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Introduction to
scientific pugilism Daniel R. Kanagie
Daniel r. Kanagie Warning: The techniques displayed in this book are for informative purposes only. One should only train under the supervision of a professional with proper gear. The author claims no resposibility for any misuse of the information contained herein.
DEDICATION
To my loving family who believed in and supported me through the hard times. Without you this would never be. Lisa and Izabella, I know I have been difficult sometimes, but thanks to your love, I have been able to keep the goal clear and in my sights! Mom and Dad, you are my rock, you helped keep me going in ways unimaginable. I love all of you guy’s more than you will know. Special thanks to Max Dogget, for letting me hit you repeatedly and never whining about it. This is as much yours as it is mine. Dave Dickey, Jake Shannon, Mark Hatmaker, Jim McCann… all of you have been a great source of knowledge, information, inspiration, and support. You are all great friends who have blessed my life and taught me. Thank you all! Also to everyone at Wolfhound MA&FC and Xtreme Freestyle…keep training hard! Graphic Design Courtesy of
George A. Mamas
Table of Contents
Preface
1
attitude
4
footwork
11
how to punch
18
basic punches
25
blocks/parries
30
1
Preface A lot has already been written on Bare Knuckle Boxing, especially in recent years. Some are “reconstructing” a particular old manuscript, others are just repackaging boxing without the gloves. What I have set out is somewhat different. This is my system of bare knuckled fighting, what I term Scientific Pugilism. Scientific Pugilism is not a republishing of an older manual, or system. It is the culmination of years of research, study, and empirical testing, combined with years of actual fighting. I freely admit when something comes from another source. In fact everything comes from somewhere. At this point in the fight game, there truly is nothing new. This is just my take on fighting. What I’ve found to be practical and what works. The reason I call it Scientific Pugilism, is because everything is based on or conforms to scientific principles. Such as the reason we punch the way we do, is we examined what exactly a knock out is and what causes it. Then we recreate that using our body in a safe manner. Safe for us that is. This brings me to a question I ask all my students when they first start training. What is a punch? Honestly a punch is nothing more than Newton’s Second Law of Physics. F=M(a) Force equals Mass times Acceleration. The greater the mass and faster acceleration, coupled with a sudden stop and reversal of direction along the same trajectory, transfers the power generated. The second question I ask is, what is a knockout? A knockout is when the Medulla Oblongata gets rattled. The Medulla is part of the lower Brain Stem. It deals with Autonomic, involuntary functions such as breathing, blinking, heart rate, and consciousness. Shake the Medulla and you go to sleep as a way for the brain to protect itself. So the object is to combine these two answers. We need to transfer the power generated in our punch through to the Medulla Oblongata, thus causing a knockout. The next thing to look at is how to do this while maintaining minimal damage to our hands.
Introduction to scientific pugilism
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Nothing is taught just because. We approach everything with the 5 W’s. Who, what, where, when, why. Also, we use multiple sources to learn from and to verify things. Just because someone was a champ, doesn’t mean they fully belonged there. There were a few “paper” champs. Not all boxers are scientific. I also may not teach a certain technique exactly as it was originally written or is commonly accepted. There may be some inconsistencies with what you may have been taught, or read. That’s fine. First I teach what I found to work. Also there’s more than one way to do things. Both may be correct. I like to see fighters be versatile and adaptable. Be able to switch things up and change as needed. A great example of this would be Georges Carpentier. He had an amazing ability to change his strategy and tactics mid-fight. This is the reason I came up with the International Bare Knuckle Boxing Association. There are many styles and systems of Bare Knuckled Pugilism from around the world. Almost all conform to the same principles. This is because physics and kinetics are Laws. You simply can’t defy the science. One major similarity is the vertical fist used for straight punches. This can be seen in traditional Karate from Okinawa, Ancient Greek Pygmachia, as well as English Pugilism. In fact, you can see the use of Dempsey’s “Line of Power” in all the ancient Greek art depicting every type of punch used in the English Prize Ring some 3-4,ooo years later. What are in this book are the techniques I teach to beginning students. The techniques are what are required to get your first ranking in my school. It also adheres to the requirements to attain the first rank in the IBKBA. By no means is this everything. This is just the beginning to my system of Scientific Pugilism. What I have gleaned from the greats and what I have found to actually work. One thing you may notice is that there are no drills or exercises included in this book. There are a few reasons for this. One is because that is a project unto itself. The number of drills and workouts designed for boxing are so vast, one could fill volumes of them.
