. I agree that fetishizing one particular part of a system is bad, but that's far from saying that striking fundamentals don't matter.

This video is making the rounds on a forum I'm in and people are MAD. They are now posting your sparring videos to mock. Sensei Seth recently made a video explaining the pros of hands down fighting and the next day I saw a rant about why we need to ignore the "RU-vid gurus" who don't know anything about fighting. Congrats, you have achieved notoriety. It has been most amusing to watch.

"Position before submission" including in striking.

In my experience as both a fighter and instructor, the fundamentals matter way more then the flashy stuff, the problem is what the majority of instructors believe are the fundamentals. Punches, kicks and other assorted techniques are plenty important from a self injury perspective, but they really aren't fundamental skills they are more basic than that. General fitness, controlled aggression, positioning, rhythm, timing, balance,control and awareness however are fundamental skills, strategy, programming, and setups are intermediate skills, as for advanced skills there's really only advanced techniques and elevated versions of ask previous skills in my experience

🤯 this also made me realize my footwork is non existent

I agree and disagree. When you're a complete beginner learning some fundamentals is important. An extreme example is teaching someone to not wrap their damn fingers around their thumb when they punch. Some basic footwork also can be considered fundamentals. But yeah, I agree that most coaches just don't drill or even explain fundamental concepts like positioning or active defense as nearly as much as they should. I think partially the blame, at least from where I am from is that a lot of coaches are retired fighters that learned some of this intuitively or didn't even learned it at all, so they don't know how to teach it.

You've been hanging out with Icy Mike too much, his martial arts provocateur type titles are rubbing off on you! 😂

Let's say: Fundamental techniques don't matter. Fundamental principles do. Someone who never boxed needs to understand the concept of putting more than your arm behind a strike but without telegraphing and without losing balance. One way (also the most often found but imho not the best one) is to teach fundamental techniques. When they got this they can develop starting from this point.

You have no idea how many sprinkles I've eaten by themselves

This age poorly after Sean Strickland dominated Izzy using mostly boxing fundamentals.

Totally lost me when you said Fury abandoned all technique in the second fight. He fought aggressively, but he didn't abandon technique. And if you think that was abandoning technique...well..you don't know what technique is.

The reason why beginners are taught to keep their guard up is that it decreases the directions they can be attacked from and, therefore, decreases the complexity of what they have to deal with. More advanced boxers can deal with the additional complexity, but reducing complexity first is a very sound idea for not getting beginners overwhelmed.

HEMA instructor with 20 years of doing it. I gotta say I agree with you completely here. In what we do we say the absolute fundamentals are "Distance, Timing and Judgement". Without those it doesn't matter the quality of you're technique you're still just a very technically precise pincushion. And without good judement/strategy you usually just 'die' tired.

A few issues: The examples are somewhat cherry picked, for every example of people getting away with bad technique there are 5 examples of fighters being put to sleep for not returning to guard properly, Amir Khan for example, like to open up and not bring his punches back and goes to sleep for his trouble. Another issue is that footwork is part of proper form. If someone isn't taught how to properly return to guard and rechamber their hips/feet they won't be able to properly move or make positional adjustments after the punch. Which is really what the basis of good form is. Being able to protect yourself as much as possible during and after the punch. You can give away positional and strategical positioning anytime you open up, even if you have an advantage at that time, but not holding the phone on the left hook and as most boxers know a counter for a left hook is your own left hook, in any of these cases proper form aren't sprinkles, they're the entire desert, these flaws can literally end the fight for you immediately as it has for so many fighters. Most knockouts happen off counters to begin with, that's why I believe as do most coaches that having proper form and guard is important at all levels. Sure some fighters can get away with it if their opponent can't take advantage, but the entire point of training to have proper form is for when you do meet a fighter that can adjust and take advantage of your flaws. Your job should be to make it as difficult as possible for your opponent not to find a way to not use techniques simply because there are a few examples of fighters that have been able to get away with it.

