A Master-Class From Orlando Canizales

Published

12 years ago

April 4, 2013

Lee Wylie

He may have been overshadowed by the likes of Mike Tyson, Julio Cesar Chavez and Pernell Whitaker, but throughout the late eighties and early nineties, former bantamweight kingpin Orlando Canizales was one of the world’s best fighters and, in this writer’s opinion, is one of the most underappreciated technicians of all time. At his best, Canizales’ level of skill and technique were truly breathtaking. Here, I’d like to take a brief look at some of his technical intricacies that led to him becoming one of my favorite fighters to study and enjoy watching on film.

It should be noted that although I will be dividing this analysis into specific categories (counterpunching, combination punching, angles, etc.) some of the examples I’ll be using here are actually broad enough to fall under another category.

Counterpunching

Quite simply, Orlando Canizales was the epitome of a defensive-offensive fighter and nowhere was this more apparent than in his counterpunching ability. A master of parrying and countering, evading and countering and also simultaneously evading and countering, Canizales was highly proficient in drawing out an opponent’s attack and taking advantage of the resulting opening.

Orlando Canizales

By placing his rear hand by the side of his head and away from his chin, Canizales has presented his opponent with an illusionary target (1^st still). Taking the bait, his opponent throws a jab, only for Canizales to parry it down using his rear hand. Next, as his opponent steps in with a straight right, Canizales slips outside the blow (elbow side) and counters with a left hook to the body, sending his opponent to the canvas. By avoiding the right hand in this way –allowing the right hand to sail over the right shoulder—Canizales not only took away both of his opponent’s hands, but also created a perfect opening for a left hook to the body. This is counterpunching at its finest.

Here’s Canizales fading and countering with a right cross as his opponent’s jab is travelling back home. Notice how Canizales’ rear heel is raised. This does three things. 1) It allows him to sway his upper body back without having to move his feet, 2) allows him to push off his rear foot, giving him greater drive in transferring his body weight back onto his front foot as he’s throwing the cross, 3) it gives his opponent a false sense of range.

In this sequence, Canizales dips low, slips outside of his opponent’s jab, and counters with a sharp right cross. What I really like about this sequence in particular, is the way in which Canizales weaves out to his right after landing his counter right hand. Regardless of the fact that his opponent is kind of flailing with his counter left after being tagged, what this sequence shows is just how defensively responsible Canizales was immediately after punching. This is something Amir Khan should make special note of.

Here, using his rear hand, Canizales parries his opponent’s jab to the inside and counters with a double jab-right cross combination. Although the jabs of Canizales didn’t land with any real authority, they still did their job –forcing the opponent to back up in a straight line and to set up the more damaging, final blow of the combination, the right hand.

Let’s take one final look at Canizales’ superior counterpunching.

Here’s an example of Canizales using footwork and deception to induce his opponent into reacting in a certain way. First, Canizales feints with a slight level change (2^nd still) before taking a half-step back (3^rd still). As Canizales comes forward (4^th still) and repeats the level change (5^th still), his opponent reacts, opening himself up for a counter right hand in the process. By luring his opponent into committing an offensive action, Canizales created a clear path for his right hand. Again, this is elite-level counterpunching.

Entering

If a fighter can continually gain entry without being hit by his/her opponent in the process, chances of victory will increase considerably. Using feints, anticipatory upper body movement and imaginative footwork, Canizales was capable of breeching his opponent’s range almost at will.

Stepping in from the outside, Canizales dips low and feints with a jab. As his opponent attempts to parry the perceived low jab, Canizales counters up top with a right cross, then exits off of the original line of engagement. As I mentioned earlier, although I’m using this sequence as an example of Canizales’ ability to enter into range without being hit, this could also be seen as an example of Canizales’ counterpunching aptitude –feinting with the low jab to draw a rear hand parry, which in turn, leaves an opening for a right cross.

Again, Canizales is looking to enter from the outside. Up on his toes, Canizales suddenly drops low (giving his opponent the impression that he is indeed going to attack low) before connecting up top with a stepping-in overhand right. Notice how Canizales has taken his head away from the centerline as he connects. Should his opponent have attempted a counter, or indeed, decided to punch with Canizales during the attack, he would likely have missed due to Canizales’ superior positioning and his lack thereof.

Here’s another example of the same concept.

