Ike and I were talking about this yesterday, but if any fighter wanted to learn how to do things technically correct, is there anyone better for study than Forrest?
No. He's probably one of the best in the game (or used to be) at integrating offense and defense. He manages to be a largely offensive fighter without getting hit cleanly very often at all. His mistakes against Mayorga were not technical, so much as strategic in that he moved backwards and allowed Mayorga to hit him on the end of his punches. He has a bad reputation for holding too much, but if you really study the issue, it's due mostly to four of his major televised fights having been with Mosley (a tactical grappler) and Raul Frank (a hideous fighter to watch).
Speaking of whom, it says on Boxrec that his next fight is against Sergio Mora in June. The Viper versus the Latin Snake. Once again, Forrest will take the heat for all of the holding that Mora will surely initiate. I hope Forrest is being well compensated for this fight because he has little to gain, and yet Mora is a big guy and a weight class above where he's been fighting for years now, not to mention Mora's penchant for stinking out decisions like a pile of dung.
dsimon writes: Forrest is indeed quite technically accomplished. My one knock on Forrest is that his footwork lacks.... It is why Mayorga got to him frankly. Like Double said he got caught at the end of those shots and that means that his angles were not enough to slide past the punches.
It's too bad Vernon has those shoulder and elbow problems. He could have had many big money fights by now. I've had similar injuries and just hitting the heavybag lightly is painful unless you're constantly getting cortisone shots. Trying to snap a jab out is even worse.
forrest looked awful against mayorga in the rematch (although i think he pulled it out by two points). he also looked bad against an ancient quartey who kept putting the pressure on him. i also wonder how he'd fare against southpaws (since he's never fought one and apparently avoids them on purpose). but then again, forrest was a much better fighter in the late 90s. too bad no one really gave him a shot at the title then.
agREED... From the Waist UP, Forrest is as Technical as they Come, but from the Waist DOWN, he Leaves ALOT to B Desired... His BALANCE is SUAR & his Movements R On the SLOW Side... REED
dsimon writes: Very few guys get the feet down. The Michigan guys get it when you watch Toney or Floyd counter a shot they have to be right in harms' way to catch the guy. Floyd particularly always is circling when the punch comes from his opponent. Hopkins also is always mobile when he is countering a shot, he never is planted. I love to watch old films of Johnson doing this as well. the long and short of it is that even when one gets caught, it is never flush.
I know it would have been boring but I always wanted to see a Winky vs Forrest matchup. If you know how they fight going in, you could watch for the techical matchup like Teddy Atlas does.
Lopez and Marquez were the two that came to my mind as well. Salvador Sanchez deserves mentioning as well as does Mike McCallum. If your talking purely of punching technique Joe Louis is the ultimate, absolute perfection.:clap:
dsimon writes: Indeed. One of the most technically accomplished guys I can think of. Incredible balance
dsimon writes: :laughing: ::. De Leon is from the Gene Fullmer boxing school of technical excellence.
marquez stance looks quite difficult to master. it takes a whole lot of discipline to carry that posture consistently throughout. to be honest, it even looks a bit uncomfrotable.
i've always admired manuel medina's style. although not too pleasing, he threw a lot of punches and fought his ass off in every fight. he was as basic as you can get.
look at the smack junkie already setting the excuse groundwork for forrest despite the fact that he's fighting a completely overmatched foe.
I'd say it'd be best to study Arguello. He had some of the best technique Ive ever seen. Every punch he threw was picture perfect technically.
