The Oscar De La Hoya destruction in Las Vegas

Manny Pacquiao coming out and he was ready for this one but a lot bigger than he looks. De La hoya simply look old in this one. Pacquiao dominated the bigger and more famous opponent from the opening bell Saturday night, giving De La Hoya a beating, in fact closing his left eye before De La Hoya declined to come out of his corner after the eight round. The fight was so lopsided, De La hoya looked so inept that it could spell the end for boxing's richest and most marketable star.

Why Oscar De La Hoya Fades In The Later Round

Cointry -- Oscar de la Hoya has a track record of fading in the late rounds. He gains lead in the early rounds only to lose it as fight ends In his bout with Floyd Mayweather jr., he was winning on points early in the fight with his offense but has a diminished activity later so that Floyd eventually won the fight. But why did Oscar really fades in the later rounds? No one has really gave a concrete answer. If there is one, his opponent can view this as a weakness and exploit it to his advantage to win the fight. But there is none.

Others say it was his stamina. Oscar puts too much intensity in his fight that he ran out of gas later. Somehow it is true. See how his mouthpiece protrudes when he attacks Mayweather jr. But every boxer should know, even the aspiring one, how to control his intensity. Even Oscar knew it. In his bout with Steve Forbes, one of his game plan is to learn how to relax. Yes he did relax but still fades in the later rounds.

It could not be fatigue. Oscar has a good training ethics. Oscar trains hard in every fight. He always says it before a fight. But he still fades.

Boxers are too secretive about the injuries they sustained on the ring. Which is logical because it is a handicap to a fight. There was one boxer who noticed that his vision is getting blurred in his right eye. It could be the punches it has absorbed in his last fight. But he didn't tell it to anyone even to his trainer. Then he begins to lose his fights. And finally lose his sight.

Why did he fade? Oscar himself provided an answer to this mystery. He was thinking of retiring in boxing so he published his book entitled "American Son". In his book, the Golden Boy revealed that in his eighth professional fight when he was facing Troy Dorsey, “who made a grunting sound that could be heard throughout the arena," every time he threw a punch, De La Hoya gave Dorsey a left hook that landed squarely on Dorsey’s right eyebrow, splitting it into open, blood spewing, knocking Dorsey out in the first round of an under card in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The punch injured the ligament in De La Hoya’s left hand, however.

“Every time, I flicked my left wrist, the pain shot through me. What was weird was that there was no pain when I used that left hand to throw a punch I called “my 45" because it came at a 45-degree angle, somewhere between a hook and an uppercut. It had something to do with the angle of my arm. All I knew in that position, my left hand could still be effective."

Adding to the injury of his left hand is the rotor cuff on his left shoulder. Most boxers who suffer this injury feel the pain when throwing a jab so it lost its power on the way. But nevertheless they can still throw a hook normally.

Bone injuries can still heal on a younger person but can recur again when subjected to stress.

That somehow answer the question why Oscar de La hoya fades in the later rounds. He throws some hard punches in the early rounds, hurts his hand and shoulder because of the recurring injuries and lose his stinging left jabs. But still he is dangerous because he still have that powerful left hook.

In his last fight, with Forbes, the signs that Oscar began to fade is when instead of jabbing the head he jabs at the soft part of the body, the stomach. When Oscar is jabbing to the head and it will hit the target, the Golden Boy either deflect his jab or pull his jab back. Others said Oscar didn't fade on that fight. He was still throwing the jab but it was only for show. It was a fake jab.

Amir Khan Completes Training with Pacquiao and Roach , Judgment Day ...

The new Khan, fresh off of several weeks of training at the Wild Card Gym in Los Angeles, Calif. under the watchful eye of his new trainer Freddie Roach, is set to face Oisin Fagan, who brings a pressure style

Roach, who is committed to be in the corner of Manny Pacquiao on December 6 in Vegas, will not be in Khan’s corner for the Fagan bout. However, Roach has a lot of faith in Khan and believes that he is a world champion in the making.

