Callum Smith's Jab

[lefty]

I wanna know what fellow fight fans opinions on Callums jab are? For me I dont think it's great. He seems to use it more as a range finder to set up his right hands to the body and his left hooks to the body and headshots and what have you. He doesnt seem to use it properly. Anyway, I know there's a lot of people far more knowledgeable than me when it comes to the technical nuances and so on so trainers and people that really know what to look for, what do you? I'l link one of his fights here and maybe you'll see what I see mean https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-pnvXEaKVD4

[lefty]

On a sidenote and a more positive one, I think his general punch selection is brilliant. He really puts his punches together well. Better than the likes of Groves, Froch, Degale and so on. His left hook to the body is a wicked shot.

[Counter-puncher]

from what I have seen I'd agree that for a tall lad he doesn't use his jab much. whether that's not using it 'properly' might be a different thing, at the moment his style is set up differently.

[arlovski]

Nothing wrong with his jab in this fight - varies the pace of it nicely, drops it to the body, hooks off it well, dictates range with it (can throw it whilst coming forward or retreating).

I'd be more concerned that he doesn't catch or ride shots particularly well - every time he's backed up to the ropes in this fight he stands tall gloves high and just takes punches - fine against a fat, completely physically overmatched middleweight who can't crack and egg, but if stands tall like that and can't slip a shot against someone his own size who can punch....

I also HATE that long right hook to the body he throws, so open to a counter left hook, a guy who's smart enough will pick up on that.

Doesn't look massively solid as a supermiddle/light heavy to me though, i know he's tall but guys who don't have the athleticism to match height up at those weights struggle i think, against solid, physical, rugged guys who aren't afraid to fight at mid-close range (which his why i think his lack of upper body movement/parrying/counterpunching on the inside could be an issue as he moves up in class)

He's got great variety and punches really nicely in combination though, fun to watch.

[lefty]

Nothing wrong with his jab in this fight - varies the pace of it nicely, drops it to the body, hooks off it well, dictates range with it (can throw it whilst coming forward or retreating).

I'd be more concerned that he doesn't catch or ride shots particularly well - every time he's backed up to the ropes in this fight he stands tall gloves high and just takes punches - fine against a fat, completely physically overmatched middleweight who can't crack and egg, but if stands tall like that and can't slip a shot against someone his own size who can punch....

I also HATE that long right hook to the body he throws, so open to a counter left hook, a guy who's smart enough will pick up on that.

Doesn't look massively solid as a supermiddle/light heavy to me though, i know he's tall but guys who don't have the athleticism to match height up at those weights struggle i think, against solid, physical, rugged guys who aren't afraid to fight at mid-close range (which his why i think his lack of upper body movement/parrying/counterpunching on the inside could be an issue as he moves up in class)

He's got great variety and punches really nicely in combination though, fun to watch.

I suppose what I was getting at in relation to his jab is that he seems to poke it out more to gauge the distance for his power shots versus really throwing it with any authority.

[arlovski]

Yeah get what you're saying, but it does land solidly a few times, i think it's a nice feature that he's got some variety to it, i think a lot of fighters get obsessed with landing ramrod jabs all the time, and become a bit one paced and easier to time for counterpunches as a result

[expe]

Nothing wrong with his jab in this fight - varies the pace of it nicely, drops it to the body, hooks off it well, dictates range with it (can throw it whilst coming forward or retreating).

I'd be more concerned that he doesn't catch or ride shots particularly well - every time he's backed up to the ropes in this fight he stands tall gloves high and just takes punches - fine against a fat, completely physically overmatched middleweight who can't crack and egg, but if stands tall like that and can't slip a shot against someone his own size who can punch....

I also HATE that long right hook to the body he throws, so open to a counter left hook, a guy who's smart enough will pick up on that.

Doesn't look massively solid as a supermiddle/light heavy to me though, i know he's tall but guys who don't have the athleticism to match height up at those weights struggle i think, against solid, physical, rugged guys who aren't afraid to fight at mid-close range (which his why i think his lack of upper body movement/parrying/counterpunching on the inside could be an issue as he moves up in class)

He's got great variety and punches really nicely in combination though, fun to watch.

A lot of Gallagher's fighters throw that right to the body, they wouldn't try the left hook to the body from that range, so why do it with the right hand? If you want to throw a long right hand, throw it to the head, not the body and you can still throw the jab to the body to vary the combination. It's not as if it's a devastating punch either, most knockouts from body shots are from left hands because the liver's on that side, the right hand hits the ribcage and the muscles around it, it's still a hurtful punch to take, but why take a risk like that if there's little chance of major reward? Quigg uses it a lot as well, if he fights Frampton he will be punished for it, he'll either fall short because Frampton shifts his feet so quickly, or he'll take the left hook clean, Jamie Arthur dropped him like that and he was never a big puncher.

[hurlock]

He could use his jab a lot better I agree but he's fluid with it & works of it extremely well

[Broomhall]

Think it depends who he is fighting tbh. Seems an intelligent fighter and OI think on this occasion didnt see that a jab would be too effective against a hands high opponent so is looking to get around the sides or slot the right hand through.

The only problem I can see is that often with punchers they start to neglect boxing skills, especially if they get too many gimmes and start looking for the big shot all of the time.

[Furey]

I don't think he has a "great" jab nor do I think it's below par, but I do think it can very much be improved & become more of a weapon.. given his size at the weight, having a truly top class jab would be a great asset.

I'd like to see him throw it with more authority.