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PREFACE
This book is just about the principles and techniques. Before you rush right out and start hitting things, including heavy bags and makiwara boards, you need to have the technique down. The techniques are designed with your safety in mind. The last thing you want to happen is to sprain your wrist, or worse, and have to miss training for a week or two. So I advise you to just get the techniques down, for now. Start slow and specific. That means, when you train go slow and pay attention to your body. Correct yourself if need be. There is nothing wrong with looking at yourself in the beginning. Make sure your feet are the correct pace and gait, that your feet are not in line. Are you including all of the parts of the technique or are you cutting a corner somewhere. So just take your time and get it down. Train smart and train with a purpose. So, without further ado, keep your hands up, your chin down, train hard and remember, the more you sweat in the gym, the less you’ll bleed in a fight.
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4
Attitude What is attitude. Your attitude, when speaking of English Pugilism, is the posture you adopt when coming in to box. It is made up of your stance and guard. It’s how you held yourself. Pugilism doesn’t have a real “fighting stance” per say. How you stood was more personal. It was based on a combination of things like your height, weight, reach, type of fighter, etc. While there were some that were more popular and commonly used, like the one used by Richard Humphries, there was at one time as many different attitudes as there were boxers. Many top boxers were actually known by their attitude. Daniel Mendoza, considered to be the “Father of Scientific Boxing”, was known for the refinements he added to the art, in particular his attitude. Let me explain first what exactly stance and guard are. Your stance is how you position your lower body, from the waist down. Your guard is how you position your body from the waist up. It’s a little more then just your hands and feet. Let’s start by looking at your stance.
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ATTITUDE
Stance:
First let’s discuss the oldest question concerning stance, left foot forward or right foot forward. Strong side or weak side forward. Well here’s what I have to say, it shouldn’t matter which foot is forward. You want to be comfortable with both. Learn how to fight and strike effectively from both sides. In fact, there are certain techniques which require this, such as switch step punching. Not to mention some attitudes have opposite hand and foot forward, meaning that if your left foot is forward you right hand is in the lead. So whatever stance you adopt, you want to be comfortable on both sides. Now with that being said, let’s move on. There are three basic stances; slim profile, medium profile, and square profile. This refers more to your hips then feet. Modern sport boxing uses an extremely slim profile. Pankration uses a square stance, meaning the hips are almost facing straight forward.
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Height:
Next is height. Your can stand in a high, almost standing straight up manner, a semi-crouch, or a deep crouch. The taller you stand, the slimmer your profile usually is. Adversely, the deeper the crouch, the more square your stance.
What you want is to always have a secure base. Your balance is very important. You want to keep proper distance between your feet for the height you stand at. If you are in a high, slim stance, you want your feet to be about shoulder’s width apart. In a deep crouch, you want them about one and a half the width of your shoulders.
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ATTITUde
Guard:
Now onto your guard. Some guards are dependent upon your stance. meaning that it is only good to adopt certain guards with certain stances. Not all the guards are this way. Some can be used with more then one stance. Your guard is dependent upon the type of fighter you are. Arms held extended out is preferred by defensive fighters who like distance. Arms held tight in are used by those who like to close in for inside fighting and clinch fighting. The main thing about your guard is that your guard should be defensive while still allowing for effective striking. What you want to do is hold your arms in such a position that they cover as many of your weak and vulnerable spots as possible, while still being able to reach and hit your opponent. While some of these will appear to you to be odd and not good for fighting, once you see how to strike in Pugilism plus what you just read, they should make more sense.
Modern High and Tight:
This attitude is popular today with Olympic boxing and now in MMA. It is a slim, high profiled stance. The guard is high up and tight in protecting the jaw.
