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Punch
A jab

A punch is a striking blow with the fist.^[1] It is the most commonly used attack in hand to hand combat. It is used in some martial arts and combat sports, most notably boxing where it is the only type of technique allowed. In sports hand wraps or other padding such as gloves may be employed to protect athletes and practitioners from injuring themselves.^[2][3]

The use of punches varies between different martial arts and combat sports. Styles such as boxing or Russian fist fighting utilize punches alone, while others such as kickboxing or karate may use punches as secondary to kicks. Others such as wrestling and judo do not utilize punches at all. There are many different types of punches and as a result, different styles encompass varying types of punching techniques.

Basic types[link]

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (November 2008)

This is not a comprehensive list of all punches, due to the large diversity of schools of practice whose techniques, employing arm, shoulder, hip and leg work, may invariably differ.

Styles[link]

A man being punched in the abdomen.

Boxing[link]

In boxing, punches are classified according to the motion and direction of the strike; contact is always made with the knuckles. There are four primary punches in boxing: the jab, cross, hook, and uppercut.

A karateka performing a 'reverse punch' or gyaku zuki

Karate[link]

Seiken

Punching techniques in Karate are called tsuki or zuki. Contact is made with the first two knuckles (seiken).^[16] If any other part of the hand is used to strike with, such as the back of the fist (uraken) or the bottom of the fist (tetsui), then the blow is classified as a strike (uchi).

Karate punches include the thrust punch oi-zuki made using the lead-hand, straight punch choku-zuki, reverse punch gyaku-zuki, made from the opposite hand, and many other variations.^[17]

Records[link]

The Guinness World Record for the Most full contact punch strikes in one minute is held by Jim Fung's student, Robert Ardito, who performed 805 punches in one minute (more than 13 punches per second for a full minute) at the International Wing Chun Academy in Sydney on the 18th of March, 2009.^[18][19]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Kung Fu magazine:One punch-The Wing Chun Warrior's Attack Strategy
• Bruce Lee discusses the Jeet Kune Do punch
• Basic Boxing Punches

Look up punch in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Punch may refer to:

• Punch (combat), a strike made using the hand closed into a fist
• Punch (drink), a general term for various mixed drinks, often containing fruit, fruit juice, and/or alcohol
• Mr. Punch, the principal puppet character in the traditional Punch and Judy puppet show.
• Mr. Punch, a fictional character in The Tragical Comedy or Comical Tragedy of Mr. Punch graphic novel by Neil Gaiman
• Dodona (genus), a group of metalmark butterflies commonly known as the Punches, in particular
  • Dodona eugenes, a Dodona commonly known as the Punch

Brand names[link]

• Punch (cigar brand), the name of two brands of premium cigar
• Punch Taverns, a United Kingdom pub company

Film and television[link]

• Punch (1994 film), a boxing film starring Donald Sutherland
• Punch (2002 film), a Canadian film starring Sonja Bennett and Michael Riley
• Punch (2011 film), a South Korean film
• Punch!, a Manga by Rie Takada
• Punch! (TV series), a Canadian animated comedy series
• Punch and Judy, a glove-puppet show and opera for children
• Punch, a station identification for BBC Choice used from 1998 (see here)
• Punch-Counterpunch, a fictional character in the Transformers universe
• Producciones PUNCH (often shortened to PUNCH), a Colombian programadora from 1956 to 2000

Music[link]

• Punch in / out, a term in music production when a certain portion of the song is repeated for recording
• Punched music, holes in various materials: music roll, piano roll, book music
• Punch (album), a 2008 album by Punch Brothers featuring Chris Thile
• Punches (album), a 2005 album by World Leader Pretend
• Punch Brothers, bluegrass band
• Punch Records, UK music and arts development agency
• Punch Andrews (b. ?), Edward "Punch" Andrews, music producer
• Puncher, Israeli pop music band
• Punch (band), a Latvian rock band

Publications[link]

• Punch (magazine), a former British weekly magazine of humour and satire
• Melbourne Punch, a similar magazine published in Melbourne, Australia
• Punch (Danish magazine), an illustrated conservative Danish satirical magazine (1873-1894)
• The Punch, Nigerian daily newspaper

Tools[link]

• Punch (tool), a tool used to drive objects such as nails, to pierce workpieces, or to form an impression of the tip on a workpiece
• Punch (numismatics), an intermediate used in the process of manufacturing coins
• Punchcutting, an intermediate used in the process of manufacturing type
• Hole punch, a common office tool used to create holes in sheets of paper
• Keypunch, a device for manually entering data into punched cards
• Leather punch, a tool used to create holes in leather
• Medical punch, a medical tool to sample biopsy pieces from skin
• Ticket punch, to validate tickets