That aside, his shot selection thus far seems top draw - especially the left hook to the body that's been mentioned already.

[jameswilson]

He's extremely talented but not seasoned yet. In his fight against Webb he won in the 2nd but early in that fight there seemed to be defensive problems on display. I'm expecting him to win the WBC eliminator and then be held back a bit as he gets that seasoning and works on things in training. Is it the right way to do it, as opposed to just chucking him into a final eliminator? Maybe, maybe not. But it seems to be the way that we develop our guys in this country that they go into World title fights on about 18-0.

[lefty]

He's extremely talented but not seasoned yet. In his fight against Webb he won in the 2nd but early in that fight there seemed to be defensive problems on display. I'm expecting him to win the WBC eliminator and then be held back a bit as he gets that seasoning and works on things in training. Is it the right way to do it, as opposed to just chucking him into a final eliminator? Maybe, maybe not. But it seems to be the way that we develop our guys in this country that they go into World title fights on about 18-0.

Eddie seems very keen to put him in with Groves. He said yesterday or the day before that he thinks Callum could beat him now! Haha. Callum is a talented fighter but he's been in with nobody really to truely guage him. His footwork im still a little unsure of. He seems to use his gloves more to block punches versus using his feet to make his opponent fall short.

[expe]

He's extremely talented but not seasoned yet. In his fight against Webb he won in the 2nd but early in that fight there seemed to be defensive problems on display. I'm expecting him to win the WBC eliminator and then be held back a bit as he gets that seasoning and works on things in training. Is it the right way to do it, as opposed to just chucking him into a final eliminator? Maybe, maybe not. But it seems to be the way that we develop our guys in this country that they go into World title fights on about 18-0.

Eddie seems very keen to put him in with Groves. He said yesterday or the day before that he thinks Callum could beat him now! Haha. Callum is a talented fighter but he's been in with nobody really to truely guage him. His footwork im still a little unsure of. He seems to use his gloves more to block punches versus using his feet to make his opponent fall short.

He wouldn't last 5 rounds with Groves right now, he's still 12-18 months off that level. For all the talk around Callum, he hasn't really fought anyone yet, Mendy, Acosta and Biosse are his best wins, but I wouldn't say any of those are at domestic level, yet they're putting him in a world title eliminator next.

There's still a lot to work on for him, his defence needs to be tightened up, Sjekloca isn't a puncher so he shouldn't trouble him in that regard, but he pulls his head straight back at times, drops his hands too often and has very little head movement coming forward. He's not the puncher he's made out to be, he can bang a bit, but he's not going to be blowing fighters away as he steps up in level, so he needs to find another way to win fights. Callum's 6'3, but he fights like he's 5'9, he gives up every natural advantage he has by getting too close and smothering his own work. As for his footwork, it's not bad, but his feet aren't the quickest and if he keeps walking forward without cutting the ring off properly, he'll get picked off on the way in. He can get away with that against the opposition he's fighting, but not when he steps up a level.

All that might seem a bit harsh on Callum, but it's a reflection of where I think he's at with regards to world level, as that's where they're claiming he is. I think he's a fantastic prospect, but they shouldn't rush him along too quickly, or keep his opposition at the level he's at now, his last proper step up was Mendy, a little over a year ago, neither will do any good for him. The logical next step would be to fight Rocky Fielding in Liverpool, good money and a big fight there.

[arlovski]

He's extremely talented but not seasoned yet. In his fight against Webb he won in the 2nd but early in that fight there seemed to be defensive problems on display. I'm expecting him to win the WBC eliminator and then be held back a bit as he gets that seasoning and works on things in training. Is it the right way to do it, as opposed to just chucking him into a final eliminator? Maybe, maybe not. But it seems to be the way that we develop our guys in this country that they go into World title fights on about 18-0.

Eddie seems very keen to put him in with Groves. He said yesterday or the day before that he thinks Callum could beat him now! Haha. Callum is a talented fighter but he's been in with nobody really to truely guage him. His footwork im still a little unsure of. He seems to use his gloves more to block punches versus using his feet to make his opponent fall short.

He wouldn't last 5 rounds with Groves right now, he's still 12-18 months off that level. For all the talk around Callum, he hasn't really fought anyone yet, Mendy, Acosta and Biosse are his best wins, but I wouldn't say any of those are at domestic level, yet they're putting him in a world title eliminator next.

There's still a lot to work on for him, his defence needs to be tightened up, Sjekloca isn't a puncher so he shouldn't trouble him in that regard, but he pulls his head straight back at times, drops his hands too often and has very little head movement coming forward. He's not the puncher he's made out to be, he can bang a bit, but he's not going to be blowing fighters away as he steps up in level, so he needs to find another way to win fights. Callum's 6'3, but he fights like he's 5'9, he gives up every natural advantage he has by getting too close and smothering his own work. As for his footwork, it's not bad, but his feet aren't the quickest and if he keeps walking forward without cutting the ring off properly, he'll get picked off on the way in. He can get away with that against the opposition he's fighting, but not when he steps up a level.

All that might seem a bit harsh on Callum, but it's a reflection of where I think he's at with regards to world level, as that's where they're claiming he is. I think he's a fantastic prospect, but they shouldn't rush him along too quickly, or keep his opposition at the level he's at now, his last proper step up was Mendy, a little over a year ago, neither will do any good for him. The logical next step would be to fight Rocky Fielding in Liverpool, good money and a big fight there.

Speaking sense, nice post