For Khan, sparring with Pacquiao can go along way in the soon to be 22-year-old's boxing career, especially when observing the machine-like workout routine of Pacquiao.

"I got loads of confidence from sparring with Manny," Khan said. "I got hit by some of his best shots but didn't go down and he's the best pound-for-pound in the world right now.

"I'm a better fighter now - I will never make that mistake again. I had a chat with Manny and he told me he had two losses early in his career where he got knocked out - but just look where he is now.

"What makes Manny the best is his patience. He waits for the right time to throw the combinations and I've also changed a lot of things in my style. Freddie has told me I need to be more patient."

When Roach was asked if training with Khan has helped Pacquiao in any way. Roach immediately perked upped and responded “Khan has a great, great jab, and it’s faster than Oscar’s and better than Oscar’s. If Manny can deal with Khan’s jab he can deal with anybody's jab.”

The Left-Handed Problem Of Oscar De La Hoya

Cointry -- Manny Pacquiao being a southpaw (left-handed) is more of a concern by the Oscar de la Hoya camp than Manny's vaunted speed.

Manny Pacquiao and Oscar de la Hoya will fight in the biggest boxing event of the year at the MGM Grand Arena. Las Vegas on December 6, 2008.

When asked about Freddie Roach’s comments about “speed” which is the main asset of Pacquiao, de la Hoya responded:- “Speed is fine but more than that, accuracy is more important”.

"In the past the southpaw fighters that I have fought I really haven’t done very well with, so this is not going to be an easy fight," Oscar said in a recent interview. Oscar's last encounter with a southpaw (left-handed) was a decade ago. He fought Hector Camacho and Pernell Whitaker in 1997. And both lasted the twelve rounds. Whitaker succeeded in making de la Hoya look bad through his crafty defense, but he was unable to mount a sufficient offense to convince the judges, and despite receiving an official knockdown, de la Hoya won by a disputed unanimous decision.

Pernell "SweetPea" Whitaker stands as tall as Manny Pacquiao at 5' 6".

It was said that Oscar deliberately avoided fighting left-handed (southpaw) boxers though Oscar is naturally left-handed but fight in orthodox(right-handed) stance. He was a converted southpaw so that his lead hand, the left, has that stiff jab and powerful hook.

Photo  Manny Pacquiao, a southpaw(lefty) has his right hand and right foot in front of him, while the one on the right is Erik Morales in an orthodox(right-handed) stance; lead with the left foot and fist.

Left-handed or southpaw fighters use a mirror image of the orthodox stance, which can create problems for orthodox fighters unaccustomed to receiving jabs, hooks, or crosses from the opposite side. Head butts are also common when a southpaw fights an orthodox boxer.

While Erik Morales has adapted well in fighting a southpaw, it is a different story with Oscar de la Hoya. He moves his left foot forward even when throwing a jab. Though he wouldn't have to move his left foot forward when throwing a jab because he has a longer reach than Manny, he has to get closer to Pacquiao when he throws his left hook. But because Manny is a southpaw, he cannot step forward because his left foot is in front of Manny's right foot as shown in the photo. So in order for Manny to control Oscar's left hook, he must deny the front and left space of Oscar's left foot. By doing this, Manny has to move to his right. Or sidestep to his left when he wants to go inside of Oscar.

De La Hoya To Weigh Less Than Pacquiao On Dec. 6

Cointry -- Oscar de la Hoya weighed in at 154 pounds. when he fought Floyd Mayweather jr. last May 5, 2007

Oscar de la Hoya weighed in at 150 pounds when he fought Steve Forbes last May 3, 20008

Oscar will fight Manny Pacquiao at MGM Grand Arena on December 6, 2008 at a catch weight of 147 pounds, a weight he hasn't fought on since 2001

Freddie Roach thought Oscar could not make the weight that he insist that the Golden Boy pays a million dollar for every excess pound above the 147 lbs limit.

But Oscar de la Hoya has reduced his weight down to 145 pounds a month before the fight.

"Training camp is going well, I've been weighing 145 pounds now for the last three weeks," he said last week. "The weight is no problem - I feel strong.