In this sequence, both Canizales and his opponent launch their attack simultaneously. Most of the time, a jab (boxing’s longest and most direct weapon) will reach its target well before any looping or arcing punch will. However, by taking his head away from the centerline, Canizales connects and forces his opponent, whose head remains static and upright, to miss.

Guard manipulation

In boxing, basic techniques will not land with any regularity unless a fighter can do something which forces the opponent to present them with openings. We’ve already talked about baiting an opponent into opening up by using feints and evasive maneuvers like slipping, but yet another way to do this is by hitting the gloves of an opponent from an angle (from the inside to the outside or vice versa) so as to, for a split second, create a small opening in which to land something worthwhile. Needless to say, Canizales had this technique down pat too.

Here, Canizales slaps his opponent’s lead glove to the inside, so as to create an opening for his own lead hand. Similarly to a rear hand parry, Canizales uses his rear hand to remove his opponent’s lead hand (opposite hand, but same side). The difference between this and a regular parry, however, is that Canizales is not actually trying to block or deflect an incoming shot. Rather, he’s trying to create an opening by removing his opponent’s guard.

Below, we have another example of Canizales manipulating his opponent’s guard.

Orlando Canizales

In this sequence, Canizales fires his left hand upwards, knocking his opponent’s rear glove out of the way. With his opponent’s defensive guard severely compromised, Canizales fires in two more blows –a right cross and a left hook to the body (although not shown in the still, the latter blow from Canizales dropped his opponent).

Angles

One of the main aims for any fighter should be to acquire a dominant angle of attack over their opponent. A fighter will always have the advantage if they are able to take up a position from which they can hit their opponent but their opponent is out of position to hit them back effectively. Using masterful footwork that, quite frankly, ranks among the best I’ve seen in a boxing ring, Canizales was simply brilliant at taking himself off of the original line of attack before blindsiding his opponents from a different angle.

canizales 44 10 2013

As Canizales looks to enter, he performs an outside slip, simultaneously parrying his opponent’s lead to the inside. In doing so, Canizales steps through, bringing his rear leg forward and to the outside of his opponent, securing a dominant angle from which to attack him from. As his opponent turns to face him, Canizales connects with a left hook.

Both fighters are looking to engage at close quarters. Suddenly, Canizales skips to his right, transfers his weight back over onto his left leg, and lands a left hook. Notice how Canizales’ opponent’s hips are pointing away from Canizales (3^rd still), whereas Canizales’ hips are locked on his opponent. As far as fighting from an angle goes, this is just about as good as it gets.

Here is Canizales angling off his rear uppercut.

canizales 44 12 2013 As Canizales steps in and lands a rear uppercut, he follows through with his rear leg (his right leg now replaces his left leg as his lead until he turns back the other way) and pivots his upper body back toward his opponent. This gives Canizales the superior outside position and allows him to hit his opponent with a left hook while his opponent is in no position to hit him back effectively without having to turn and face him.

canizales 44 13 2013

With his back to the ropes, Canizales angles off his right hand (side-stepping to his right) then transfers his weight back over onto his left leg. In this more advantageous position, Canizales can throw a left uppercut followed by a right cross, just as his opponent is turning to face him.

Combination punching

Along with the likes of Joe Louis, Ray Robinson, Jose Napoles, Julio Cesar Chavez and Juan Manuel Marquez, I consider Orlando Canizales to be one of the finest practitioners of combination punching that I’ve seen (yes, I believe he was that good at it). Sure, others have hit with more power, and others may have rallied off their combinations with more speed, but in terms of economy of motion, directness, allowing each punch to flow naturally into the next and the thought process behind each punch, Canizales was one of the best.

Rather than use stills as I’ve done throughout this piece, I thought it would be better to finish off this analysis by highlighting Canizales’ combination punching using a fantastic highlight package by ZeffieTowers2. Although his combination punching features prominently throughout the video, the best examples of it (particularly punching around an opponent’s guard and varying the beat between punches), take place somewhere around the 4:08 mark. In fact, the video will also give you a clearer understanding of his tempo changes, sudden shifts and explosiveness, all of which are nigh on impossible to do justice using stills alone.

So there you have it. My thoughts on one of the most underrated craftsman that boxing’s ever seen. All that’s left to do now is to sit back, and enjoy a master technician at work.

