Are MMA's most formidable knockout artists simply blessed with the might to end a fight in an instant, or does it take more than genetics to become a KO king?
Picture the scene. Merely seconds after scoring the greatest win of their career, a bloodied and bruised, yet jubilant fighter stares up at the big screen through blurred vision and attempts to piece together what has just happened.
Right on cue, an unshaven pundit invades the fighter's breathing space with a microphone and the bemused victor remembers to thank God, reel off a list of thank yous, reveal a new-found admiration and respect for his fallen foe, but fails miserably in his attempt to put actions into words, despite the aid of replays. Admit it – you've seen this scenario unfold countless times before.
In addition to perhaps being slightly concussed and swamped by adrenalin, these fighters, speaking only seconds after doing their deed, are also unable to recall flashpoints simply because the process – the actual technique – is not something they think about all that much. These programmed fighters act instinctively and, when instincts, emotion and split-second timing are involved, it's easy to forget or struggle to verbalize something that comes so naturally.
The concept of knockout power is difficult to explain or quantify and is something generated when a fighter is at their most relaxed, natural and instinctive.
It is for this very reason that when an inquisitive microphone roams post-fight, the mechanics and sensations of the knockout victory are hard to break down.
After all, how does one go about detailing how a single punch or moment rendered their opponent unconscious when many similar shots failed to bring about the same result earlier in the fight?
What made that one finisher so special? Did they try extra hard?
Was it thrown with any more force, conviction or feeling than its predecessors? Moreover, what makes some fighters specialists in the abrupt finish, while others punch and punch and never blow the house down?
As far as pure punching goes, it's fair to say none throw harder than professional boxers. Unlike mixed martial artists, these men have been designed, developed and trained to throw fists since school age and, rather than have to worry about introducing other colors to their palette, are afforded the luxury of concentrating solely on the power of a punch. Boxers specialize in a singular element and, as a result, hit harder, straighter and better than anybody else on the planet.
David 'The Hayemaker' Haye, current WBA world heavyweight champion, has scored 23 knockouts from 25 professional victories and is widely considered one of the hardest pound-for-pound punchers on the planet.
“I have always been able to punch freakishly hard, ever since I was a kid,” explains Haye, who carved his reputation as a power-puncher at merely 10 years of age.
“I used to shock my family by walking around the house and punching kneecaps or the arms of chairs. Even back then, nobody could believe the power this little kid could generate.
“Before I started to weight train and really develop muscle mass, I was just a tall and skinny kid and could punch as hard as anybody in the gym. My punch power didn't really develop as I matured, but my physical strength did. Punch power is just always there.
You either have it or you don't. There are undoubtedly ways of improving strength, speed and timing – and all those factors can aid punch power – but pure one-punch power is something you're born with.”
Heavyweight Haye, of course, now boasts the imposing build to explain, at least on the surface, his uncanny knack of registering knockout wins. His long reach, combined with heavily muscled thighs and upper body would appear to be the template design of a man intent on switching out the lights of future opponents.
Yet Haye doesn't necessarily believe this natural growth has impacted his punch power all that much.
“Some of boxing’s biggest punchers of all-time have been skinny and gangly guys like Thomas Hearns, Alexis Arguello and Erik Morales,” he adds. “These fighters punch harder than most of the bulked-up guys you see winging punches like there's no tomorrow.
It doesn't seem to make sense to the outsider, but punch power is usually a combination of God-given genetics and speed. I was just a tall skinny kid to begin with – a little bit like Bambi on ice – but everybody knew I could dig.”
While mixed martial artists understandably lag slightly behind their boxing counterparts in the punching stakes, a look at strikers within the sport can be revealing, as the disparity in quality is often extreme.
Those with a kickboxing, Muay Thai or vale tudo background tend to be more at one with the notion of throwing hands, but disciples of wrestling and jiu-jitsu often struggle with the mechanics of throwing the perfect punch.
After all, having spent much of their lives rolling on the ground and looking for sweeps and submissions, the sudden need to be able to throw punches is alien to them.
Considered one of mixed martial arts' hardest pure punchers, Paul 'Semtex' Daley isn't one such guy.
