This statement is

TRUE

Nothing makes me more upset in boxing gyms than seeing the B.S. Floyd Mayweather Jr. has been showcasing to fans worldwide for YEARS now. Many intermediate and even advanced boxers do NOT know, that as soon as the camera shuts down, Floyd Mayweather stops performing the circus that he sells to his fans as advanced ‘pad work’. So why is this close distance, tap-like form of pad-work bad, and even dangerous for aspiring boxers?

  1. Copying Floyd’s Pad Work Makes You Stop Feeling Distance!

    When you work a lot on pad work, even if you are not copying Floyd’s style, your brain becomes conditioned to lose the feeling of distance. Why is this the case? It is the case because when doing pad work, you are never hitting your opponent in the face! What I mean by this is that your arms are never as extended as they would be in sparring. In fact, your arms are extended 50% to what they would be in sparring when doing pad work. Therefore, you lose a delicate sense of distance. So what is the solution? The solution is Old-fashioned bag work. Yes, I said it. There is nothing better than bag-work training to build a good sense of distance.

  2. Pad work will make you punch weaker (even if done correctly)!

    Even if you are not falling victim to Mayweather’s pad work style, and utilizing good punching mechanics, pad work will never replicate a punch that you throw during sparring. What do I mean by this? This is a bit tough to explain, but I will do my best. The person who is holding pads can only absorb as much force as his wrists can handle, meaning that the boxer throwing the punches will naturally not be able to throw as hard of a punch as they would be on a heavybag or in sparring because the brain receives a signal that tells the boxer “this is as much force as I can exert on the pads”. Once again, the solution here is heavy bag-work and quality sparring.

  3. mimicking Floyd’s pad work will hurt your defense

    Do you see much practical boxing defense in Floyd’s pad work? I, personally, do not. Even in good mitt work, there is typically very little attention placed on defense. In Floyd’s defense, you see very little shoulder rolls after jabs, no rolls, and absolutely no movement with the feet. Practicing pad work like Floyd excessively will HURT you during a fight. Yes, it may look cool for your or your coach’s Instagram, but trust me, you will not become a better boxer doing pad work like Floyd Mayweather. 

Still Do Not Believe Me?

Here is a video of Buddy McGirt, legendary fighter, and trainer, talking about how he never did mitts as a pro and doesn’t make his fighters focus on pads either!

How Do You Use Pad Work Correctly?

I am not discrediting pad work completely. It definitely has a significant role in sharpening a boxer’s technique. With that said,  there are a couple of key points of emphasis when hitting mitts:

  1. Make sure to focus on correctly throwing jabs and defending right after throwing the jab.
  2. Make sure to utilize the full area of the ring when doing pad work. DO NOT stay planted in one spot. As a fighter, you must understand where the ropes are, irrespective of where you stand. With that said, do not jump around excessively or without purpose.
  3. Make sure the person holding the pads is not meeting your punch with the pad (hitting down on your punch with the pad). Your jab should extend as close as it would as if you were hitting your opponents head. 
  4. Rely on pads to sharpen technique, but do n0t use pads as a foundation for learning boxing.