What is a straight fighting stance?

What is a straight fighting stance in boxing and other sports?

Are there alternatives and when are they used

The straight fighting stance in boxing is the most common. It is also called orthodox, as it is used the most in other combat sports. Especially in MMA, the straight guard is used by almost all players, as it is very difficult to gain an advantage and learn the alternate stance. It is called the reverse guard, and in boxing it gives many advantages to those who can master it well.

In this type of fighting stance, the competitor places his left leg in front of the right, uses his left hand as a lead, and thus his weaker part is closer to the opponent. This is done so that the stronger part remains defended and the dominant side is favored. Most often in humans it is the right side of the body, where the liver is also located. It is he who remains well protected from the opponent's attacks. This is done because hits to this part of the body can result in immense pain, therefore losing concentration, getting hit harder, shaking and even being knocked out.

Most often, the orthodox fighting stance, as it is called in the language of these sports, is used by right-handers. That doesn't mean lefties can't absorb it and use it, too. However, with them, the dominant side would be closer to the opponent. However, this guarantees even more variety and advantage. The reason is that since the left straight is your stronger punch, and with it you reach most often to the head and body of the opponent, then he can be in danger of being knocked out with every single punch.

A very large number of boxing champions use the right guard. His most common combination is a left straight, right hook and left hook, considered the most commonly used and best mastered punches by any competitor, not just boxers competing in combat sports. When we talk about sports that involve the legs, especially MMA, then it's very rare to find people who use a more unusual stance, or a combination of straight and reverse guard, so not just a very large proportion of champions, but almost all top MMA athletes have a straight guard.

An alternative to the straight guard is the reverse. With him, the right side of the body is leading, i.e. the right arm and right leg are placed further forward. It is most commonly used by lefties, but some righties also box this way to take advantage of their strong right hand and attack their opponents with powerful punches more often. However, with her, the liver remains open to attack more often, but this is only one of the few disadvantages. The other has to do with not having enough trainers to teach you how to better master the reverse fighting stance.

Examples of famous boxers using reverse guard are Marvelous Marvin Hagler, Victor Ortiz, Sultan Ibrahimov, Manny Pacquiao, first world heavyweight champion Mike Maroon. Competitors like Terence Crawford and Roy Jones Jr. can change their guard.

There are also quite a few lefties who use the orthodox boxing stance. Among the more famous are Oscar De La Oya, Sonny Liston, Miguel Cotto, Marco Antonio Barrera and others.

Vasyl Lomachenko and Shakur Stevenson are the best examples of righties who decide to look for variety and bet on reverse guard in an attempt to gain some advantage from their non-standard fighting stance.