So I see your point and agree with you on most everything, but from the perspective of a coach or a beginner I see some reasons to disagree. One, as a coach, you need to give new students at least part of what they expect in order to have retention, and ideally something fun. Hitting a bag or mits is a lot more fun than footwork drills, especially since a beginner has no real understanding of why they need to do footwork. I also have seen people punch in ways that can hurt their wrists or hands, either by hitting with the wrong knuckles or letting the wrist bend. I've also seen some really stiff people require a fair bit of help to stop arm punching and actually use their hips. Same with having a proper guard up, it makes it much easier to react to a strike and increases the odds of blocking or parrying. Once they've got all that down pretty alright? Let em do whatever works. Teach them the options and let them explore their style. Let them spar and start introducing those footwork drills once they have done some sparring and can see why it matters. Teach them strategies for success. Have them actually figure stuff out. It's harder, but yeah, if you want a good fighter, chances are that they are not compatible with every orthodox technique and need some personal twists. That said, fundamentals do matter, cause without any type of introduction or experience, it is hard for a person to even understand their starting point well enough to ask questions or make changes. Someone with ZERO fight sense can't begin to play around with style until they develop that sense, and til then, fundamentals.

so true!! i questioned the coach about how important the fundamentals actually were and asked if i could learn footwork and positioning and they said that even though i have the fundamentals pretty well, im not "there yet" and have to spend a certain amount of time on the basics before i can know anything else... just like you said, its like you have to earn the right to know anything of importance

have you ever been to a non McDojo striking class? basic are important for a number of reasons: -having bad body mechanics can lead to injury (typically sprained wrist from misaligned punch) -wrong distance with kicking is very bad you can entirely negate your own technique by pulling it at the wrong distance -you start forming muscle memory from the second you start training, and it's bad if you have sloppy technique because it needs a lot of effort to fix -return stance is more important than almost everything else in kicking as if you dont return to a proper stance, you end up being the BJJ guy that get swept by the TKD guy every time he raise his foot above 2 inches from the ground what you call the basics is not the basics that were taught in any of the 4 strike oriented gym/dojo i practiced in: what you describe as basics is body mecanics which is one of the 4-5 basic -body mecanic -basic positionning, executing the technique at the right rangeand knowing how to dodge and not get cornered is enough for begginers -basic strategy, the barebone" you have more reach use it"/"he have more reach don't let him use it" is enough for begginer -basic flow, why use this technique, what to do afterward, when to breathe -conditionning and reaction both physical and mental -yes instructor talk a lot about the body mechanics because that's what most people fuck up all the time when they begin and it is unsafe to fuck it up and counter productive since you will need to "unlearn it" to lear proper form. an it's easy to fix in drills -good instructor have you do the technique in all of their applications and different range which unless you know what you can and can't do, if you only know how to throw correctly(not perfectly) a straight punch and an half round-house kick you can't build a very good strategy against someone that have more usable tricks under their belt -then they have you practice the technique in small scenarios (typical sparring with 3 technique each for white belt) so you know how to mesh techniques together (flow) -then you free spar it so you can see what works and not for your strategies. (mental conditionning and reaction) -all the while conditioning your body only when you are decently competent at those learning to read the opponent style and develloping proper several step strategy will be usefull bad technique can doom a good strategy though, the classic in TKD is one of the fighter overestimating his accuracy and kicking an elbow instead of a gap in the guard, and suddenly he have trouble walking and loose "abbandon all semblance of techniques in order to create pressure" he says while playing fury delivering a perfectly executed back hand into clinch also having only mild technical breakdown under pressure is only attained by having good technique in controlled environment. it's extremelly clear when you train beginner kids, the ones that don't practice seriously during technique, are so bad that their opponent can just shrug off whatever they land even if you try to bring back the odd by only coaching the kid that is loosing. and if you are someone cross training into striking from wrestling, why would you instructor would have to teach you strategy you have your strategy already, all he have to do is teach you the movements and how to mesh them (aka drills) and give you some sparing experience TLDR: basics: body mechanic (basique techniques, balance, breathing) knowing your range not having dumbass strategy flow (basic technique combos) reaction to techniques how not to get pushed out of tatami/in ropes advanced: advanced techniques reading opponet several step strategy most footwork tricks

It is important to state that technique is more important in some facets of fighting than others, and to understand its value we need to understand why it was developed, if you have insane punching power, don't use techniques that optimize power, focus on landing the shot, also in grappling techniques aren't the same as they are in striking, as they are derived from strategy in the first place, why is why your title is fucking awesome. Just my two cents, Peace.

