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KickBoxing Vs. Boxing

62K views 21 replies 16 participants last post by  Ibn Sina 
#1 ·
I was thinking of taking kickboxing or boxing.

And Who would win in a fight?

A Boxer
or a
KickBoxer

what advantages and disadvantages do they have with each other.

and what techniques do they use to defeat each other.

thanks MMAForum
 
#2 ·
I assume you're talking about in an MMA fight. It really depends on how you feel about your skills. If your hands need work train boxing, if your kicks need work train kickboxing.....The better trained fighter would win in a fight.

In my opinion; training kickboxing would be better for MMA because you have 2 more limbs your opponent has to consider; and it allows you to mix your striking up and throw fight ending head kicks

but; do what you want and want what you do. Both styles are great.
 
#4 ·
Not true. If that were true, then they would have never implemented the 8 Kick Minimum Rule in professional kickboxing back in it's heyday during the late 70's and early 80's. The reason why they did that is because many low-level boxers entered kickboxing and ended up creating quite an impact on the sport.

You have to understand that Kickboxing (especially American kickboxing) started out as an outlet for full-contact Karate fighters to compete. Many of them did not have the depth of training or fighting experience that many low-level boxers had at the time. When the boxer had full license to come in and blast the kickboxer without worrying about a minimum kick count, it turned into a very one-sided boxing match. Thusly, the 8 kick minimum was put into place.

Okay, I know you're going to pull the standard K-1 event and video out and say, "See that's what happens to a Boxer when they fight in a K-1 event." No, that's what happens to a Boxer when they fight in a K-1 event without any sort of K-1 training (the majority of the time). If you look at guys with Boxing Backgrounds who've been able to train how to fight in the K-1 properly (like Mike Bernardo or Jerome LeBanner), they do pretty well.
 
#6 ·
I fear not the man that practices 1000 kicks once, I fear the man that practices one kick a 1000 times. ~bruce lee

I wanna say the kickboxer generally. But I think it depends on the type of fight, the fighter and a lot of other things. Boxer is probably going to have better hands and movement, but boxing has a lot of holes when defending these "new" strikes they'd face against a kickboxer.

I would love to see klitschko vs bonjasky in a modified K1 bout, although im not sure what the rules would be.
 
#7 ·
Boxing in and of itself is not necessarily inferior, no art is inferior to another. However in the context of full contact martial arts competition, such as in MMA, there are several fundamental disadvantages to boxing.

1. The rules of the sport's standup department are built basically around the rules of kickboxing.

2. In most cases, unless its boxing oriented for MMA, the shins and legs are not conditioned in any way to withstand leg kicks. Plenty of boxers in the early days of the UFC were obliterated because they didn't know how, or possessed the capability to check leg kicks, or the muscle memory to evade them.

3. Boxing, and in some cases kick boxing, rely on the old fashioned "tank the strike" defense. This works with 16oz gloves, but with 4-7oz MMA gloves. That strategy ain't gonna cut the mustard.

All in all, boxing is far less applicable for MMA in my personal opinion. But there have been great boxers who've compensated for any kind of disadvantages and managed to be good fighters.
 
#9 ·
You can't question though, that a BOXER would be ripped to shreds my a skilled kickboxer in a kickboxing match. Hell early in the UFC we all learned that boxers fail miserably in MMA competition against an equally skilled kickboxer.

And in reference to boxing unitized specifically for MMA, meaning ground fighting included in training...see my previous post. Come on dude, boxing's inferiority in MMA competition is basic stuff.
 
#10 ·
There are plenty of top fighters that use their boxing 99% of the time in fights. Nogueira, Rampage, Vitor, Penn, they are all outstanding examples of how boxing can be extremely successful in MMA. Now if you only knew how to box, you would fail, but the same can be said if you obly knew how to kickbox.

Just because one fighter is a master at kickboxing, and one is a master at boxing, does not mean that the kickboxer is better.
 
#11 · (Edited)
Just because one fighter is a master at kickboxing, and one is a master at boxing, does not mean that the kickboxer is better.
I gotta disagree with you man in the context of MMA. Boxers have been seriously injured by simple leg kicks. Two fighters, one a boxer and the other a kickboxer(who only know these arts) and are of the same skill level, duke it out. There is very little chance of victory on the part of the boxer for a couple reasons:

1. Leg kicks: He'll be ripped apart by leg kicks. Boxers do not condition their shins or knees to handle leg kicks.

2. Distance: A kickboxer can strike with kicks (not just roundhouses) thrust kicks, and snap kicks to keep the boxer out of punching range.

3. Guard: Boxers (and kickboxers for that matter) have a tendency to "turtle up" and tank strikes. YOu know for a fact you cannot take a roundhouse, or straight snap to the face and keep coming.

The kickboxer just has too many weapons in his arsenal for the boxer to counter, weapons he's never encountered before in boxing competition. He's be crusified in a matter of minutes IMO.
 
#13 · (Edited)
To take out someone of greater strength, the kickboxer needs greater speed and agility. He's gotta ware someone like that out. Using thrust kick(see previous post) if he got too close would be the best plan until he was winded, and trust me when I say, solid thrust kicks can knock the wind right out of you. Once he's winded, heaving, and red-faced, the kickboxer comes in for the kill.

If there's no room to evade, i.e. up against the cage/ring the best option is sheer ferocity to breakout and evade(or clinch in the case of MT). But against someone of superior stength the best option is to make him miss.
 
#14 ·
IMO it doesnt matter which one you train in. if you work hard at what you do you can become good enough at it to make it work for you and your style. Mirko is a kickboxer who has had great succes in mma, granted not so much since coming to the UFC but he was still a champion in pride so you gotta give the man some respect. Then you can look at vitor belfort and here is a guy who almost exclusivly does boxing and knocks guys heads off with it. it is more a matter of how much effort and time you put into your training than what you train.
 
