In mixed martial arts competition, pure boxers tend to not do very well it seems. While ‘the sweet science’ can be effective in terms of self-defense, against a trained MMA fighter it doesn’t seem to hold up particularly when it comes to grappling.

Unless the boxer has committed themselves to the sport of MMA and grappling for many years it is unlikely they will do very well.

For some boxers, it’s a style and distance thing. The distance in MMA and boxing is completely different. The slick Philly shell, shoulder roll type guys who can make you miss right in front of you aren’t going to have the best style when someone can just take you down or leg kick you.

Outside boxers who make good use of distance and use good foot work might have the best style suited for MMA but they would still have to put in lots of work on grappling, and not just six months sprawl training!

In the following video, we see a pretty good example of a good style when the boxer Mark ‘The Great White Shark’ Potter fights in professional MMA. It doesn’t last very long at all and ends quite brutally as well.

As a boxer, Potter was by no means a world beater but he was certainly successful as a pro. He had a pro record of 21-5 with 14 KOs long before he made his MMA debut. He trained at a good MMA team in the UK too so at least he didn’t rely solely on his boxing skills like so many do.

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His opponent in this fight, Larry Watts, had the worst game plan possible against a boxer and decided to stand and trade with him. He finds out very quickly the error of his ways but alas it’s too late. The boxer, Potter, finally puts him down with a devastating right hand that knocks him out in brutal fashion.