I remember when I was young and hot headed and thought everything was in black and white. This seems to be where you’re at. Fundamentals are not the most important thing, but I disagree with them being something my that just gives coaches something to be critical of. The way you teach a beginner vs a more advanced fighter is very different, and those who are commenting about how perfect your form needs to be are generally novices that don’t know better yet. That said, basic techniques help keep novices safe in sparring and drills early on as they learn the underlying concepts that make them work. I think this is also something you mean to portray here, but it didn’t really come across when you say “none of that matters” and it’s all “sprinkles.” Seems too black and white to me.

About the point at 3:59 i would like to add that improving on your weaknesses (IN TRAINING) can help you fill up some holes BUT you still shouldnt completely ignore the simple strategy of just using your strengths

The part you mentioned about developing your own unique style based on your body type, personality and instincts really interested me. Could you possibly make another video going into more detail on this very subject?

Fundamentals will bring you further than you can, you will reach a bottleneck sooner rather than later without them. The important thing is to not just get the fundamentals down to muscle memory, but also understand why the fundamentals are the way they are, that will naturally lead to a deeper understanding of positioning, strategy than would be possible without the proper fundamentals in place. The irony is when a beginner begins to break these rules, he might see them as abandoning his fundamentals, while actually the opposite is happening - it's actually the beginner understanding the fundamentals enough that he is confident enough to break them. Looking at experts who have in depth understanding of the fundamentals breaking these rules effortlessly really brings attention away from the process they went through to acquire their skills.

Wow you just gave me a complete new perspective of something I think I knew pretty well. I love that thanks for this amazing video, I'll come back and watch it again

I have 2 issues with this: 1. The definition of fundamentals. At least for me the fundamentals include footwork and positioning as well as basic techniques and defenses. 2. The assumption that high level fighters not sticking to textbook technique means they’re not relying on fundamentals. I absolutely agree that the fundamentals as you define them here are not the be all end all they’re often made out to be but they are the basis of even unorthodox fighters. Basic biomechanics of how power is delivered comes from understanding the fundamentals enough to adapt them to one’s own style. It’s the trainers job to help people develop their own style and let them break the textbook rules when it is to their advantage and to make stick to it when it’s things that wont work. High level fighters also nailed the fundamentals and know when to stick to them or break them to make a tactic work. And lastly the fundamentals are important to be able to fall back on when hurt or gassed out. Having the guard up and throwing very clean textbook shots to stay protected may not be the winning strategy but may prevent you from getting knocked out after being knocked down or when gassed in the last round after an all out war for 4 rounds before. That muscle memory can save ones ass. I do agree on your general thoughts about positioning and tactics being more important that super clean technique and developing one’s style tho.

The more i think about this i think that teaching beginner striking and high level striking are two different skillsets, one is more about building a bedrock for someone to work with, and then once they have enough experience they can start experimenting with different ways to get into position and implement their strategy where the details become far less important

Very true! Ryan Hoover also has a video about mitt work and positioning called “Move or Get Hit”, where he explains exactly what you said about practicing mitt work without any footwork can lead to bad habits in sparring. Great video as per usual!

Oh wow, this made a lot of things click for me about when, where and how I've improved at fighting. Realising that technique is only helpful in so far as it enables different tactics really puts into perspective how martial arts works.

tbh technique is what you use to capitalize on better footwork, and you build your strategies around it, you can measure distance because you have trained your jab technique so its always kind of the same jab so you get a feel for the range, you train striking technique to use everything else in the book, but i do agree that once you know your shit it doesnt have to be super mega crisp and perfect punch, it just has to be elegant

I describe it to the people I teach as music is the space between the notes. Fighting is the movement between the punches and kicks that matter. Where you're standing what you're working towards. Great video

I'm literally going through this evolution right now. Good vid.

yes, angles are important, etc, but no, the technique is definitely one of the most important things!! the reason I've only actually been properly hit and hurt once or twice ever in boxing is because I strike and bring my hand straight back to guard to block any counter attempt my opponent tries. I love it when my opponents do the hands-down thing as I can hit them more or less whenever I like. it's not too hard to set them up with faints. yes, there are some high-level boxers that have mastered the hands-down style but in my experience, a lot of people try it and it doesn't go their way. yes, it helps with certain things but it also leaves you very open. the reason hands down guys win fights is because the hands-down style is becoming more and more popular and when both fighters have their hands down it's just a case of who lands a big hit first. also bringing the elbow out to throw a jab is the opposite of what I was taught. i was taught showing the elbow makes you easy to read so twist as I extend my arm so my straight punches go down a straight line. and we even do this drill where we stand next to the wall a couple inches away from it and if your elbow touches the wall when jabbing then it means your elbow came out and you have to do 10 pushups as a result. and last year one of the local boxing gyms took their amateur fighters to compete. all of those guys was trained in the hands-down style and none of them won a fight because their opponents had good guards so the opponents could hit and not get hit so it was very one sided and a friend of mine actually quit that gym to go to a better one that teaches guards. hands down works in light sparring because there's less risk of getting knocked out if you keep getting lightly punched in the face repeatedly. but I do agree with some of what you said. but this is just my opinion based on my experience I guess

Italian fencing philosophy is dominated by distance, timing and speed. They work these concepts from a young age and then worry about technique.