See also[link]

• All pages beginning with "Punch"
• All pages with titles containing "Punch"
• Punched card
• Punched tape
• Punch bowl (disambiguation)
• Punch-Out (disambiguation)
• Hit (disambiguation)
• Slap (disambiguation)
• Strike (disambiguation)
• Poonch, India
• Punsch, a traditional Swedish liquor

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (December 2007)

Naval combat of Iquique, 21 May 1879 - oil on canvas painting by Thomas Somerscales, 19th century

Combat, or fighting, is a purposeful violent conflict meant to establish dominance over the opposition, or to kill the opposition, or drive the opposition away from a location where it is not wanted or needed.

The term combat (French for fight) typically refers to armed conflict between military forces in warfare, whereas the more general term "fighting" can refer to any violent conflict between individuals or nations. Combat violence can be unilateral, whereas fighting implies at least a defensive reaction. However, the terms are often used synonymously along with the term "Battle Ready". A large-scale fight is known as a battle.

Combat may take place under a specific set of rules or be unregulated. Examples of rules include the Geneva Conventions (covering the treatment of soldiers in war), medieval Chivalry, the Marquess of Queensberry rules (covering boxing) and several forms of combat sports.

Combat in warfare involves two or more opposing military organizations, usually fighting for nations at war (although guerrilla warfare and suppression of insurgencies can fall outside this definition). Warfare falls under the laws of war, which govern its purposes and conduct, and protect the rights of soldiers and non-combatants.

Combat may be armed (using weapons), or unarmed (not using weapons). Hand-to-hand combat (melee) is combat at very close range, attacking the opponent with the body (striking, kicking, strangling, etc.) and/or with a melee weapon (knives, swords, batons, etc.), as opposed to a ranged weapon.

Hand-to-hand combat can be further divided into three sections depending on the distance and positioning of the combatants:

• Clinch fighting
• Ground fighting
• Stand-up fighting

Verbal combat[link]

Specific speech act structures related to verbal and also physical exchanges are extant in ancient times as well as today.^[1] Fixed speech act patterns employed in a verbal exchange are a phenomenon found in historical and modern texts alike. Although conventions change over time and from one culture to the other, ritualised exchanges seem to be part of the basic inventory of language usage, and so it is quite common to find similarities between the way individuals from various cultures engage in a verbal duel. Verbal combat may result in physical combat after a certain extent.

References[link]

Look up combat in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Wikibooks has a book on the topic of Fighting

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Fighting

• Martin van Creveld: The Changing Face of War: Lessons of Combat, from the Marne to Turkey. Maine, New England 2007.

Further reading[link]

• Wong, Leonard. 2006. “Combat Motivation in Today’s Soldiers: U.S. Army War College Strategic Studies Institute.”Armed Forces & Society, vol. 32: pp. 659–663. http://afs.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/32/4/659

• Gifford, Brian. 2005. “Combat Casualties and Race: What Can We Learn from the 2003-2004 Iraq Conflict?” Armed Forces & Society, vol. 31: pp. 201–225. http://afs.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/31/2/201

• Herspring, Dale. 2006. “Undermining Combat Readiness in the Russian Military, 1992-2005.” Armed Forces & Society, Jul 2006; vol. 32: pp. 513–531. http://afs.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/32/4/513

• Ben-Shalom, Uzi; Lehrer, Zeev; and Ben-Ari, Eyal. 2005. “Cohesion during Military Operations: A Field Study on Combat Units in the Al-Aqsa Intifada.” Armed Forces & Society, vol. 32: pp. 63–79. http://afs.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/32/1/63

• Woodruff, Todd; Kelty, Ryan; Segal, David R. 2006. “Propensity to Serve and Motivation to Enlist among American Combat Soldiers.” Armed Forces & Society, Apr 2006; vol. 32: pp. 353–366. http://afs.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/32/3/353

• Dienstfrey, Stephen. 1988. “Women Veterans’ Exposure to Combat.” Armed forces & Society, vol. 14: pp. 549–558. http://afs.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/14/4/549

Micky Ward
Ward in March 2011
Statistics
Real name	Micky Ward
Nickname(s)	Irish
Rated at	Junior welterweight
Nationality	American
Born	(1965-10-04) October 4, 1965 (age 46) Lowell, Massachusetts, US
Stance	Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights	51
Wins	38
Wins by KO	27
Losses	13
Draws	0
No contests	0

Micky Ward (born October 4, 1965), nicknamed Irish, is a retired American junior welterweight professional boxer and a former WBU champion from Lowell, Massachusetts. He is widely known as the protagonist in the 2010 feature film based on his career titled The Fighter, in which he is portrayed by Mark Wahlberg, and culminating with his title bout against Shea Neary.

