BoxRec

always wondered this and someone pointed it out in another topic,why are all brendan ingle fighters so hard/difficult/awkward to fight???

Well, Brendan has said (and I am sure more knowledgable people on Brendan's gym) that he can train fighters to fight seven different ways. It would appear that sometimes they combine the seven ways at the same time.

Personally, and I am probably going to get slated by Keiron, I think its the fact they don't do any head sparring (well, I have read this) that makes them awkard. I disagree with this training principle myself, but in someways it can be advantageous. The opponent is probably getting good sparring from a top UK fighter and there is head contact. What a surpise it would be for them to see the reaction of the Ingle fighter when they go for a head shot. They often grab onto the rope and do all kinds of errors just to avoid the punch, it looks bad but the opponent probably hasn't experienced this since the last time he sparred with a novice many moons ago.

You ask any fighter here, sparring with a guy who is not used to "taking" the head shot and reacts badly to the threat is worse than sparring with a guy with more experience in taking a shot - you almost get drawn to their reaction and make critical errors.

Brendan produced arguably the best domestic fighter of the 80's in Bomber Graham and the best domestic fighter of the 90's in Naseem, so his fighters are a whole lot more than just awkward. But, yes, they are a nightmare to fight. I think footwork is the key. Brendan, as a pro, was a slickster who clearly mastered his art. Great movement is as rare a commodity as great power in boxing, so Brendan's ability to pass that on to his fighters - aided by his sons John and Dominic - has made all the difference.