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Lee Wylie

Ringside at the Fontainebleau where Mikaela Mayer Won her Rematch with Sandy Ryan

Published

3 days ago

March 30, 2025

Arne K. Lang

Ringside-at-the-Fontainebleau-where-Mikaela-Mayer-won-her-Rematch-with-Sandy-Ryan

LAS VEGAS, NV — The first meeting between Mikaela Mayer and Sandy Ryan last September at Madison Square Garden was punctuated with drama before the first punch was thrown. When the smoke cleared, Mayer had become a world-title-holder in a second weight class, taking away Ryan’s WBO welterweight belt via a majority decision in a fan-friendly fight.

The rematch tonight at the Fontainebleau in Las Vegas was another fan-friendly fight. There were furious exchanges in several rounds and the crowd awarded both gladiators a standing ovation at the finish.

Mayer dominated the first half of the fight and held on to win by a unanimous decision. But Sandy Ryan came on strong beginning in round seven, and although Mayer was the deserving winner, the scores favoring her (98-92 and 97-93 twice) fail to reflect the competitiveness of the match-up. This is the best rivalry in women’s boxing aside from Taylor-Serrano.

Mayer, 34, improved to 21-2 (5). Up next, she hopes, in a unification fight with Lauren Price who outclassed Natasha Jonas earlier this month and currently holds the other meaningful pieces of the 147-pound puzzle. Sandy Ryan, 31, the pride of Derby, England, falls to 7-3-1.

Co-Feature

In his first defense of his WBO world welterweight title (acquired with a brutal knockout of Giovani Santillan after the title was vacated by Terence Crawford), Atlanta’s Brian Norman Jr knocked out Puerto Rico’s Derrieck Cuevas in the third round. A three-punch combination climaxed by a short left hook sent Cuevas staggering into a corner post. He got to his feet before referee Thomas Taylor started the count, but Taylor looked in Cuevas’s eyes and didn’t like what he saw and brought the bout to a halt.

The stoppage, which struck some as premature, came with one second remaining in the third stanza.

A second-generation prizefighter (his father was a fringe contender at super middleweight), the 24-year-old Norman (27-0, 21 KOs) is currently boxing’s youngest male title-holder. It was only the second pro loss for Cuevas (27-2-1) whose lone previous defeat had come early in his career in a 6-rounder he lost by split decision.

Other Bouts

In a career-best performance, 27-year-old Brooklyn featherweight Bruce “Shu Shu” Carrington (15-0, 9 KOs) blasted out Jose Enrique Vivas (23-4) in the third round.

Carrington, who was named the Most Outstanding Boxer at the 2019 U.S. Olympic Trials despite being the lowest-seeded boxer in his weight class, decked Vivas with a right-left combination near the end of the second round. Vivas barely survived the round and was on a short leash when the third stanza began. After 53 seconds of round three, referee Raul Caiz Jr had seen enough and waived it off. Vivas hadn’t previously been stopped.

Cleveland welterweight Tiger Johnson, a Tokyo Olympian, scored a fifth-round stoppage over San Antonio’s Kendo Castaneda. Johnson assumed control in the fourth round and sent Castaneda to his knees twice with body punches in the next frame. The second knockdown terminated the match. The official time was 2:00 of round five.

Johnson advanced to 15-0 (7 KOs). Castenada declined to 21-9.

Las Vegas junior welterweight Emiliano Vargas (13-0, 11 KOs) blasted out Stockton, California’s Giovanni Gonzalez in the second round. Vargas brought the bout to a sudden conclusion with a sweeping left hook that knocked Gonzalez out cold. The end came at the 2:00 minute mark of round two.

Gonzalez brought a 20-7-2 record which was misleading as 18 of his fights were in Tijuana where fights are frequently prearranged. However, he wasn’t afraid to trade with Vargas and paid the price.

Emiliano Vargas, with his matinee idol good looks and his boxing pedigree – he is the son of former U.S. Olympian and two-weight world title-holder “Ferocious” Fernando Vargas – is highly marketable and has the potential to be a cross-over star.

Eighteen-year-old Newark bantamweight Emmanuel “Manny” Chance, one of Top Rank’s newest signees, won his pro debut with a four-round decision over So Cal’s Miguel Guzman. Chance won all four rounds on all three cards, but this was no runaway. He left a lot of room for improvement.

There was a long intermission before the co-main and again before the main event, but the tedium was assuaged by a moving video tribute to George Foreman.