I agree with the premise that throwing the "perfect" punch is less important than your positioning, footwork and strategy, but you're being too hyperbolic in trying to prove your point. Yes, if I'm out of range, I can't be punched, and if I have a strategy that works well, I'll land shots I probably otherwise wouldn't, but there will be moments where I *am* in range, and moments where I will also fall for my opponent's strategy. When that happens, neglecting to practice the muscle memory of doing something like bringing your hand back to your chin could easily end the fight for you right there. There are countless examples of exactly this. Fundamentals are also useful in teaching beginners the basic body mechanics of punching. For example, you're taught to turn your heel when you punch, something pros don't really do. Why? Because turning your heel forces you to turn your hips so you aren't just arm punching. Pros understand this, so they don't need that extra step. If you're brand new, you don't, so you drill the same punch so you can get used to the movement. There is value in teaching this to people who just walked in the door. I do get what you're saying, but the "sprinkles" thing is definitely underselling it.

measure distance and footwork are so underated. Everyone wants so throw perfect looking punches and kicks, but good footwork and knowing your distance is a way better way to land your punches and kicks (and its helps you to not get hit too, obviosly). Also, if your style looks dumb but works, than stick with it. if it works, it is good. This is not dancing where you get points for a good form or technique, this is matrial arts.

I love all of your videos! its only a matter of time before you blow up on youtube

Again Sir, you videos, “totally kill!” Great content. I gotta focus and implement these concepts as actual basics better.

I love this video. One of the best I've seen since I don't knew when. Watched 3 times. Subscribed & shared it. People who get this, get it. Those who don't won't and can't. You're describing indescribable Right Brain activity with Left brain words. I'm old now, but when I trained I moved around a lot & trained and fought at many different gyms. They all HATED my style. Many taught "seminars" against my style because of all the complaints their guys made every week about "things not working" & not being able to deal with the way I did things. Many many coaches said my style "sucks" & this was going to happen to me & that was going to happen. Very few put on the gloves to spar with me. But the few who did were shocked & changed their minds quick. Now all the world is trying to fight out of "Philly shells" & using footwork & tactics similar to mine. It's not going to work for many of them though. They're still in the same myopic mindset & I think they're just going to find "new" wrong things to focus on. I was just really lucky to have a few great coaches early who taught me body mechanics and did exercises to teach me concepts first. And taught me how to box and fight after that.

I always taught beginners to have the hands up and punch in a certain way to work on muscle memory and to get acclimated in class, which is actually really important. I never did tell them to hold their hands in a certain way while free sparring because everyone is different. But beginners need basics before learning stuff like moving around opponents.

Technique is important to a point but sometimes what you do and when you do it is more important then the how you do it. Distance,timing,strategy, defense (the different ways to do your defense) setting patterns and breaking patterns. Are all more important then getting a single technique 100% perfect. The main problem is a lot of coaches don’t know how to teach these concepts when it’s just easier to do combo after combo after combo

I honestly thought this video was going to be something else, but honestly this is solid information.

He's right. I once heard a boxing trainer say "Jack (Rennie) is a good bloke but he can't teach U how to box, coz he doesn't know, how" and I though "Oh yeah? No, Jack is a smart guy, who knows better, than to try to change/cramp Ur style". We are all individuals, with our own temperament and style. I also heard someone say "If only Ali had Cus D'Amato for a trainer and he did Iron/Mike/Tyson's (dodgy) peekaboo style" and I thought "There is no way Ali would ever do that! That wasn't his style".

"He talks like he's clever, And thinks that he's right, But I think I'd win in a fight. With his science and books, He lectures me about hooks, As if I am not very bright. Let's see him take to the streets, With his thinking techniques, Real men would put him out like a light" Make your outro song longer, please, I really like it :) I'd even buy it on bandcamp...