"I did feel a little light-headed and weak, but now that I have gotten used to it and now that weeks have passed by, I feel fast and strong and comfortable at welterweight.

"And I'm even thinking of going back down to 140 after this fight. I've fought at 130 all the way up to 160. Now I'm going back down to 145. So in a couple of years I'll be hitting 135.

"My way of training and my way of eating has just been very strict, and therefore it's been easy for me to make this weight.

"It's very important for us since I haven't made 147 since I fought Arturo Gatti. I just want to make sure that I feel comfortable, that I feel strong, that I feel full of energy.

"I want to make my body adapt to this weight class. And, now that we've been on weight for several weeks now, I can eat whatever I want."

Why did Oscar took away his size advantage? He can gradually reduce his weight to 147 lbs at weigh-in then climb the ring at 155 lbs. without losing his power and speed.

But the Golden Boy will tip the scales at 145 pounds at weigh-in! Why? He is looking beyond Pacquiao. He wants a bout with Ricky Hatton. And Hatton will not fight him at 147 lbs but at 140 or maybe 145 lbs. For Oscar, the fight with Manny Pacquiao is only a tune up fight for a match at Wembley Stadium with Ricky. He sees more money here with the British crowd who will be watching their idol Hatton fight. Oscar is too confident he can defeat Pacquiao even if he weigh less than Manny. He believes he is too good for Pacquiao. He said he is scared of what he can do to Manny. But he must be scared of what he is doing to his body. He is already 36 years old and he had faced great boxers who in some way inflicted wear and tear on his body. The body can't simply sync with the mind as a boxer grows old. The feeling that he got more power and speed at Big Bear training even at the weight of 145 is a false hope. Especially when he started to get hit.

Pacquiao / De La Hoya HBO 24/7 Episode 2

Watch the complete 2nd episode of HBO's Emmy Award winning reality series - Manny Pacquiao / Oscar De La Hoya 24/7 video.

De La Hoya's wife, Millie, arrives at camp, while cameras follow Pacquiao's wife, Jinkee, as she tries to keep up with his training schedule in Los Angeles. Meanwhile, Angelo Dundee offers De La Hoya words of wisdom, and Pacquiao tries to keep from over-training.

December 16, 2008 Sunday 8:30 PM ET/PT

Pacquiao / De La Hoya HBO 24/7 Episode 1

Watch the complete 1st episode of HBO's Emmy Award winning reality series - Manny Pacquiao / Oscar De La Hoya 24/7 video

Take a peek at Oscar de la Hoya training at Big Bear retreat in the California mountains and Manny Pacquiao training at the Wild Card Gym in Hollywood.

Two US boxing writers predict Pacquiao win

Manila Times, Philippines - LOS ANGELES, California: Two American boxing writers are picking Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao over Oscar de la Hoya in the December 6 showdown between the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world and the sport’s most popular figure.

John Martinez predicted in IronBoxing.com Thursday Pacquiao winning by decision or by knockout in the last rounds after watching the Filipino star up close in training.

“My prediction is Manny will win on points or quite possibly a late stoppage around the eight to 10 round via a wicked body attack to the part time, once golden Oscar de la Hoya,” said Martinez, a southern California sportswriter.

Martinez said the key to victory is for Pacquiao to “make the old man work” with swift feet, head movement, staying off the ropes and eventually, making Oscar lean forward and fight small rather than tall.

Until he watched Pacquiao work out a number of times, Martinez said he thought the matchup was no more than some sort of “glorified sparring session.”

“However, after having repeated debates on this issue, I have now figured out what the entire buzz is truly about—Oscar will lose,” Martinez said.

But he cautioned Pacquiao to be alertly on guard in the early rounds because de la Hoya has a tendency to throw everything he has in the first four to five rounds, adding that after that Oscar “becomes flat footed and gassed.”

“Manny as we all know fights five minutes of every three-minute round allotted to him,” Martinez said of the Filipino’s explosive ring output. “He is built for the days when championship fights lasted 15 to 20 rounds, not 12.”

