In boxing can sluggers have good , fast footwork?

Question

In boxing can sluggers have good , fast footwork?

Answer 1

yea they need to be as great or greater than there opp

Answer 2

They can but don't have it because they depend so much on their power. Get up against someone with good defense and footwork their weakness gets exposed. Plus many of them don't have good chins to take a punch.

Answer 3

The answer is yes, and I can can give you a example "Old School."

Jack Dempsey- Jack was known for his slugging power, a murderous puncher with either hand. Yet Jack had some amazing footwork. The Tunney vs. Dempsey bout shows great footwork, offence AND defence, on BOTH fighters part. ( and this was a non-prime Dempsey.) However the best example is Dempsey sparring with "Big" Bill Tate. Watch the whole footage. Jack does a Ali shuffle( Way before Ali!) He does not stand flat-footed or just shuffle, he moved and danced on his toes!(Again, watch the footage.) He moved with the speed of a middleweight and could shift his legs and feet to align himself with thunderous leverage. Dempsey was extremely agile.

It amazes me with Jacks footwork skill, that in some bouts he would stand toe to toe, flat -footed, and bang. And other times would move around like a panther on speed.( But then again, How many in history could stand toe-to-toe with the mauler?)

Yes, The old school Jack had great footwork when he used it. And far better than the heavy's I see today. (The footage proves this.)

Well said Tornado and Dollbaby.

Answer 4

Dude, don't listen to the guy that answered in front of me.  He is lumping all sluggers into one stereotype and showing his has very limited knowledge.  Not all sluggers have weak chins (Marciano, LaMotta)

And there is more to footwork than dancing and moving.  Good footwork is all about balance.  While many sluggers tend to be more flat-footed in the ring, they still need to be able to move and cut the ring off.  And not all sluggers are necessarily slow on their feet.  A slugging-type of fighter might use his fast feet to move in faster where he can set down on his punches and throw bombs.

Answer 5

Evander Holyfield, in the late 80's and early 90's was the best combination of beautiful footwork and brutal slugging you will ever see. The phrase "total package" is thrown around far too often. Evander REALLY WAS! He was the "Real Deal"!

Answer 6

Ya it is the game

Answer 7

Dempsey and Marciano have your answer. They were sluggers, but used a different kind of footwork than today.

Good but not fast. They cut of the ring, but dragged their feet so they would always have power in every moment. They also fell into their punches by stamping their front feet. Dempsey wrote a whole book on the topic, lamenting the loss of power punching as people started dancing around (no power).

Dempsey would sometimes move quickly to cut off the ring, but his main posture was the old school power system. Joe Lewis used is as well.

If Dempsey were in the heavyweight division today, he would destroy the bigger fighters, even with the modern use of steroids. His footwork would look clumsy sometimes, but he would still  knock people out. He would knock everyone out.