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Introduction to scientific pugilism
Pankration/ Pygmachia:
This is an ancient attitude from the Greek sports of Pankration and Pygmachia. The stance is a high, almost semicrouch with a square profile. The Guard has the arms held extended to keep distance. This protects from the clinch and wrestling, while allowing for powerful forward kicking.
Philadelphia:
This is an attitude made popular with fighters from Philadelphia around the turn of the 20th century. It is a slim semi-crouch stance. The guard is held in tight to protect the jaw and body.
Shield:
This is an attitude developed by the author. It is a semi-crouch, with a slim profile. The guard is held tight in to protect the jaw and body. The rear hand is held across the solar plexus, ready to strike.
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ATTITUde
Dempsey:
This is the attitude used by the Heavyweight Champ, Jack Dempsey. This is a medium profile with a semi-crouch. The guard is held in front of the face. The rear hand is held about three inches in front of the chin. The lead hand about four inches in front of the rear hand.
Mendoza:
The attitude used by the “Father of Scientific Boxing”, Daniel Mendoza. It is a semito deep-crouch, with a square profile. The guard is held extended in front of the chin. This promotes having two equal leads instead of one rear. Humphries: Attitude used by English Heavyweight Champ, Richard Humphries. It is a high, medium profile. The guard is held extended out, one hand in front of the chin, the other over the solar plexus.
Figg:
Attitude used by the “Father of Boxing”, James Figg, in a portrait. A high, slim profiled stance. The hands are held extended in front of the body.
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Introduction to scientific pugilism
Carpentier:
Attitude used by French Heavyweight Champ, Georges Carpentier. It is what he called his “Adaptable” guard. It is a medium profile, with a high stance. The hands are held extended in front of the body. From here Carpentier could change his attitude to adapt to his opponent.
Carpentier’s Crouch:
This attitude was used by Carpentier when he came in for inside fighting. It is a squared, deep-crouch. The guard is held in tight to protect the head, and to counter with tight hooks.
Remember, this is just a short list of different attitudes used throughout history. I teach these, plus others, to my students. I have them get a feel for each one. Find what works best for them. Everyone is different. What works for some, may not work for you. Personally, I take the advice of Georges Carpentier. Be adaptable. I like to change attitudes according to what my opponent does. Once you have learned to properly generate power, throw a proper punch, and the basic strikes, try cycling through the different attitudes. Either shadow box or strike the bag, or both. Get a feel for each one. Are you comfortable? Can you get a solid strike from there? Are you able to move around easily? If you aren’t comfortable, you won’t fight well.
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Footwork I’m going to start this chapter by saying that if you already study a martial art, then you know footwork. This has to be comfortable and natural to you. So if you do, then there is no need to change anything you do, as long as it adheres to the principles of pugilism. You don’t have to “relearn” footwork. But if you don’t, then this is how we as Pugilists approach footwork. One of the most important things to remember when dealing with Pugilism is to remember where it comes from. The first Pugilists were, in fact, fencers. James Figg, the first to claim the title champion, was a master swordsman and cudgeller, or stick fighter. Figg, besides being a “Stage Gladiator”, or professional fighter, was also a registered Master of Defense. Trained in the English fight schools by a master, he was certified to teach at his own school as a member of the guild. There is a reason why Pugilism is referred to as “Fencing with the fists”. Our footwork is just one. Taken directly from fencing, it is characterized by short, quick, secure movements. This can still be seen in today’s boxing, the footwork is essentially the same, with some differences. We call it the step-and-drag. And it is exactly what it sounds like. Whichever direction you want to move, step that foot first, and then slide the other. Simple. Well it can seem that way. But our footwork does so much more than just move us from here to there. It keeps us balanced. It helps with generation of power. It’s the foundation on which we are built. Literally. Just as Attitudes are a personal thing, so is footwork, as different Attitudes require slightly different footwork. But there are a few principles to maintain.
