The following punches depend on a wide variety of foot motions to power a hook largely devoid of a pivot, and are typically harassing punches, not KO punches, though sometimes they drop opponents. These should be mostly practiced shadowboxing, with an attempt to learn how to pivot on a dime if contact is made.

1. Cutoff Hook [Floyd Money, light heavyweights with long arms, or any big-shouldered stylist with long arms for his class] This is a classic hook thrown while stepping and sliding backward hoping that some knucklehead will walk into it. Practice in shadowboxing and on mitts.

2. Fade [Crafty counter punchers] This is a cutoff hook in which you are draw stepping diagonally toward your rear power hand. This is easy to pivot into if he rushes into it, but is mostly done to restore guard after landing or missing a rear hand against a guy you don’t want to disengage with behind a parting jab, for instance a dude known to counter jabs with wicked straights to the heart. Practice in shadow boxing and on mitts.

3. Step-off [Jones, Duran] throw your shovel hook to the chin while stepping laterally to your open, rear hand side. If it scores you may lift the chin and combination to the KO with a downward cross, making sure to pivot high off the rear foot. The step-off punch uses no pivot as it is being powered by body drag. Practice on the light bag.

4. Pass [Ruslan Providnikov, Pacquiao] This is a short man’s punch. As he ducks under the straight rear hand of the opponent or under the lead jab, if the opponent is leading with his opposite hand, he lunges forward with the head in the lead followed by the fist to the chin or body. Practice by slapping the heavy bag and slapping an opponent throwing a lead at your head.

5. Shift [Fitzsimmons, Moore, Duran, Pacquiao, Providnikov, Hagler, only the craftiest or most relentless] This is a pass hook without the head and shoulders commitment as you are shifting your lead, stepping past your opponent with your rear foot and sinking your fist in as you step next to or behind your man. Fitz won the heavy weight title by landing this to the solar plexus. This is a crude weight transfer method that can work when you have better footwork and your opponent is letting you pass under his straight punches. Practice slapping the heavy bag with this and punching the string bag. It is dangerous to the wrist because of the long step.

No boxer should take the time to perfect all of these methods. For a man of sound ability, I would suggest learning the cutoff and fade and maybe the step-off. The pass and shift are for that specific hook-based stylist.

Don’t forget to check out a study of over 50 ancient boxing bouts from art and literature in The Gods of Boxing available at this link: