Tape Study: Kicker vs. Puncher (Patreon)

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This is a compilation video showcasing two different versions of the kicker vs. puncher style match-up. The first is Bill Wallace vs. Joe Lewis. The sport is American kickboxing, where no leg kicks, elbows, or knees are allowed. Both fighters can kick and punch, but since Wallace is the better kicker, he played to his strengths, while Lewis played to his—punching.

Since Wallace only kicks with his left leg, he stands sideways and leans back to give him access to a triple threat of attacks with his lead leg. For straight attacks, he has the side kick; for attacks from his left, he has the turning kick; and for attacks from his right, he has the hook kick. For defense, he has the shoulder roll. Wallace seamlessly goes back and forth between kicks and shoulder rolls.

Rather than leaning back, Lewis leans forward, giving him access to punches and the high guard. Leaning forward also makes it easier to march forward and close the distance. It's harder for Wallace to move forward from his stance because his weight is committed backward.

Since Lewis is coming forward, this gives him access to feints. If you're standing far away or moving back, your feints aren't threatening because you're not close enough to hit your opponent. All feints can do is keep your distance. Since Lewis is coming forward, his feints are threatening.

Lewis also uses kicks to close the distance for punches. If he's the one kicking, then Wallace can't kick. However, when they're backing away, there's space for Wallace to land a kick.

On the other hand, since Wallace is waiting for Lewis to come to him, he has all that distance to see what Lewis is doing and then counter. This is why Lewis has to feint. Otherwise, Wallace will read and counter.

Kicks are powerful, but they leave you off balance. These are opportunities Lewis seized, and since he's contending with kicks, he has to punch hard to make Wallace respect them.

Lewis also capitalized on clinches because if they're clinched, Wallace can't kick, leaving only room for punching. Lewis did a lot of crafty hand-fighting to open up punching opportunities. Lewis also made Wallace carry his weight, which tires his legs, making it harder to kick.

Wallace lifts his lead leg to load all three of his kicks but also uses the load position as an obstacle to prevent Lewis from collapsing space.

Whenever Lewis found himself backing up, he was in trouble because kicks cover so much distance. What he didn't use nearly enough, though it had success, was doubling and tripling up his jabs to get Wallace to run backward.

Unlike Wallace, when Lewis kicks, rather than going to a shoulder roll, he comes back forward to high guard or an overhand, leaving him vulnerable for a counter. If you're the better kicker and they try to kick with you, use their bad form to your advantage.

In the second part of this video, we see Rodtang vs. Superlek under One Championship Thai-boxing. Low kicks, knees, and elbows are allowed, and they're also fighting in MMA gloves.

Here, we have the same style match-up of puncher Rodtang vs. kicker Superlek but very different approaches to solving the same problems. If you think of fighting as problem-solving, then you realize there are an infinite number of ways to solve the same problem. This allows for so much individual freedom and expression.

Since leg kicks are allowed, Superlek kicks after Rodtang kicks or kicks as he sets his leg down. However, rather than just charging forward, Rodtang catches kicks to deliver punches. Since elbows are allowed, charging forward is more precarious.

As the kicker, Superlek still punches, but he likes to end his combinations with a kick rather than throw a kick combination like Wallace.

In Thai-boxing, since clinch and trips are allowed, fighters can use it to interrupt momentum or retake the initiative.

Rather than a side kick, Superlek uses a front kick because his lead leg is pointing forward rather than pointing sideways. Standing sideways gives you access primarily to lead leg kicks. Standing in the L-stance, Superlek can access front and back leg kicks. The front kick can then set up the rear turning kick.

Rodtang used hooks to disrupt turning kicks because the kicker turns into the hook. Unlike Lewis, who only had hooks in close, Rodtang had hooks, elbows, and sweeps. Since the kicker is turning, you have access to all three to redirect or crash the turn.

Executing rear turning kicks is tiring. Wallace could avoid that fatigue by only kicking with his lead while Superlek was visibly exhausted. However, since Rodtang was smaller than Superlek, he attacked the body because his height gave him access to Superlek's body. This exacerbated Superlek's fatigue while also making it harder to kick.

– Sam