
Letter For MMA Fans: Boxing Is An Art
By Andre J Matip
Dear MMA Fans,
Do you know the difference between an engineer and a scientist? The answer is simple. One is a generalist; the other a specialist.
Let me explain. The engineer uses exclusive elements that are little known to the public, while the scientist’s work focuses on the unknown to turn it into a compatible substance. In other words, the engineer uses general components to build whatever was he wants, whereas the scientist compiles a list of organic material into one substance that can be used by anyone — including the engineer.
What does this illustration have in common with MMA and boxing? An MMA fighter is like an engineer. He generally uses all the techniques he learns from different sports including Karate, Judo, Jujitsu, Muay Thai, and Kickboxing. While a boxer can be likened to a scientist that uses his arms to fight but only focuses on boxing techniques to overcome his challengers in the boxing ring. The techniques boxers learn are always integrated, at a basic level, into the practice of mixed martial arts. However, to become a good boxer, the individual must create a blueprint that would only be seen in a boxing ring.
Here are two reasons why the uniqueness behind boxing techniques give boxers a distinctive advantage if they fight MMA fighters using boxing rules.
- Boxers are Artists
Who better than Mayweather to demonstrate to the rest of the world that boxing is not like any other sport. Boxing is an art. Yes, I said it, an art. Like Picasso, Matisse, Fresco, or Da Vinci, legendary boxers like Muhammad Ali, Mike Tyson, Rocky Marciano, Joe Louis, and Floyd Mayweather, with their gloves, their offensive attack, their defensive style, their footwork, their pull and counter punches, have engraved their names in many faces and memories.
For those of you who have fallen head over heels for the beauty of Ali’s agility, his feet that float like a butterfly, his stance, how he punched Foreman or Frazier, I can’t say that Conor McGregor deserves to be in the same boxing ring with Floyd Mayweather. His finite boxing skill set — excluding the fame attached to his persona — Conor should be classified as an ‘F’ class boxer who would be likely fall shortly after getting into the ring with a fighter (you know who I’m talking about) with over 49 fighting records under his belt. Don’t get me wrong, Conor McGregor is a hell of a fighter and I have a lot of respect for the hype he brought into MMA, and combat sports in general.
A well-known artist doesn’t just throw paint onto the canvas and have it hung in a museum — okay, maybe some do, but you get my point. Monet, himself, had to first develop an intuitive understanding for how to mix colors into different media to achieve a lasting impression among his followers. Colors are at the center of their artistic expression. Thus, early on, a good painter had to be familiar with the reactions of colors, similar that of a chemist, in how red plus green equals brown, or mixing blue and yellow to create green. The same is true in boxing. Boxers don’t just learn how to throw punches. Boxers must learn all the combinations within the culture to succeed the legendary figures of the past.
Boxing is about following a succinct rhythm, with routine reflexes, and accuracy in how one throws punches in a strategic sequence of resistance. Can McGregor master the art of boxing in just 24 months? Hell no!
2. Age is Not an X-Factor in the Ring
Even though the rhetoric of age in combat sports usually gives an edge to younger folk, despite his 40 candles, I don’t think Mayweather would have an issue fighting McGregor. In the ring, age is only a number unless you are boxing with someone of the exact same skill set. In that case, the number that matters is not what is written on the birth certificate of either fighter, but the practice time each one puts in to master the art.
Do you think Picasso became a genius painter in one, two, three, or even ten years? No! It took him countless years and hundreds of hours to build his longstanding legacy. Like all those great artists, Mayweather did not establish his career in one or two years. It took him a hard-earned 30+ years, 49–0 record fights with 26 knockouts to write his boxing legacy.
I know McGregor has the fundamentals down pat. There’s no doubt he has practiced just as hard as Mayweather. However, McGregor has a big disadvantage, which is time. The fact of the matter is, he hasn’t accumulated enough training mileage to beat someone of Floyd’s caliber. Indeed, in the boxing world, at 28 years old, McGregor should technically be in his prime — not a start-out boxer. For this reason, he is pretty out of the boxing game. What I am saying is McGregor can’t master the discipline because he is running out of the boxing clock. Although, I believe that if McGregor continues to work hard the way he has been for this fight, he can, potentially, become a robust boxer in the future. History in boxing, shows that they are very few superstars like Anthony Joshua or Deontay Wilder that started their career a little bit late. It took each fighter close to a decade to learn the art of boxing and to become a champion. Both are great boxers using their height and their reach as an advantage. Are they as all-time greats? Maybe! Time will tell.
I am not sure if I’ll be on the couch, beer and popcorn in hand to watch the epic showdown, but I’ll encourage anyone to tune in to witness the unmistakable difference between a real boxer and an MMA fighter. Please keep your adrenaline at the low rate and don’t have too many expectations about this fight.
Written by Andre J. Matip, founder and CEO of MVP Finance. He loves to write about everything under the sun, and happens to be a huge fan of all sports, especially boxing, basketball, track and field, fencing, soccer, and judo.