Veteran boxing writer Vivek Wallace said de la Hoya’s inactivity and lack of focus as a boxer would lead to his downfall in the December 6 encounter dubbed by promoters as a “dream match.”

Lamenting what he called the “contradictions” between de la Hoya as a businessman and as a prizefighter, Wallace suggested that much of Oscar’s pre-fight claims about how fit and well trained he is were no more than hype.

“If Pacquiao comes out and does what I firmly believe he can do, I hope that Oscar-the-boxer goes away for good, because I fall in sync with that strong majority out there that can’t stomach another reinvention of yesterday’s hype,” Wallace wrote in East­SideBoxing.com.

Wallace observed that in five previous bouts with boxing Hall of Fame-bound fighters, de la Hoya in his prime has not won a single match. He was referring to his losses against Floyd Mayweather Jr., Bernard Hopkins, Tito Trinidad and Shane Mosley (twice).

He said that even if de la Hoya pulls it off in the year’s biggest boxing event, the victory will no matter much because he would be fighting a lightweight who has to go up 20 pounds to challenge him.

“One other thing Oscar hasn’t seemed to comprehend is the fact that his better days are far behind him,” said Wallace, who also writes extensively about the Miami Heat.

How To Knockdown Manny Pacquiao: Part 1

Cointry -- Every boxer has a weak point. A flaw or two. Trainer coaches call it bad habit because no matter how they correct it in training, the boxer return to his old ways when he fights on the ring. The opponent must be aware of the weakness and must have the ability to exploit it to his advantage. It may take a wink of an eye or the full twelve rounds or even before the fight begins.

Mike Tyson was invisible during his prime. He knockout his opponent with his powerful right hand. But his strength is also his weakness. Evander Holyfield had just to wait and wait until Tyson throw his right hand. Then Holyfield jumps in and do his things. This frustrate Tyson. And frustration is a weak point.

"...he does little things with his body that give away when he’s going to punch,” Oscar de la Hoya said. “Manny does things with his arms and his feet before he punches; it’s even in his eyes. He does things to give it away that he’s about to let them go, and I can see it.” It's a weak point in Manny Pacquiao that Juan Manuel Marquez used to his advantage.

Manny Pacquiao can't throw a punch while stepping backward. And the way to do it is push him with a barrage of left and right hand attack. Let's call it the 'barrage'. When in a barrage, Manny just cover his face with his hands while stepping back. Even if Manny wasn't hit, it create alarm to the audience and possibly a minus from the judges. Of course not every opponent can do the barrage. Marco Antonio Barrera had done it once in their first match but as an act of desperation. Freddie Roach should have corrected it then. But Morales used the barrage in all his three encounters with Manny though sporadically. It could be Erik's strategy to win the fight by overwhelming Manny with the barrage but committed a mistake early in the first round. He was doing the barrage but Manny has stopped stepping back. Pacquiao has reached the ropes! Manny side step, throw his left hand below the right ear of Erik, and Morales was knockdown and so was his strategy.

To do the barrage, there should be a space for Manny to step back. The punches must be non stop, accurate and always moving forward. The barrage must be aborted when Pacquiao stop backtracking. Oscar de la Hoya is good at doing the barrage. He loves pushing people back. He has a power left hook. What if it hit Manny?

The Economy And Boxing

Cointry -- “There’s one guy you can blame, and that’s George Bush, ".“With gasoline prices the way they are, people just can’t afford to come in from California.” Bob Arum complained. Arum is head of Top Rank Promotions that was handling the Manny Pacquiao - David Diaz June 2008 WBC lightweight championship at the Mandalay Events Center. Of the 10,500 seat capacity, only around 8,500 tickets were sold.

With the gasoline prices going down and George Bush stepping down, Arum is still complaining. While the tickets has been sold out within an hour, the pay per view buys were below expectations. The target is at least 1.5 million HBO PPV, a far cry from the record buy of 2.4 million set in the de la Hoya-Floyd Mayweather Jr. bout in 2007. With the present financial crisis, people would have to fill in other necessities than a boxing fight. A PPV buy would be considered an extravagance.

