Yesterday I wrote about the evolving game of Mark Hunt, who this weekend challenges for the UFC interim heavyweight title in Mexico City. I wrote:
[Hunt’s] defense is, to put it bluntly, a bootleg version of the Philly Shell at best. It is efficient, though, and that’s really all that Hunt cares about. In a way, efficiency is . . . the predominate factor in modern heavyweight MMA, and heavyweight combat sports in general.
Such is also the case with Hunt’s opponent, Fabricio “Vai Cavalo” Werdum. A little less than three years ago, Werdum was a talented, skilled heavyweight who nevertheless seemed unlikely to ever contend for the UFC title. His stunning victory over the essentially undefeated and once-great Fedor Emelianenko seemed to have more to do with Fedor’s decline than any particular craftiness of Werdum’s. It was a career-defining win nonetheless–one that was immediately followed with a loss to Alistair Overeem that was at once humiliating and valiant.
Against Overeem, Werdum showed flashes of–not brilliance, but competence at the very least. Courage, too, which is strange to say in description of a fight that saw the Brazilian Jiu Jitsu ace flopping deliberately to his back throughout the fight in an effort to goad Overeem to jump into his guard. Regardless, Werdum seemed to have no difficulty hitting Overeem when he wanted to, and his third-round surge was admirable. Too little, too late, but a harbinger of things to come.
MIX & MATCH
Rafael Cordeiro is, without question, one of the finest trainers in all of MMA. Formerly the head coach of legendary Brazilian gym Chute Boxe, Cordeiro’s resume of successful fighters is long and impressive, including such greats as Wanderlei Silva, brothers Murilo “Ninja” and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, and Anderson Silva. In more recent years, Cordeiro has trained Rafael Dos Anjos, Lyoto Machida and–you guessed it–Fabricio Werdum.
With Werdum, Cordeiro’s appreciation of efficiency can be seen clearly. Rather than attempting to teach an athlete with very little striking ability a complex style like that of Anderson Silva, Cordeiro gave Werdum a set of basic techniques that, applied correctly, would allow him to overwhelm competition in the Octagon even while making small improvements in the gym between each fight. At 37 years of age, Werdum has “cheated” his way to success, all thanks to a single, adaptable combination.
Prepare to be dazzled. I give you, “the Werdum.”
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1. Werdum finds himself with his back near the fence.
2. He steps forward with a jab, and his opponent Travis Browne begins to retreat.
3. A reaching right hand follows, and Browne retreats more.
4. Werdum allows his weight to continue moving forward, catching himself with a shift-step into southpaw.
5. Finally, a left roundhouse.
Okay, so maybe “dazzled” isn’t the right word to use. Above, Browne manages to avoid all of Werdum’s attacks, but the thought process behind the combination is clear. Each successive attack is rangier than the last, all designed to catch a retreating opponent. As the fight wears on and Werdum gets a chance to read his opponent’s responses, the accuracy of his combination strikes increases exponentially. Again, this approach is all about efficiency–getting the most out of a limited training timeframe.
You see, Werdum only really throws one basic combo. His movements change very little from one attack to the next, but the order in which he chooses to utilize those movements is entirely up to him, and the reaction of his opponent. If, for example, the opponent runs out of room to backpedal, Werdum can replace the left kick with a left knee, as he did in his striking “debut” against Roy Nelson.
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1. Nelson inches forward, trying to line up his trusty right hand.
2. Werdum pushes him back with a series of jabs . . .
3. . . . followed by the same reaching right hand as above, with which he falls forward into southpaw . . .
4. . . . and follows up with a left knee as Nelson runs into the fence.
5. With Nelson still covered up and trapped against the fence, Werdum grabs both of his wrists and yanks him down into another knee, this one from the right leg.
Werdum’s combination striking is based on a very simple, easy-to-learn movement, which I think of as “marching.” Allowing himself to fall into his opponent, Werdum puts himself at risk of being countered, but enhances his ability to close range. In addition, Werdum minimizes the chances of his opponent attacking by staying on the offensive himself. With strikes coming from both hands, shins, and knees, his opponents are wont to cover up and hope for the best, which leaves Werdum free to open up.