When presented with the possibility of a striking scenario, most opponents are quick to attempt to drag Daley south.
“While some guys in MMA only start learning how to punch and kick when it's necessary, I've been doing this all my life,” explains Daley, a long-time Thai boxing exponent. “I can do things instinctively that these guys have to think about and learn how to do.
By the time they've thought about it, I've knocked them out. It only takes a split-second.
“In our gym we call certain fighters in MMA ‘pad holders.’
They look good hitting pads in the gym, but they're not used to getting in a ring and throwing punches with an opponent. They're not relaxed.
You generate a lot of power from just being relaxed and confident in your technique. These novice strikers try and force their punches and kicks but, when you do that, no force is felt.”
So, if punch power is a combination of genetics, experience and environment, can we apply the same theory to kicks, too?
Lest we forget, some of the sport's most stunning knockouts have been the result of a shin to the chin. Gabriel Gonzaga on the head-kick master Mirko 'Cro Cop,' anyone?
Furthermore, kicks, unlike punches, can be aimed and utilized in a variety of areas, including head, body and legs. Expert kickers have a full target to aim at.
UFC lightweight contender Terry Etim, a certified beanpole at six-foot-one and 155lb, kicks better than most in his division and his shot-selection has even led some to compare the Brit to middleweight ruler Anderson 'The Spider' Silva. Though no slouch with his hands, Etim sees plenty more value in his feet.
“A lot of my kicking power comes from speed, range and timing, and I'll admit that I'm not the most muscled or strongest looking fighter out there,” says Etim.
“The thing is, none of that is important when it comes to generating power in your kicks. The kicks that do the most damage are the ones that your opponent doesn't see and are the ones thrown for a reason.
If you just throw kicks willy-nilly without thinking, your opponent will either check the kicks or counter them.
The key is to pick and choose your moments and then get as much torque into the kick as possible. If you've got the timing and technique right, those kicks will then start to chop away at the legs, body or head of your opponent. Believe me, it then doesn't take long for the kicks to break them down.”
Of course, the concept of power extends far beyond the image of a fighter being stretched unconscious as a result of a punch or kick.
Power is also required for takedowns, submissions and anything else pertaining to a traditional fighting scenario.
For instance, Australian submission wizard George Sotiropoulos, a lightweight with some of the most powerful kimuras and armbars in the business, routinely produces submissions every bit as sudden and shocking as his striking equivalents.
“In order to be great at jiu-jitsu, you don't necessarily have to be the toughest, biggest or strongest guy in the world,” says Sotiropoulos.
“You can get away with a lack of technique in other sports by simply being the strongest or most athletic guy in the gym, but jiu-jitsu doesn't work like that. It's a purely technique-based art, and to truly master it you need to study like crazy and never stop trying to improve.
“I'll freely admit that I'm not the most athletic or physically imposing fighter in the world, but I make up for that with determination and discipline, as well as a willingness to learn.
Nothing appeals to me more than the idea of training and learning.
My success in jiu-jitsu and submissions is purely down to hard work and drilling positions over and over again. I don't think there is one position known to man that I haven't encountered at some point, either in the gym or in the ring.
I've built up this knowledge through years or traveling and learning and that keeps me ahead of the competition.”
Renowned for his dominant ground game, Sotiropoulos admits that the kind of power he generates is one born from the notion of power in a philosophical sense.
He uses experience and discipline to simply take over.
“The key for me is to always stay one step and move ahead of the opposition,” adds George. “It's like having a free move in chess.
I want two moves for every one that my opponent is allowed. In order to gain this advantage, I familiarize myself with every possible position. I want to know how to get there and how to get out.
"Submissions are just a natural extension of being in control.
Once I have secured that control and made my opponent realize there is no way out of the maze, that's when the submission is slapped on.
By then they've already half given up anyway.”
In order for a fighter of Sotiropoulos' ilk to prepare a submission, they must first utilize power to set up a shot and secure a takedown on their opponent. Perhaps the finest practitioner of this art, UFC welterweight champion Georges St Pierre is the embodiment of power and force when in the midst of plotting a single or double-leg takedown.