The boxers get a percentage of the PPV gross which most of the time is bigger than their guaranteed purse money.

The matchup factor must also be considered. Manny Pacquiao was viewed by many as a sure winner against David Diaz even if Manny is climbing on weight from featherweight to lightweight. Even if the gasoline price is low, the Mandalay gate receipt will still be the same. There is also the Latino factor. David is more of an American than a Mexican so the Mexican fans were absent. David Diaz is also not that popular until he fought Erik Morales.

The PPV buy is lower than anticipated in the Pacquiao - de La Hoya fight because aside from the economy, many people believed it is a mismatch, which is not. It is the job of the promoters to dispel that belief. People say Oscar is too big for Manny. But now Oscar is lighter than Manny by four pounds. Oscar's four inches advantage in height could also be a disadvantage to him in close battle. It is up to Bob to hype it if he wants an increase in PPV buys.

Pacquiao Weight Issue

Cointry -- The Manny Pacquiao - Oscar De La Hoya Dec. 6 match is seen by many people as a mismatch. No way can a lightweight (135 lbs) win against a superwelterweight (155 lbs).

Many people also don't know that Oscar and Manny must not weigh more than 147 lbs one day before the fight.

Now that Oscar de la Hoya has made a public appearance since starting training at Big Bear Lake county, some of the weight questions have been answered

Oscar claims he weighs 147 lbs., with still four weeks before the fight. That means Oscar don't have to take off his underwear at the weigh-in or he will pay Pacquiao 3 million dollars for every excess pound above 147 lbs. Oscar is an astute businessman you know. And it is unlikely that Oscar will climb the ring at 160 lbs as Freddie Roach initially thought. With that in mind, there will be no weight mismatch as many people had believed.

Think of the match as Muhammad Ali who stands 6'3 fighting Joe Frazier who stands 5'11. It was not a mismatch.

The question now is how will Pacquiao and Oscar carry their weight on the ring. Will Manny be slower because of the added weight or will Oscar be quicker because he lose weight.

Oscar weighed 154 lbs with his fight against Floyd Mayweather on May, 2007.

Oscar weighed 150 lbs with his fight against Steve Forbes last May, 2008.

Manny weighed 130 lbs against Juan Manuel Marquez on March 15, 2008.

Manny weighed 135 lbs against Davis Diaz last June 2008

Manny has to weigh 147 lbs with his fight against Oscar de la Hoya on Dec. 6 2008.

Pacquiao has to gain 12 lbs while De La Hoya will reduce only 3 lbs in relation to their last respective fight.

Can Manny absorb the shots of a natural welterweight? Can Manny brings his speed and knockout power at 147?

No one knows until the rumble begin.

Pacman Game Over In Round Five

Cointry -- "...we'll catch him in five so we don’t get to nine." said Oscar de la Hoya.

It's logical. He should knockout Pacquiao early because he fades in the later rounds as in his previous fights. A Mayorga scenario? It took him six rounds to knockout Ricardo Mayorga. Manny Pacquiao can do it in 2 rounds.

Aside from Mayorga, De la Hoya's last knockout job was in 2003 in the name of Luis Ramon Campas. Who is Campas by the way?

If the Dream Match happened five years ago, De la Hoya could have knocked down Pacquiao at the opening bell of the first round.

But the wear and tear that Oscar's body had taken through the years takes away from him the ability to predict the outcome of his fights.Even if the reflex is there he simply cannot pull the trigger. Many would disagree. But why did Oscar's left jab disappear in the later rounds during his fight with Mayweather?

Oscar said it will be an explosive fight, the one who got hit first goes down. But Manny will start slow. If Oscar can got through the defense of Pacquiao, there will be an early knockout. But if he cannot do it in five rounds, then it will be "the body cannot follow what the mind desires".

If Oscar's left jab disappear again, Oscar willl slug it out with Manny, if he has solved that lefty issue. But if he didn't, he can try a slow non-explosive tactical fight.

