See the clip above, that right there is a counterpunching masterclass. Look at the number of shots Malignaggi is trying to land versus the shots Broner’s attempting to land.
Broner’s counter punches are fewer yet so precise. And it’s visible who’s catching clean and causing more damage to his opponent.
One of the key reasons why Paulie Malignaggi was constantly countered by Broner is because all the offense that he was landing was chest high.
Paulie was having a tough time landing clean punches to the head. And thus, he resorted to chest-high position. Now, this proved to be dreadful for him as it left him susceptible to attacks.
These openings were exploited by Broner and as and when he saw the opportunity, he creeped in and made him pay for it.
One thing I must clarify is there’s nothing wrong with punching at the chest of your opponent. However, there’s a problem when you don’t vary your defense. We’ve seen this in our previous case studies before wherein fighters have a hard time adjusting their offense which presents opponents with an opportunity.
See, the issue is when you keep the pattern uniform, your moves can be easily telegraphed. An experienced boxer can sense your next move and that can spell a doom on your chances of gaining an upper hand over your opponent.
Like the battering we saw above, if like Malignaggi, you fail to diversify your attacks, you can be successfully countered.
Almost all the punches that Paulie was throwing was at chest high. You can see that in the image below.
Again, the jab should be used to the chest, but it shouldn’t be telegraphed. Thus, it’s quintessential that you vary your jab to the head, chest, shoulders and gloves. That’s the best way to maximize the jab.