Photos credit: Al Applerose

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William Zepeda Edges Past Tevin Farmer in Cancun; Improves to 34-0

Published

3 days ago

March 29, 2025

David A. Avila

William Zepeda Edges Past Tevin Farmer in Cancun; Improves to 34-0

No surprise, once again William Zepeda eked out a win over the clever and resilient Tevin Farmer to remain undefeated and retain a regional lightweight title on Saturday.

There were no knockdowns in this rematch.

The Mexican punching machine Zepeda (33-0, 17 KOs) once more sought to overwhelm Farmer (33-8-1, 9 KOs) with a deluge of blows. This rematch by Golden Boy Promotions took place in the famous beach resort area of Cancun, Mexico.

It was a mere four months ago that both first clashed in Saudi Arabia with their vastly difference styles. This time the tropical setting served as the background which suited Zepeda and his lawnmower assaults. The Mexican fans were pleased.

Nothing changed in their second meeting.

Zepeda revved up the body assault and Farmer moved around casually to his right while fending off the Mexican fighter’s attacks. By the fourth round Zepeda was able to cut off Farmer’s escape routes and targeted the body with punishing shots.

The blows came in bunches.

In the fifth round Zepeda blasted away at Farmer who looked frantic for an escape. The body assault continued with the Mexican fighter pouring it on and Farmer seeming to look ready to quit. When the round ended, he waved off his corner’s appeals to stop.

Zepeda continued to dominate the next few rounds and then Farmer began rallying. At first, he cleverly smothered Zepeda’s body attacks and then began moving and hitting sporadically. It forced the Mexican fighter to pause and figure out the strategy.

Farmer, a Philadelphia fighter, showed resiliency especially when it was revealed he had suffered a hand injury.

During the last three rounds Farmer dug down deep and found ways to score and not get hit. It was Boxing 101 and the Philly fighter made it work.

But too many rounds had been put in the bank by Zepeda. Despite the late rally by Farmer one judge saw it 114-114, but two others scored it 116-112 and 115-113 for Zepeda who retains his interim lightweight title and place at the top of the WBC rankings.

“I knew he was a difficult fighter. This time he was even more difficult,” said Zepeda.

Farmer was downtrodden about another loss but realistic about the outcome and starting slow.

“But I dominated the last rounds,” said Farmer.

Zepeda shrugged at the similar outcome as their first encounter.

“I’m glad we both put on a great show,” said Zepeda.

Female Flyweight Battle

Costa Rica’s Yokasta Valle edged past Texas fighter Marlen Esparza to win their showdown at flyweight by split decision after 10 rounds.

Valle moved up two weight divisions to meet Esparza who was slightly above the weight limit. Both showed off their contrasting styles and world class talent.

Esparza, a former unified flyweight world titlist, stayed in the pocket and was largely successful with well-placed jabs and left hooks. She repeatedly caught Valle in-between her flurries.

The current minimumweight world titlist changed tactics and found more success in the second half of the fight. She forced Esparza to make the first moves and that forced changes that benefited her style.

Neither fighter could take over the fight.

After 10 rounds one judge saw Esparza the winner 96-94, but two others saw Valle the winner 97-93 twice.

Will Valle move up and challenge the current undisputed flyweight world champion Gabriela Fundora? That’s the question.

Valle currently holds the WBC minimumweight world title.

Puerto Rico vs Mexico

Oscar Collazo (12-0, 9 KOs), the WBO, WBA minimumweight titlist, knocked out Mexico’s Edwin Cano (13-3-1, 4 KOs) with a flurry of body shots at 1:12 of the fifth round.

Collazo dominated with a relentless body attack the Mexican fighter could not defend. It was the Puerto Rican fighter’s fifth consecutive title defense.

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Avila Perspective, Chap. 319: Rematches in Las Vegas, Cancun and More

Published

4 days ago

March 28, 2025

David A. Avila

Avila-Perspective-Chap-319-Rematches-in-Las-Vegas-Cancun-and-More

Rematches are the bedrock for prizefighting.

Return battles between rival boxers always means their first encounter was riveting and successful at the box office.

Six months after their first brutal battle Mikaela Mayer (20-2, 5 KOs) and Sandy Ryan (7-2-1, 3 KOs) will slug it out again for the WBO welterweight world title this time on Saturday, March 29, at the Fontainebleau in Las Vegas.

ESPN will show the Top Rank card live.

“It’s important for women’s boxing to have these rivalries and this is definitely up there as one of the top ones,” Mayer told the BBC.