To Freddie Roach: Speed is relative

Cointry -- "..I believe speed wins this fight." trainer Freddie Roach was referring to Manny Pacquiao on his 147lb bout with Oscar de la Hoya at the MGM Grand on December 6, 2008.

"It was all his speed. I could see the punches perfectly, but he was just too fast." David Diaz said on a post fight interview. He was knockdown by Manny Pacquiao on the 9th round at their Mandalay Bay encounter for the WBC lightweight (135lb) title last June 28, 2008.

But it was a different story with Juan Manuel Marquez. Marquez neutralized the speed of Pacquiao after the first round of their first fight,much more on their rematch last March 15, 2008. He was much quicker that he can parry the straight left of Manny in the later rounds. Given two more rounds, Marquez could have completely dominated Pacquiao.

So speed is relative. Manny could be quick or less quicker depending on who is in front of him. Actually no. Manny's speed became famous in the boxing world in his first fight with Marco Antonio Barrera. On that fight, Manny threw about 100 punches per round from the 2nd to the 11th round most of them hard-hitting. But Pacquiao was boring in their rematch four years after. Barrera exposed weakness on Pacquiao's offense thereby slowing him down. Speed became irrelevant in winning a fight.

Can Oscar de la Hoya match the speed of Manny Pacquiao? If Marquez can, perhaps Oscar can. That's why De la Hoya got the services of Nacho Beristain, the trainer coach of Juan Manuel Marquez.

There are two things about speed in boxing. First one is accuracy. What is the use of of throwing 60 punches per second if it is not hitting the target. Oscar is more slower but more accurate than Manny. In the DeLaHoya-Mayweather fight, the first punches came from De La Hoya. It was an over right hand followed by seven successive left hook to the body of Mayweather. That was speed. Can Manny Pacquiao replicate it? Don't bother Manny, De La Hoya's punches didn't hit the target. The second thing with speed is when a boxer was hit really very hard; And speed become irrelevant again.

E:60 Thrilla Roundtable Discussion

ESPN -- E:60 producer/reporter rountable dicsussion on boxer Manny Pacquiao. Watch Video

Feature Thrilla

ESPN -- E:60 features the story on the rise of Manny Pacquiao and how he's about to explode in the US if he beats Oscar De La Hoya in December. Watch Video

Boxing Betting

Betting in boxing is placing a wager on the outcome of a boxing match. Moneyline is the format commonly use in the United States for displaying the odds on a sporting event. Odds are placed next to each competing boxer’s name. The boxer with the negative number is the favorite or the one with the greater chance of winning and the boxer with the positive number is the underdog. Odds are always based on $100.

A better way to explain the moneyline is by giving an example. Three weeks before the Pacquiao - De La Hoya Dec. 6 match, the odds of the fight according to betus.com are:

Manny Pacquiao	-185
Oscar De La Hoya	+250
Draw	+2000

A bet of $100 on Manny Pacquiao will win $185 while one has to bet $250 to win $100 on Oscar de la Hoya. Or for every bet of $1 on Pacquiao will win $1.85 while a bet of $2.50 on De La Hoya will win $1.

 If the fight ends in draw, a bet of $100 on draw will win $2000.

A bookmaker (one who takes the bets) can propose a variance to the betting odds. This is called proposition bets or props. One of these is the total or over/under bet. In boxing, you bet on how many rounds the fight will last.

A better way to explain the over/under bet is by giving an example. Two weeks before the Hatton - Malignaggi Nov. 22 match, the odds of the fight according to betus.com are:

11½  {	O  -350
	U  +250

A round in boxing is 3 minutes. If after 1½ minutes of the 11th round the boxers are still fighting and you bet on OVER, your $100 will win $350. If the fight is over before 11½ round, your bet of $250 on UNDER will win $100 whoever the boxer win.

Other props are what round the fight will last and how the fight will end.