Be On Your Toes:
You do not want to be standing with your feet flat on the ground. You need to be ready for quick movement, so for this you need to be on the balls of your feet. The big knuckles where your toes meet the foot. This even applies to when your heel is down, touching the floor. You want the weight on that foot distributed to the front. This is referred to as a “bent” position. One where the body is cocked and the muscle is contracted ready to move. By having the heel down with weight on it, you are grounding yourself in a relaxed state. This increases the time it takes to move a particular part of the body.
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Don’t Cross Your Feet:
At all times you must maintain your balance. By crossing your legs you take your wide base and narrow it. The stronger your base, the more secure you will stand. We perform a style of footwork called “Step-and-Drag”. They are short, quick steps keeping you light but in almost constant contact with the ground. It also keeps you from crossing your legs. Simply put, which ever direction you want to move, you step that foot first, and then drag the other foot to return to your fighting stance. Let’s look at it here:
Forward Step:
Step your lead foot forward about 6-8” Slide your rear foot forward the same distance as the lead foot stepped. This brings you back to your original position.
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Rear Step:
Step your rear foot backwards about 6-8” Slide your lead foot backward the same distance.
Right:
Step your right foot towards the right about 6-8” Slide your left foot towards the right the same distance
Footwork
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Left:
Step your left foot towards the left about 6-8” Slide your right foot towards the left the same distance.
Next is the Shift Step. This is when you pass the rear foot in front of the lead foot to reverse your stance. Heavyweight Champ Bobby Fitzsimmons was a master at it. So let’s take a look at it.
Shift Step:
Slide your rear foot forward on a straight line, pivoting the toe forward as you rest your weight on it. You want to have the same distance between your feet as when you started.
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Footwork
You can also Shift Step backwards also. Just do the reverse of the above. Slide your lead foot back in a straight line, pivoting your other foot toes forward as you rest your weight.
One distinct aspect of Bare Knuckle footwork comes directly from the old fencing days, the Lunge. The Lunge is a way to close the distance between you and your opponent. It is either, a Step-and-Drag or a Shift Step, just longer than the normal 6-8”. When we Lunge in Pugilism, we usually want to finish by bringing our rear foot forward to close the gap.
Step-and-Drag Lunge:
Perform the Step-and-Drag as described above, only step the lead foot forward about 10-12”. Finish by dragging your rear foot forward.
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Introduction to scientific pugilism
Shift Step Lunge:
To perform the Shift Step, you only pass the rear foot in front of the lead the distance of a step-and-drag. Finish by dragging your rear foot forward. The piece of footwork we will look at here is the Oblique Step. This is a step to take you forward and offline from your opponent. If stepping obliquely to the outside, you perform a Step-and-Drag. If to your inside, you perform a Shift Step.
Outside Oblique Step:
Step your lead foot forward and to the outside about 6-8”, rolling your rear shoulder forward and bringing your lead hand in tight to your shoulder.
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FOOTWORK
Inside Oblique Step:
Shift Step forward and to your inside the distance of a Shift Step Lunge Roll your lead shoulder and switch your arms. Your lead arm is over your Solar Plexus, your rear arm tight and by your shoulder.
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How to punch So, you think you know how to throw a punch. Well, you’re probably right, it is a punch. But is it a proper punch. Is it strong, solid, and safe for you? Pugilism is the art behind the sport of Bare Knuckle Boxing. It’s whole focus is to punch with a bare fist. The way we punch in pugilism is designed to cause maximum damage to your opponent, while keeping your hands safe from breaking. There are three main elements to a proper punch. Generation of power, speed, and proper knuckle/wrist alignment. I’ll go through each one, looking at the individual aspects of a punch. We will only look at a straight punch for now. as it is the easiest to learn, and is the bread and butter punch of Pugilism.
Generation Of Power:
What is a punch, exactly? It is the means by which we transfer power from our core, through our fist, to our opponent. What does this mean? Well, our core, which is comprised of the thighs, hips, butt, abdomen and sides, is the greatest concentration of weight and strength. We want to move all that into our opponent.
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The straight lead:
HOW TO PUNCH
today called the jab, was once a formidable weapon capable of KO’ing someone easily. The first person to truly master the straight lead was Daniel Mendoza, the “Father of Scientific Boxing”. As a Heavyweight of small stature (about 5’7”, 165 lbs. approx.), he was a defensive fighter who relied heavily on footwork and the straight lead. Heavyweight Champion Jack Dempsey, in his book “Championship Fighting”, breaks down a basic punch in one of the most precise ways. The first eighteen chapters of his book are on how to throw a punch. There are three basic elements to throwing a straight lead, four for a straight rear. We’ll look at each of these, starting with the most important, the “Drop step”. This is how we move our core weight forward. It can be a little awkward at first. But you need to get used to it, as it is the most important part.
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The drop step:
is just what it says. You pick your lead foot up, and fall forward about eight inches. It’s not a very big step, but just enough to do the job. Start by adopting your attitude. Don’t worry about throwing a punch yet. Just stand there. You can keep your arms by your side if you want. Now relax. Once you are relaxed, do your drop step. Remember to not make any preliminary movements. Just fall forward. Let your lead foot land flat and solid.
Once you are used to the drop step, we move to the next element. It is a push off with the rear foot. This will force your weight forward with the drop step all the faster. The faster a weight moves, the greater the force of impact. So now, go back and do the previous exercise only add the push off with the rear foot. You should hear your lead foot slap the floor.
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HOW TO PUNCH
The final element is the Shoulder Whirl/Hip Twist. I combine the two, as I feel they are connected. To first practice, stand normal and relaxed. Feet even and shoulder width apart. Your arms just hang to the sides. Once relaxed, quickly and without any preliminary movement, snap you right shoulder back. Then your left. What should happen is that the arm, opposite of the hip you snapped back, should fly forward. The arms should be loose and whippy, like wet noodles. It is important that the motion be initiated with the hips. As the Left hip snaps back, the left shoulder will follow causing the right shoulder to snap forward. Now practice by quickly alternating snapping your hips back. This should cause your arms to flop around almost wildly. The looser the better.
Speed:
Speed is essential to a great knockout punch, for a few reasons. First is, surprise. You want to strike before they can react and defend. You want to be explosive. Your punch should be launched from your guard with no preliminary movement. Second is all in the snap. The snap is very important. Remember what I said earlier about the faster a weight moves, the greater the force of impact? That is true only if the weight is stopped suddenly. If not, then it is nothing more then a push. You want to snap your punch back on the moment of impact. That will transfer your core weight into your opponent.
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To practice this, use the exercise from the shoulder whirl. Stand normal and relaxed. Hands held in relaxed half-open fists at the chest. The knuckles should be pointing at the wall. When you snap your shoulder back and throw the punch, quickly snap the fist closed just before your arm is fully extended. Once your arm is fully extended, quickly return it to your chest and snap the other shoulder back throwing the other punch. Again, adopt your attitude and practice. You should notice that you have considerably less movement with your lead shoulder, then your rear. You should also notice how your rear heel will want to lift with the rear punch. This is good. It is getting the hips into it. But don’t let the heel raise to high. Only a couple of inches.
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HOW TO PUNCH
Knuckle/Wrist Alignment:
Now that you can get your weight behind your strike, and have a fast snapping arm, we want to look at the element of punching which reduces the risk of damage to you while increasing the damage to your opponent. By properly aligning your knuckles and wrist bones with that of your shoulder, you create a line of power. A solid battering ram, so to say. If you have a slight bend in the wrist or the knuckles lined up incorrectly, you have a higher chance of breaking your own hand/wrist. So it is very important to have your arm in one straight line. First we will look at how to make a proper fist. Starting with the pinky moving to the index, curl your fingers in so the tips are touching the top pad of your palm. Close the fingers in tight, and bring the thumb across the middle bone of the first two fingers. Now you have a tight fist with no open space inside. Natural brass knuckles.
The strike area of the fist is the entire area of the middle and ring fingers between the first and second knuckles. To see what I am talking about, try standing at arms length from a wall with the hand open. The tip of your middle finger should be touching the wall. Back up about 4 inches. Make your fist, keep your arm extended, and sway forward. Your fist should be vertical, with the pinky on the bottom.
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This brings me to the next part of this element. When doing your shoulder whirl exercise, your knuckles are facing out towards the wall. When doing the wrist alignment exercise, your fist is vertical. To get to the later from the former, you need to corkscrew your fist. By corkscrewing your fist just that little bit, you not only achieve the line of power, you are adding even more power to your punch.
So now let’s put it all together. You start the strike by performing the Hip/Shoulder Whirl. This will throw the arm forward. As the arm starts to travel forward start your drop step. Ideally you want your foot to land at the same moment as your fist makes contact with your opponents face. If your foot lands directly after the punch, that is ok, as the concept is getting your weight behind the strike. What you don’t want is to have the foot land before the strike. Then all your power is dissipated into the ground and not your opponent. So here is how to throw a proper, safe, solid straight punch to the chin. For these same strikes to the body, you want everything the same, except that your fist should be horizontal with the palm facing down. This is because your line of power changes with different heights, angles and punches. Also, when you begin your strike to the body, you want to lean forward slightly. You should bring yourself to the height of the target, not punch down leaving yourself open to a counter.
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Basic punches Along with the introduction of the Marquis of Queensbury rules and the wearing of gloves came major changes in the sport of Boxing. Some of the changes went all the way down to the basic punches that were common in the early days. Today you have the jab, cross, hooks, uppercut. Somewhere along the way we lost some highly effective strikes. The rear straight, lead cross, shovel hooks, hammers, roundhouse, back fists, these are the basics of the Bare Knuckle Boxer. We already looked at Attitude and some examples of different guards and stances. We also examined power generation, strike area, line of power and the lead and rear straight. Understand that the jab is a relatively recent invention in boxing. Before, it was the lead straight and was designed to be a very dangerous strike. Also, there was a difference between the rear straight and the rear cross. The rear straight was an offensive strike, the rear cross is actually called the rear cross counter, and is a counter punch. So now let’s look at the rest of the basic punches.
Cross Counter:
These two (lead and rear) are the only ones that are purely counter punches. That is, they are the only ones that are defensive. They are thrown the same as the lead and rear straights except that they don’t travel in a true linear plane. They go from in front of the same side shoulder to in front of the opposite shoulder, hence the “cross”. And, since it travels on an angle, the fist is on a 45degree angle with the thumb being above and inside. The cross counters are meant to deflect your opponents punch, while still striking them. So they will counter a punch from the same side, meaning your right to their left, and your left to their right.
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Introduction to scientific pugilism
Hooks:
I will only touch briefly on the punches that are still used today, describing only the differences. With the hooks, the fist is horizontal, the elbow is closed tight, no more than 90degrees open. There are no long hooks as you will most likely break your hand.
Roundhouse:
In Bare Knuckle Boxing, we use roundhouse punches, instead of long hooks. They are a whipping strike from the outside. Your fist is inverted and you are striking with the back of the knuckles. The primary target is behind the ear. As the arm snaps straight out, the elbow lifts up. As the arm reaches full extension, your fist will be inverted. Power is generated by the arm snap and a shoulder whirl.
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basic punches
Uppercut:
The fist will be vertical, thumb towards you, pinky towards your opponent. The elbow will be tight open no more than 90degrees.
Shovel Hook:
A cross between an uppercut and a hook, arguably the most powerful punch in the Pugilists arsenal, the shovel hook travels the shortest distance. Drop height like you would for an uppercut, except post your elbow in your hip socket. Snap your hip up. Your fist should be on a 45degree angle out, meaning your thumb will be above and outside. Targets are solar plexus, liver, kidneys, chin. The punch should only travel about 6-8 inches.
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Introduction to scientific pugilism
Hammer:
Unlike a lot of hammer strikes taught, this is done with full power generation just like all our other punches, with a drop step, shoulder whirl, and push off with rear foot. The arm doesn’t snap as much as it is named after the motion of hammering a nail. That is, hammering a nail in the 1700’s. You use your whole body, not just arm. The strike area is with the bottom pad of the fist all the way up the forearm.
Back fist:
How I said there was no jab, but a lead straight, there was a punch done similar to the jab. The back fist is primarily done with the lead hand. The hand shoots out fast, using the back of the knuckles to quickly strike the nose. This punch is all arm as it is used as a setup to the rear straight.
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basic punches
Overhand:
The overhand (mistakenly referred to today as the corkscrew), is primarily done with the rear hand. It is essentially a hook that loops in from above, instead of the side. Your fist will be inverted, and the target is the thin skin above the eyebrow. So these are the basic punches of the Pugilist. Beside these, there are elbow and open hand strikes which are variations of the basic punches themselves. There are also the special, or “secret” punches of the champions. But don’t worry about them now. Just concentrate on these basic few and get them down.
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Blocks/parries Yet another lost aspect of Pugilism is the art of Parrying. It is also another link to Pugilism’s predecessor, Fencing. Combined with the Riposte, it is a classic counter attack direct from fencing. What is the difference between a Block and a Parry? Simply put, a Block is a stop, a Parry is a redirect. Blocks are force on force, so it takes time to counter with the same arm. Blocks are usually followed by a counter from the other arm. A Parry is fluid and moving, so it is easy to counter with the same arm. Hence, the Parry/Riposte. So let’s look at the basic Blocks and Parries, then at some basic counters that follow.
Lead Arm Parry:
Quickly and sharply, snap your lead arm up and outside. Your hand should be just above and to the outside of your lead shoulder.
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BLOCKS/PARRIES
Rear Arm Parry:
Quickly and sharply, snap your rear arm up and inside. You should twist the hips and bring the lead arm back to cover the solar plexus.
Cross Block:
Bring the rear arm up and across the jaw line, keeping it tight. The lead arm comes back to cover the solar plexus.
Introduction to scientific pugilism
Inverted Arm Parry:
Raise your elbow, bringing it across the line of the punch.
Slap Parry:
With your open hand, slap the punch across the center.
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BLOCKS/PARRIES
Elbow Block:
Drop your elbow down to your hip, taking the punch on the meat of the arm.
The Parry/Riposte is a defensive technique from fencing. It is a deflection and counterstrike performed in a fluid manner with the same arm. They are usually performed on a one and a half beat. The Block/Counter is usually done on either a single or double beat. We’ll look at each of the Block’s and Parries above and add a single basic counter to each.
Lead Arm Parry/Riposte:
After the parry, immediately follow through with an overhand punch.
Introduction to scientific pugilism
Rear Arm Parry/Riposte:
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After the parry, immediately follow through with a hammer punch on a shift step.
Cross Block/Counter: After the block, return a hook to the liver.
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BLOCKS/PARRIES
Inverted Parry/Riposte:
After the parry, keep contact with opponent’s arm as you rotate your elbow down, brining your fist up. Follow through down with the back of your knuckles in a Chopper.
Slap Parry/Riposte:
After the parry, immediately bring your fist back. Rotate your elbow up, as you follow through with a Roundhouse punch.
Introduction to scientific pugilism
Elbow Block/Counter:
After the block, counter with a shovel hook.
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About the Author Dan has over 25 years of martial arts experience. Since 2001 he has concentrated on the historical martial arts of Europe and America. He gained instructor level in Live Steel Fight Academy under Dave Dickey in 2003. Opened his first school in 2003 teaching English Long and Short sword, Pugilism/ Bare Knuckle Boxing, Catchas-Catch-Can wrestling, Irish stick fighting, German Dagger fighting, Savate Dans La Rue, and Paradosiakos Pagratio. He currently owns Wolfhound Martial Arts/Fight Club, and is the founder of Wolfhound Martial Systems. He also coaches Catch Wrestling at “Big” Jim McCann’s Xtreme Freestyle Combat Sports Training.
Wolfhound Martial Arts and Fight Club is the only martial arts school in the Philadelphia area to specialize in Traditional American Combatives. Catch Wrestling, Scientific Pugilism, and Rough and Tumble, the original American MMA, along with Savate Dans La Rue, Paradosiakos Pagratio, and CQC Hand/Stick/Knife. We are a member of IBKBA, ISWA, and the ACCA.
http://wolfhoundmafc.weebly.com http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/WolfhoundMA