The athletic French-Canadian boasts the greatest takedown success rate in the UFC and is able to take a fight wherever he wants through an unparalleled combination of speed and power.
“My wrestling is a result of both my genetics and my environment,” says 'GSP'. “My genes allow me foundations to build on and training helps me master techniques. Perfecting a takedown or a shot is all about repetition, repetition, repetition.
You want the motion to feel as natural as throwing a jab. Everything you do in that Octagon has a rhythm to it and, once you practice and then master that rhythm, the takedown just becomes an extension of your movement.
“My takedowns are built on speed and timing and, though I am always thinking of moments to shoot, you never want to over-think things and become passive. It is important to fully commit to shots and have full confidence that you will secure the takedown. If any doubt creeps in it allows the other guy to shake you off or sprawl. I am always prepared for that possibility, but I never expect it to happen.”
READY TO EXPLODE
Strikeforce welterweight Paul 'Semtex' Daley belives that knockout power comes from experience and most KO's arrive instinctively rather than being picked with precision.
Aussie Rules
Australian submission king George Sotiropoulos is a master of the ground game, proving that powerful jui-jitsu technique is as essential inside the Octagon as knockout striking skills.
PUTTING THE POW IN POWER
Rashad Evans loads up and knocks out Chuck Liddell – September 6, 2008 (UFC 88)
Never before has the importance of shot selection been as obvious as it was the night Chuck Liddell waded in aimlessly behind a stray uppercut, only to be countered on the way in by a Rashad Evans right-hook. Unfortunately for 'The Iceman,' Evans, the younger, fresher and quicker pugilist, managed to get off with his well-picked punch first and
Liddell, once the striking template, was left unconscious on the floor, having been knocked out for the third time in his illustrious career.
Anderson Silva grabs hold and pummels Rich Franklin - October 14, 2006 (UFC 64)
As far as demonstrations of Muay Thai go, this is about as good as it gets inside the UFC's Octagon. Gripping Rich Franklin as though pulling an invisible hood over his head, Brazilian Anderson Silva refused to let go until the American southpaw was at his feet in a pool of shattered dreams.
Once Silva had secured the Muay Thai plum, there was no going back for Franklin, and we all winced as he endured a flurry of stunning knees and short uppercuts, sacrificing his UFC middleweight crown in the process.
Quinton Jackson power bombs Ricardo Arona - June 20, 2004 (PRIDE Critical Countdown 2004)
Ask any fight fan what Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson brings to the table on fight night and it's guaranteed they'll say one of two things – punch power and slams.
He tends to showcase more of the former than the latter these days, but it's fair to say no mixed martial arts fan will forget what he did to poor Ricardo Arona in 2004, when the Brazilian grappler attempted to set Rampage up for a triangle choke, only to then be promptly picked up, slammed down and knocked unconscious in the process. Jackson exploded out of the attempted submission and raised his arm in unlikely victory.
Gabriel Gonzaga head-kicks Mirko Cro Cop - April 21, 2007 (UFC 70)
The head-kick master received a taste of his own medicine at UFC 70, when unheralded grappler Gabriel Gonzaga shocked the world and knocked out Mirko 'Cro Cop' with a right foot in round one.
As an entire arena waited in anticipation for the Croatian legend to end matters with his patented portfolio of kicks, Gonzaga snuck in a boot of his own and once again highlighted just how unpredictable a sport mixed martial arts can be.
Such was the force generated by the kick, no follow-up strikes were needed. Cro Cop was done.
Frank Mir breaks the arm of Tim Sylvia - June 19, 2004 (UFC 48)
The best way to defeat a six-foot-eight giant is to drag him to the floor and break his arm, and that's exactly what Frank Mir did when confronted by Tim Sylvia in a UFC heavyweight title fight.
Jiu-jitsu ace Mir slapped on a textbook armbar in the opening round and, though Sylvia never verbally or physically tapped, panicked referee Herb Dean had to separate the pair upon realizing the champion's forearm had snapped.
The journey from hyperextension to finish was frighteningly swift, and owed plenty to Mir's renowned power submissions.
...