#15 ·
And Who would win in a fight?

A Boxer
or a
KickBoxer

what advantages and disadvantages do they have with each other.
IMO it doesnt matter which one you train in. if you work hard at what you do you can become good enough at it to make it work for you and your style. Mirko is a kickboxer who has had great succes in mma, granted not so much since coming to the UFC but he was still a champion in pride so you gotta give the man some respect. Then you can look at vitor belfort and here is a guy who almost exclusivly does boxing and knocks guys heads off with it. it is more a matter of how much effort and time you put into your training than what you train.
The point isn't which art is better...no art is better than another. The point was if a straight up boxer fought a straight up kickboxer, who would win if their skills were equal. It all comes down to what a kickboxer and boxer are taught.

You can't compare boxing, oriented for MMA, with traditional boxing. Would the greatest boxing champion in the world stand a chance against the best MT or kickboxing fighter in the world in a kickboxing match? No chance in hell! But would the greatest MMA practitioner of boxing in the world stand a chance against the greatest MT or kickboxing practitioner in the world? For sure.

You gotta remember that boxing gyms don't teach MMA boxing, unless its an MMA specific gym.
 
#16 ·
Muay Thai is probably the best striking art if you insist on taking one. However, in a fight with kickboxing rules, the kickboxer would lose more than a boxer would in boxing. This isn't because kickboxing is a worse striking art, but because kickboxing doesn't allow leg kicks. In MMA, the kickboxer would likely win, because the boxing stance is extremely prone to leg kicks. Thats the whole reason for the 8 kick rule, no leg kicks makes it very difficult for a Kickboxer to beat a boxer. With leg kicks, the kickboxer should would handlidly.

So all in all, if you only can chose KB or B I would take KB because it's more complete.
 
#18 ·
you guys realise that professional boxers and fighters are absolute monsters right ? You also realise that if a kickboxer and a boxer fight forreal (outside of the ring) it's probably not going to last very long at an amatuer level ? You also realise that the liklihood of a kickboxer and a boxer squaring off on the street to fight the good fight in the name of honorable combat and glory is hilarious to even consider as a likely thing ? At the end of the day a lousy tradesman blames his tools.
 
#19 ·
you guys realise that professional boxers and fighters are absolute monsters right ?
No, not necessariy. Whether you're a "monster" or not depends on where on the rankings they stand. Being a professional means in the first place just that they are getting paid for boxing. That can be the Klitschkos (monsters), but it can also mean paid bum fights (no monsters).
 
#20 · (Edited)
Boxers generally get smashed when they come to K1 it would be no different under MMA rules.

For starts they cant defend leg kicks nor have their legs been sufficiently conditioned to take damage. But kickboxers have sufficient skills to defend against superior hands.

Its usually a pathetic sight of the boxer unable to continue after a few low kicks.

Punching is more important than kicking imo (you get punch heavy kickboxers) BUT a good kickboxer will beat a good boxer most times.
 
#22 ·
I suggest figuring out which way you want to be dangerous first, and honestly, you could just learn both at the end of the day. But to the point.

It depends on the situation. Close quarters you may not have room to kick but Thai boxing includes knee and elbow strikes which are great for that. Boxing is more about close quarters fights where inches decide who can land what so it would be better there. If attack by two or more people kickboxing would be better to keep them at bay (also our legs are way stronger than our arms and would do considerable damage, with or without a head kick knocking someone out).

Boxing head movement and footwork would be better to defend yourself since kicks tend to leave you wide open after throwing them. Kick boxing is more focused on distance management, boxing is more about angles. But at the end of the day it’s the same principle hit and don’t get hit they just have ways to go about that.

Throwing kicks with accuracy and power are very intimidating since most people know they can’t do that. Being a great boxer might have you get challenged more but people would be less likely to try and grab you and would try boxing you back (to the surprise of their life when you start moving at top speed). I say focus on the situations you want to learn to control first then it’s a simple process to pick a discipline.

As a wrestler I always have to bring it up so here goes. With wrestling, jiu jitsu, and other grapple sports it’s more about body control, balance and learning to execute from different positions. These are better for one on one situations and if you’re small are a definite need since big people will always try to grab you and throw you around.

Against a group it’s less effective but if you blast double someone, and knock the wind out of them, you have time to work on his buddy. Not much, but time nonetheless, and if you learn joint locks and cranks you can easily take someone out of a fight by breaking a leg, arm or other joint. He might even hit his head on the ground and go to sleep or his back would be too destroyed if they don’t know how to break their fall.

The danger with this comes in once weapons are involved, even if you are on top and have control they could just stab you and it’s game over. So in this case (the others as well but more so here) you need to be highly trained to come out safe. Here is where boxing and kick boxing help since you can hit hard, hit fast, and get back out of range especially since a lot of people have no idea how to actually use weapons they just crudely swing them at you. The range on kicks would also keep you safe and you essentially have two baseball bats as legs and bricks for elbows.

Boxing provides opportunity to knock someone out, or get a body shot knockout with the liver. If you aren’t ready to defend a take down or aren’t slippery enough to avoid getting grabbed your boxing and kick boxing quickly become very useless. Kick boxing has leg kicks which will help against a bigger opponent since you can slow them down, and a kick to the body with the right force could cause internal bleeding, or crack a rib. Liver shots become deadly when someone is a great kicker and most people don’t know how to respond to kicks properly. Even if they catch your leg a quick elbow strike can get you out of trouble.
So I know it’s not really an answer but it really just depends.
 
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