Issue 105

September 2013

It’s been sneaking through fighters’ defenses for hundreds of years. Let FO teach you the intricacies of one of combat sports’ most devastating strikes

Pete Irving is a professional welterweight fighter and Fighters Only’s resident fight expert

The uppercut from the lead hand is a very useful punch for penetrating the guard, finding the target and lifting the chin for a cross to follow up. It is, however, very difficult to generate knockout power with an uppercut off the lead side. The rear hand uppercut is generally a more decisive punch, as driving off the back leg can force a great deal of power up through the uppercut. 

HAND POSITION

The uppercut can be thrown at any angle from a straight-up, vertical 90 degrees, to a 45-degree diagonal angle. 

SHORT UPPERCUT

The length of the shot can be very close, such as when engaged in a collar tie, pulling the opponent into the punch. This short strike, one of a few ‘dirty boxing’ techniques, was a staple attack of wrestlers-turned-MMA legends like Randy Couture, Matt Lindland and Dan Henderson. 

LONG UPPERCUT

A long uppercut can come unseen through the guard, after a double jab – like when BJ Penn dropped Sean Sherk in their UFC 84 lightweight title bout back in 2008.

COMMON ERRORS

1. Winding up the punch, typically when throwing the uppercut from the rear hand, signals the uppercut and slows the punch down.

2. Arm punching. Especially problematic when throwing the lead hand, engaging the legs to drive the punch can be tricky.

3. Dropping the hand to set up the punch. Dropping the hand before punching is a symptom of being unable to use the legs and therefore recruiting the arms to generate power. This creates an opening in the guard before the punch is fired. 

PRO TIP

All the problems left can be solved by deriving power from the legs. Keep the hand in guard position until the very last moment and lower your level slightly, as though beginning a split squat. Drive up off the back foot and fire the hip, not the shoulder.

EXERCISE: WEIGHTED WORKOUT

Using hand weights with your uppercuts will force you to punch from your legs. Arm punching with dumbbells, even relatively light ones, will rapidly wear out your arms. You must drive off from the legs, firing the hips to keep driving the punches up. Try sets of 30, 45 then 60 seconds of continuous punching.