My style has been very grounded lately and going back to strong fundamentals. It's gotten me way further than I've ever been.

20-ish years on the internet and I've never commented first on a youtube video

Great video. I still believe perfect technique is essential to minimize the chance of one getting hit by a punch they didn't anticipate. That's why it's important not to have your chin exposed, even tho distance management and positioning are more important you can't anticipate every strike coming your way. Some shots will inevitably get through and for that having good fundamentals is important, I wouldn't call it the "base" of the cake but I believe it's a bit more important than just "sprinkles", possibly the "frosting".

RIP Cody Garbrandt's braincells. Man had a hard life and fought his way out... but took a ton of shots in the process. He had vertigo from brain damage before he even went on that losing streak where he got knocked out like 5 times in 6 fights. I really hope he has enough money to retire. He's got a kid too....

I agree to an extent, but also, all fighters have technique. Otherwise they are just flailing their arms and getting whooped. Positioning is technique, and every little movement in a fight is technique. Strategy is just how these movements are used. So strategy is the gun and technique is the bullet, kinda. You can have the best gun in the world but if it only shoots nerf darts, it won't be very powerful, likewise, you can have 50 cal full metal jacket rounds but if they are fired out a toy, it still won't be powerful. So both technique and strategy are needed to be a good fighter

Btw, you can actually use your same argument the other way. There are a ton of people who know the exact strategy that should be used to defeat the beat in the world. Yet they will never win a fight against anyone their size who trained in anything, because their body hasn’t been taught proper technique. The one exception I know is Max Holloway, for whom playing video games was twice as effective as putting in real work

Most of the best strikers in mma literally have their hands low, adesanya,dillashaw,McGregor. Cruz literally throws with the worst traditional tech and he lands a lot of what he wants at will.

"Z stepping, L stepping, Drop stepping, Shift stepping, Demsey Rolling, D'mato Shifting" thx big bro, I'll work for it

Yup, I agree. The only thing I'd add to the "most important things" of 'positioning' and 'strategy' is Timing. Knowing when to execute is critical.

In every aspect in life - basics are around 70% of the knowledge of anyone doing it professionally and being on the top. Those who know the other 30% may ignore the basics, because they are so deep that they have them as part of their routine, they just know when NOT to be bothered by them. Not holding guard as a beginner against a high level martial artist is a sure way to win a ticket to dreamland. People tend to fall in the misconception that "if I know it, others know it as well", complete beginners at sports tend to not know how to move their bodies and how body-mechanics are relevant to the techniques appropriate to a specific sport. That's the reason a pro-level athlete can relatively easy change fields - his understandings, athleticism and work ethics carries over and he only needs to learn the specifics of the new sport. Footwork and angles, strategies are advanced things and without basics will lead to anyone training to not understand why he needs the usage of footwork, nor will let you take advantage of superior position. Being a 'mediocre fighter' and knowing the basics, without understanding anything about footwork and different angles will still net you above 90% of the world's population in terms of unarmed fighting abilities. If you wish to become a professional or good fighter, you need all those advanced stuff, but they come once again - after the basics. Sloppy understanding of the basics will make you a 'crappy fighter'. Saying "fundamentals don't matter" is a clickbait ... well then again here we are all of us - the viewers.

Outro is gold :D

Do you have tutorials or can recommend any one strategy? Thanks!

Thanks for this mate! This first principle thinking is highly unpopular in an "activity/industry/occupation/domain?" that just recently entered its classical era - where a majority of practitioners are still held back by beliefs (Qi and martial woowoo) and socio-economical structures (gun-fu and your local gym) that perpetuate thoughts that date back to an era where empirical evidence was few and far between. Also, I've been bingeing your videos for 48 hours straight because of a lumbar strain that kept me away from the gym and this made me look forward to a new purpose when I eventually come around. Cheers!

This reminds me of a correction I'm still salty about. In sparring I threw a jab straight instead of turning it because the vertical position let me slip through my opponent's guard. Worked perfectly. My instructor told me I need to turn my punches, which I normally do but not when doing so will mean the difference between my punch being blocked or slipping through.

I was prepared to be upset by your video, but I actually agree with everything haha ! Distance, proper stepping coordination, and setups are the most important (I'd add good balance as well but it's kinda part of the footwork). If you get that you can swing ugly haymakers and be successful.

Truly, you are right. Yes

I am very impressed. Absolutely.