MGM Grand Arena

Basic Boxing 1 Proper Stance

The most important and sound thing you could have is a foundation that is solid and strong and that is the primary essence of boxing. A video tutorial on basic boxing stance. Part 1 Watch Video

Basic Boxing 2 The Footwork

From the stance, you've got to be able to move. And that of course is another vital point of boxing. A video tutorial on basic boxing footwork. Part 2. Watch Video

Basic Boxing 3 The Left Jab

The elbow is certainly not involved in throwing the punch other than to rotate it. The punch comes from the shoulder. A video tutorial on basic boxing, throwing the left jab. Part 3. Watch Video

Basic Boxing 4 The Right Hand

youtube.com -- Most of the time the punch you throw after the left jab is the right hand. A video tutorial on basic boxing, throwing the right hand punch. Part 4. Watch Video

Basic Boxing 5 The Left Hook

youtube.com -- Following up the right hand is number 3 of the famous 1-2-3 combination, the left hook. A video tutorial on basic boxing, throwing the left hook. Part 5. Watch Video

1. Stand in your normal boxing stance. Power punchers generally keep their lead (left) foot closer to square with their right than straight punchers.
2. Do the following simultaneously:
• Plant your back (right) foot and keep it there. This foot will never move.
• Shift your left foot onto the toe and twist leftward as if you are stamping out a cigarette.
• Lower your left arm and cock it at a ninety degree angle in a parallel plane to the floor.
• Twist your torso to the left.
• Keep your right hand at the chin as a guard.
3. Then do the following simultaneously:
• Starting with the legs, unwind your slightly twisted body while twisting your left foot on its toe to the right.
• Use all of the force you can muster to unwind your torso.
• Keep your chin down (always) and your head facing forward. Ideally, your head will stay in the same place throughout the duration of the punch.
• Keep your left arm locked at a 90-degree angle.
• Strike your opponent squarely on the chin.
4. After the point of impact, your energy should be completely expended. Don't twist so much that you fall over. Maintain your balance.
• Quickly twist back into your normal stance. It will feel fluid and fast. You are very vulnerable to a straight right (a knockout punch) after you have thrown a left hook.

1. Even more difficult than throwing this punch is knowing when to use it. You must
• Be in close, so that your opponents straight punches are less of a threat
• Have enough energy to throw this taxing punch
• Have already weakened your opponent with body blows or jabs so that they are less of a threat in general and so that they are less likely to see it coming
2. The left hook has a setup time. In other words, you can't avoid telegraphing it. You have two options: learn to perform it as fast as possible (study Joe Frazier's left hook technique) or divert the opponents' attention. Often the left hook follows a successful jab because the opponent is worried about the straight right coming (this combination takes a lot of strength and endurance). Shorter, more compact boxers should opt for a combination of both of these techniques.
3. Only use the left hook for a knockout punch or after a successful combination. You will miss almost every time because all your opponent has to do is lean back a few inches.
4. Learn to bob/weave after performing the punch to lessen the chance of getting hit by a straight right afterwards. Make it a habit.

Basic Boxing 6 The Upper Cut

youtube.com -- The upper cut can make a lot of damage to a low fighter who likes to come inside and bury his face to your body. A video tutorial on basic boxing, throwing the upper cut. Part 6. Watch Video

Basic Boxing 7 Defending Against The Left Jab

youtube.com -- There are two ways to defend against the jab, either you block it or slip it. A video tutorial on basic boxing, defending against the jab. Part 7. Watch Video

Basic Boxing 8 Defending Against The Right Hand

youtube.com -- There are three ways to defend against the straight right; block it, slip it or parry it. A video tutorial on basic boxing, defending against the right hand. Part 8. Watch Video

Basic Boxing 9 Defending Against The Left Hook

youtube.com -- There are two ways to defend against the hook, either you catch it or roll under it. A video tutorial on basic boxing, defending against the left hook. Part 9. Watch Video

Basic Boxing 10 Defending Against The Upper Cut

youtube.com -- The upper cut is used on the inside and get hit not expecting it. A video tutorial on basic boxing, defending against the upper cut. Part 10. Watch Video

Basic Boxing 11 Tutorial Summary

youtube.com -- A video tutorial on the basics of boxing. A recap of stance, footwork, throwing and defending against the punches. Part 11. Watch Video