If you follow Mayer’s career you know that somehow drama follows. Whether its back-and-forth beefs with fellow American fighters or controversial judging due to nationalism in countries abroad. The Southern California native who now trains in Las Vegas knows how to create the drama.

For female fighters self-promotion is a necessity.

Most boxing promoters refuse to step out of the usual process set for male boxers, not for female boxers. Things remain the same and have been for the last 70 years. Social media has brought changes but that has made promoters do even less.

No longer are there press conferences, instead announcements are made on social media to be drowned among the billions of other posts. It is not killing but diluting interest in the sport.

Women innately present a different advantage that few if any promoters are recognizing. So far in the past 25 years I have only seen two or three promoters actually ignite interest in female fighters. They saw the advantages and properly boosted interest in the women.

The fight breakdown

Mayer has won world titles in the super featherweight and now the welterweight division. Those are two vastly different weight classes and prove her fighting abilities are based on skill not power or size.

Coaching Mayer since amateurs remains Al Mitchell and now Kofi Jantuah who replaced Kay Koroma the current trainer for Sandy Ryan.

That was the reason drama ignited during their first battle. Then came someone tossing paint at Ryan the day of their first fight.

More drama.

During their first fight both battled to control the initiative with Mayer out-punching the British fighter by a slender margin. It was a back-and-forth struggle with each absorbing blows and retaliating immediately.

New York City got its money’s worth.

Ryan had risen to the elite level rapidly since losing to Erica Farias three years ago. Though she was physically bigger and younger, she was out-maneuvered and defeated by the wily veteran from Argentina. In the rematch, however, Ryan made adjustments and won convincingly.

Can she make adjustments from her defeat to Mayer?

“I wanted the rematch straight away,” said Ryan on social media. “I’ve come to America again.”

Both fighters have size and reach. In their first clash it was evident that conditioning was not a concern as blows were fired nonstop in bunches. Mayer had the number of punches landed advantage and it unfolded with the judges giving her a majority decision win.

That was six months ago. Can she repeat the outcome?

Mayer has always had boiler-oven intensity. It’s not fake. Since her amateur days the slender Southern California blonde changes disposition all the way to red when lacing up the gloves. It’s something that can’t be taught.

Can she draw enough of that fire out again?

“I didn’t have to give her this rematch. I could have just sat it out, waited for Lauren Price to unify and fought for undisputed or faced someone else,” said Mayer to BBC. “That’s not the fighter I am though.”

Co-Main in Las Vegas

The co-main event pits Brian Norman Jr. (26-0, 20 KOs) facing Puerto Rico’s Derrieck Cuevas (27-1-1, 19 KOs) in a contest for the WBO welterweight title.

Norman, 24, was last seen a year ago dissecting a very good welterweight in Giovani Santillan for a knockout win in San Diego. He showed speed, skill and power in defeating Santillan in his hometown.

Cuevas has beaten some solid veteran talent but this will be his big test against Norman and his first attempt at winning a world title.

Also on the Top Rank card will be Bruce “Shu Shu” Carrington and Emiliano Vargas, the son of Fernando Vargas, in separate bouts.

Golden Boy in Cancun

A rematch between undefeated William “Camaron” Zepeda (32-0, 27 KOs) and ex-champ Tevin Farmer (33-7-1, 8 KOs) headlines the lightweight match on Saturday March 29, at Cancun, Mexico.

In their first encounter Zepeda was knocked down in the fourth round but rallied to win a split-decision over Farmer. It showed the flaws in Zepeda’s tornado style.

DAZN will stream the Golden Boy Promotions card that also includes a clash between Yokasta Valle the WBC minimumweight world titlist who is moving up to flyweight to face former flyweight champion Marlen Esparza.

Both Valle and Esparza have fast hands.

Valle is excellent darting in and out while Esparza has learned how to fight inside. It’s a toss-up fight.

Fights to Watch

Fri. DAZN 12 p.m. Cameron Vuong (7-0) vs Jordan Flynn (11-0-1); Pat Brown (0-0) vs Federico Grandone (7-4-2).

Sat. DAZN 5 p.m. William Zepeda (32-0) vs Tevin Farmer (33-7-1); Yokasta Valle (32-3) vs Marlen Esparza (15-2).

Sat. ESPN 7 p.m. Mikaela Mayer (20-2) vs Sandy Ryan (7-2-1); Brian Norman Jr. (26-0) vs Derrieck Cuevas (27-1-1).

Photo credit: Mikey Williams / Top Rank

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