Teaching or learning good techniques to people beginning is very important and very useful. Once a person has learnt good techniques and they have developed the muscle memory and have experience then that is when they can modify different techniques to their liking. But if you don't learn or use good technique your strikes will be much less effective then someone who does. I have first hand experience with this fighting people who had not learnt the basics and good technique. Also about having your hands up, I don't know how many times I have seen a fighter get KO'd because they did not get their hands up when being overwhelmed. Yes some fighter at the highest level have trained for a style that has a low or almost no gaurd when sticking, but they are also normally awear of the trade off of this, and many train to compensate by having good head movements. The thing is you need to train and understand the basics before you start trading off better vision or strick angles for less defence. I do agree with you that food work and movements are very important and should be part of the basics learnt. The problem with having a "Good strategy" is in the fight all that can fall apart of your opponent starts doing something unexpected or has found a strategy that counters yours. Like Bas Rutten said, "Everyone has a plan, until they get punched in the face." A person has to know and understand "The Basics" before they start developing an style that works for them. Timing and positioning is learnt once a person has the basics down and starts gaining experience pressure testing and sparring or competing. So in short I disagree that the fundamentals don't matter, because they very much do.

This is absolutely correct. Strategy and tactics always trump technical details. I actually stress this quite often.

Outro song?

Perfect example of this is jiri, he throws random sloppy bullshit but he’s so good at finding the angle to throw it from that it almost always works

Very good info

This helped me so much Ty man it has completely turned me around as a fighter. I’ve gone from an average overly cautious counter striker to a pressure style and I’m doing my best work now. I would not even attempt to pressure fight in the past bcuz I felt I needed every strike to have perfect form and I had to learn that b4 even trying. It turns out everything u say is true. I’m overwhelming ppl who used to toy with me on the daily simply because I’m not obsessed with form and instead im hyper focused on positioning and dictating pace. if I am on the side of you throwing 4-6 unanswered shots to the head then I dont need them to be pitch perfect to take someone out.

AV, I love you man, you speak truth!! Gospel! Preach!!

You have such a great way of wording things. All stuff I wish I'd heard when I was training the coaching methods you so often - discourage - are the ones that pushed me away and made me hate striking. I think I wanted to try and be more awkward and unpredictable on my feet than technical. I was just gonna take 'em down anyways 🤷🏻‍♂️ When I get back into it, I plan to take more liberties during sparring and stuff. Should make it more fun and productive. Thanks for your work! 👍

I had to think about it for a while and I can only partially agree. What you describe as striking fundamentals are mostly "correct" executions and basic defense. I think it's really important to start with this when working with beginners, but footwork and positioning have to follow quickly. It's the same in grappling. "correct" strikes (hip, shoulder, thumb down, etc) is the same like "correct" submissions (bent the arm that way, cross your legs that way, move your hip up, etc.). And "guard up all times" is basically equivalent to "never turn your back". Both are true, except when they're not. But you can't flood a beginner's brain with everything at once. Where you're correct is that in striking people often don't advance from correct execution. In grappling positioning is taught from like week 3, because it's essential in sparring. But in striking people can spend years just hitting pads. So I'm with you, positioning has to be taught way earlier and more thorough. But(!) that doesn't mean that the "fundamentals" don't matter. True, pros never do anything picture perfect (except for Charles Oliveira. That man can be freeze framed every other second and his technique will look like it's from a Kickboxing instructional), but they are close enough to picture perfect, that they a) cause damage and b) don't hurt themselves. The best positioning is pointless if you can't execute a proper technique. Getting into Ashi Garame is pointless if you can't execute a heelhook and sidestepping doesn't help much, if all your strikes are aimless flails, that would break your hand if you accidentally hit. Edit: to come back to your dessert metaphor, the fundamentals aren't the sprinkles. They are the cake base. You need it to start assembling the dessert, but if you don't add anything, you basically got blend bread that no one wants to eat.

Has anyone got a link for a good positioning drill vid?

again, awesome.

Today in sparring one of the teachers did say that i wasn't moving enough, good to know

Here is why I argue it DOES matter; they understand WHAT makes a good form and punch, if they understand why they're taught that way, if they know the rules, then they know how to break those rules effectively. Punch with your body weight, not with just your hands, don't leave your guard open and your chin up, etc. Even if standing in that stance isn't whats important, what you gain from learning it is. Its like training wheels.