The “shift” is essential to Werdum’s forward movement. With each strike, he will catch his forward-moving weight by shifting from one stance to the other, stepping forward deliberately so that his rear foot becomes his lead, and vice versa. It looks like this:
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1. Blue and Red stand opposite one another, both in orthodox.
2. As Blue throws a straight right, Red retreats.
3. Blue continues moving forward, closing the distance by stepping into southpaw.
4. From there he throws his left hand, now a loaded, rear-handed punch, and connects.
The shift is a very old move in boxing–indeed, some variation of this footwork seems to exist in every martial art, such as with the Oizuki, or “lunge punch,” of the various Karate styles. When used to set up a left kick, as in the first example, the footwork is very commonly taught in Muay Thai and Dutch kickboxing schools. It is positively pervasive, and it’s easy to see why: a basic shift is a cinch to learn, and readily adaptable to virtually any change in distance.
Let’s check out another sequence against Travis Browne–one which clearly shows Werdum’s rapidly changing thought process as he attacks.
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1. Browne looks away, perhaps to check the clock or consult with his corner.
2. Werdum, cheeky fellow that he is, chooses that moment to initiate his attack, leading with the usual jab . . .
3. . . . and then the usual lunging right hand.
4. As before, Werdum shifts into southpaw and prepares to throw his left kick.
5. The angle is wrong, however, and Werdum bails on the kick, using the momentum to shift right back into orthodox.
6. As Browne lowers his head, Werdum considers a clinch knee, but Browne continues to backpedal . . .
7. . . . so he switches to a beautiful right roundhouse to the body instead.
The beauty of this mix n’ match style of striking is that it allows a very inexperienced striker in Werdum to readily adapt on the fly. These are easily drilled movements, and it’s almost like watching Werdum go through an easy-to-read flowchart in his head. Constantly putting his rear hand or leg in position to attack, Werdum keeps his man off balance with his lead hand, which reaches for collar ties and measures with obfuscating jabs whenever the chance arises.
For Werdum’s opponents, the real difficulty comes when Werdum gets comfortable and starts inserting the various interchangeable parts of his combination out of order. Once he has his adversary on the defensive, Werdum will get very creative with his strike selection–but all of that creativity still fits into the fundamental framework of his standard combination.
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1. With Browne near the fence, Fabricio steps forward as if to jab.
2. Instead, he leads with the right hand, and Browne covers up.
3. As usual, Werdum shifts his right foot forward, and Browne prepares to blocka left kick or punch . . .
4. . . . but Werdum reaches out to disrupt Browne’s guard instead, and shifts right back into orthodox . . .
5. . . . to land another clean right hand.
Essentially, the worst thing an opponent can do is cover up and give Werdum time to establish his rhythm and sense of distance. Most heavyweights in the UFC are not exceptional strikers themselves, however. In a division full of talent but sometimes low on diverse skill, Werdum has clawed his way to the top of the heap by simply being more aggressive than everyone else.
In the end, that’s always been Rafael Cordeiro’s strategy. His fighters are not sent into the cage or ring to move and avoid conflict. Rather, they are compelled to march forward, attacking relentlessly until the opponent has little choice but to cover up and wait. And at that point, the simple flexibility of Cordeiro’s teaching shines, as his fighters are effortlessly able to identify openings and attack them with the correct strikes. Distance, timing, and power–those are the building blocks of any striking arsenal, and thanks to Cordeiro’s magical mix n’ match combination, Fabricio Werdum applies them better than just about anyone else.
For more analysis, check out Heavy Hands, the only podcast dedicated to the finer points of face punching. Tune in to Episode 26 to hear Connor and his co-host Patrick Wyman break down Hunt vs Werdum, as well as Ellenberger-Gastelum, Chandler-Brooks II, and Gaethje-Guillard.