This vid is amazing.

Makes sense and I have noticed it over the years how most of the killers in the gym looked sloppy as fuck as compared to what the beginners were told to religiously do. I don't have the mechanical analysis thing going on like you do so well. I just chalked it up to some people just being "tough". Haha!

"It's easy to teach" blew my mind.

This is one of those concepts like training amnesia, where once youre at a different level you forget how you got there. Its like what Bruce Lee said. When you're a beginner, a punch is just a punch. Once you're intermediate, a punch has all the details added so you can perfect your form and make it a better punch. Once you're advanced, a punch is just a punch. The technical details are how you advance in your strategy overall. Techniques are the building block to your strategy. It takes a long time to get good and along that path people forget you start somewhere.

Love the video. It was thought provoking. Footwork sets up your offense and keeps you safe. Gives you dominate angles, and is the real essence of fighting. So i agree its important. But there are certain principles in fighting, like don't get hit in the chin. And different styles accomplish that goal differently. Thats why its an art. And stragity is important, reference the iconic Cinderella man vs max baer. Where he used outside positioning to avoid baer's devastating right hand. But technique is also important. Traditional Fundamentals are not the only way of striking or to accomplish fighting principles. But they are there for a reason. Its a style. The reason the hands are up is to block quickly and with minimal movement. And the reason you turn your thumb is because it raises your shoulder. This helps to protect your chin when you have it tucked. To overhand is a common way to exploit the lack of this technique when someone is jabbing from this style. If im not mistaken magregor has knocked several out this way. Different styles accomplish principles differently but not necessarily wrong just non standard. When they do use techniques that break fundamentals such as the Louis cross, its because they work and maximize the fighters advantage. But in Floyd Patterson's words. "Without fundamentals your have little to fall back on or something like that. Imagine if tyson had the skills to adjust his stragity midfight and fight just as well. And what happens in mma when the takedowns just don't work and he can strike. But im taking this comment way too seriously lol. Just an interest in fighting. Great video.

You described boxing stance and form and then showed MMA clips. They're different, and you don't see too many people who aren't technical get away with it in boxing. More often people like Loma, Canelo, GGG are SUPER technical and their fundamentals are air tight. There's a big difference in MMA where the range is different due to kicks, you can threaten take downs etc. Different stances and approaches have strengths and weaknesses.

True it is espectialy true in gyms where people dont learn new techniques until everybody has perfect basic techniques

Metrolina Martial Arts? I drive by that place every week lol. I was wondering why that logo on the wall behind you looked so familiar

i would say the same applies to pretty much any style or art. it most certainly applies to judo and bij. timing and setup above all

This man sums it up

I mostly agree with what you said here. Actually I wish people would think more like you, because I recently quit my martial arts school and went to an MMA school, because I expected to learn a lot more about the strategy and position for striking. Which didn't happen. It seems like this is an aspect that is taught indirectly, because it's difficult to correct you on, as you said. I still think basic striking technique is very important, tho. Maybe you underestimate how incredibly bad beginners are at this stuff and schools have to be able to teach the most incompetent people. I mean I am bad at striking but I was very surprised to see new guys who have no martial arts experience at all "walk punching" and literally tripping over their own feet.

This is interesting. I do a lot of capoeira and over the years seen a lot of evolution in the training, and I often disagree. Pad work where I trained was also very static. I used to tell people off for gazing into the distance when loosely holding the pad. I've in fact taken some lessons from boxing in how to spice it up. I've finally gotten to the point where I feel reasonably qualified to teach and I tend to teach application rather than technque. I generally have an enter in or positioning lesson in my lessons. I never use long sequences either. I liken it to know how the chess peices are moved but not actually knowing the actual winning strategies. I remember watching 2 video's on it and my chess game improving dramatically

TWO STEPPIN'!

very good video

Please make a video with all that basic footwork ❤❤❤❤

I like and agree with the thoughts here. Sometimes when I'm rolling and someone asks me what I "did", my response is, "I... tricked you... *shrug*"

The karate practitioner in me is having alot of conflictting thoughts about this and will probably be residing in my brain for a while thank you very much. I agree that positioning, strategy, and footwork are a important place to start in fact this is usually where I start with my students. However I also think having a high level understanding of the kinetic mechanics of techniques is also vital. For the simple fact that once you are in position you have to be able to deliver an effective technique. Being able to put power, speed, precision, and penetration into a technique are essential. Sloppy techniques are effective for high level fighters because they understand the mechanics needed for a good technique. To me at least this is what understanding the fundamentals means. Not the correct thumb position of the jab but the body mechanics needed to throw the jab.

This guy know what his talking about! Footwork is very important

Just noting this here: the guy getting knocked out, for a very brief moment (2:35), drops his hands, relaxes his shoulders, and stands up perfectly straight like they're just talking -- completely exposing his chin. A tucked chin, rounded shoulder and a raised glove might have kept him on his feet. Meanwhile, the guy who *threw* the knockout punch ate a shot to the face too (2:34), but his chin was tucked under his shoulder and his hand was up to lessen the impact -- so he stayed up. And *then,* after knocking the the other guy out, he returned to his stance. There is a *reason* for the "fundamentals," even if they aren't the whole story.

Technique, as we know it, COMES FROM the fundamentals of Positioning and Strategy. Fists shoulder height, held close, chin down, shoulders rolled? That's a defensive Position against direct high attack, and the Strategy is to deflect or glance blows and to close distance quickly to counter attack. And this single technical point of a "proper" boxing guard inevitably brings up a question: if someone fights from this guard better than me, what do I do? Also, WHY do they fight from this guard better than me, and what are the differences in our individual strengths? Hands down, long guard, Philly Shell and cross block, peak-a-boo, square stance, southpaw - all are game changing and fight-deciding choices for Position and Strategy depending on the fighter and their opponent. AND THAT'S JUST THE GUARD OF A BOXER. Not even talking about footwork, or even talking about anything more than boxing. All that to say that technique is decided by Positioning and Strategy, and that this point is made in the video. It just wasn't done blatantly enough for a lot of people and they miss it. Which isn't your fault. I appreciate this video a lot.

The point could be not to over-emphasize form, once you‘ve cleared your tool set from self-harming behavior and once you have functional body mechanic moves available. For what I tried to reach when teaching others was an improvement in movement functionality on the student‘s side.

I somewhat agree with this video but also disagree on several points. You need to be efficient with basics techniques and focus on improving your speed, power and accurately. The "form" of the technique is suppose to (but not always) help you develop those aspects of your technique. This in my opinion is where styles like Karate have an advantage over boxer. I've trained in martial arts for almost 30 years and the advantage of Karate training (depending on the school) is being efficient in teaching how to punch, but as you said in the video having a strategy means you need to understand distance and timing. You could have the strongest punch in the world but if you can't control the distance the punch is useless. However if the punch is lacking in speed, power and accurately then the strategy won't work because of telegraphing, etc. If you want examples of MMA fighters with good fundamentals and good strategy watch Lyoto Machida and Wonderboy. When it comes to training strikes and striking combos I always emphasize footwork with a technique as it relates to distance. Sometimes you want to isolate the strike without footwork, so when you hit the pad the you're just focusing on power, or speed, or accurately. Then add in the footwork to make sure your training progresses into realism. Now yes the I believe the fundamentals are important, but you are right about how having good technique without any strategy makes the technique useless. However they are two sides of the same coin. Techniques are something you should learn quickly, but take years to improve upon. Think of it like this, "You can't play chess and form a winning strategy, if you don't know how the pieces move."

Fundamentals absolutely do matter. As does aggression, position and defensive counters. I have been in an outrageous number of street fights, so my knowledge is coming form an absolute practical knowledge base , and not gym time or theory.

Hey buddy love the content I have a question. I’ve gotten into heated debates with many people about who would win in a street fight, a trained military man i.e. Green Beret/navy seal or A trained professional combat sports champion. They usually say the military person because they are trying to kill and train for a sport. I always rebuttal with if Jon Jones wanted to kill you…. he can…. Thoughts?

Correct Its about position That's what i got taught in the beginning Basic drills etc Plus basic footwork drills. And so on Sparring drills Technical Sparring. That helps to understand position etc Hard sparring Is not a good tool... .. Not unless you understand position already

Started this video with the express intent on arguing this point. I cannot with good faith argue this at all. Fundamentals 99% of the time is code for easy reusable teaching material. Kinda like the filler of martial arts classes. Once you teach someone to drive their strikes with some combination of forward movement, hip rotation and shoulder rotation, that should be the end of fundamentals. I regret time wasted trying to perfect form instead of gaining dominant position and good strategy. Form actually follows position and strategy not the other way around.