Early career[link]

Ward was a three-time New England Golden Gloves champion boxer who turned pro in 1985,^[1] winning his first fourteen fights.^[2] However, his career leveled off, and after losing four consecutive fights in 1990/91, Ward took a hiatus from boxing.^[3]

Hiatus[link]

During Ward's time away from the sport, he used some of the funds from his day job on a road-paving crew to have surgery on his right hand, with which he had problems during several bouts. The surgery used some of the bone from Ward's pelvis to strengthen and fuse the bones in his hand.^[3] His half-brother, former boxer Dicky Eklund, who was struggling with drug addiction and had just been released from jail on charges including drug possession, convinced Ward to take up the sport again.^[1]

Return to the ring[link]

Ward was successful in his return, winning his first nine fights, and won the WBU's Intercontinental Light Welterweight Title in a fight against Louis Veader.^[2] He defended the belt once, in a rematch against Veader.^[2] Ward earned a 1997 IBF Light Welterweight Championship fight against champion Vince Phillips, but did not win the championship, as the fight was stopped in the third round due to cuts,^[2] and Phillips was awarded the bout via TKO. One year later, Ward again would come up short in a title fight, as he lost a 12-round decision against Zab Judah.^[2]

In 2000, Ward traveled to London to take on the WBU Light Welterweight Champion, Shea Neary, and earned a TKO in the eighth round to win the WBU title.^[2] Ward, however, never defended the title, and split his next four fights. His ten-round decision victory over Emanuel Augustus (then known as Emanuel Burton) was voted The Ring magazine's 2001 Fight of the Year.^[4]

Ward vs. Gatti trilogy[link]

On May 18, 2002, Ward faced the opponent with whom he became most identified, Arturo Gatti. The fight was a wild one, but a ninth round Ward knockdown of Gatti proved to be the difference, with Ward winning a majority decision. The fight was later named the 2002 Ring magazine fight of the year. Both fighters needed care in a trauma center after the match.

The two agreed to an immediate rematch, and in November, Gatti was able to win the second wild fight. Ward was knocked down in the third round, but survived to finish the fight. Gatti paid tribute to Ward's tenacity after the fight, saying, "I used to wonder what would happen if I fought my twin. Now I know."^[3]

They then agreed to a third straight fight, and again, the fight was back and forth. Gatti pounded Ward with punch after punch early on, but Ward fought back and managed a sixth round knockdown of Gatti. Before Gatti could get up, or the referee's count could hit ten, the bell sounded to end the round. Gatti was able to come back and win the fight via a unanimous decision. Again, both men needed a trip to the hospital, due to the injuries they suffered.^[3] The fight was named the 2003 Ring magazine fight of the year, the third straight for Ward.^[5]

All told, Ward made approximately $3 million in earnings for his trilogy with Gatti; the most lucrative fights of his career.^[6]

After boxing[link]

Ward still lives in Lowell, where he is part owner of both a boxing gym as well as an outdoor hockey rink.^[7] Ward married Charlene Fleming, his long time girlfriend, who is also a former athlete. They live with Ward's daughter, Kasie. Ward manages the boxing gym he owns and his half-brother and former trainer, Dicky Eklund, trains new boxers entering its academy.^[8]

Professional boxing record[link]

38 Wins (27 knockouts, 11 decisions), 13 Losses (1 eye-stoppage, 12 decisions), 0 Draws[2]
Res.	Record	Opponent	Type	Rd., Time	Date	Location	Notes
Loss	38–13	Arturo Gatti	UD	10 (10)	2003-06-07	Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey	2003 Ring Magazine Fight of the Year.
Loss	38–12	Arturo Gatti	UD	10 (10)	2002-11-23	Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Win	38–11	Arturo Gatti	MD	10 (10)	2002-05-18	Mohegan Sun Casino, Uncasville, Connecticut	2002 Ring Magazine Fight of the Year.
Loss	37–11	Jesse James Leija	TD	5 (10)	2002-01-05	Freeman Coliseum, San Antonio, Texas	Fight stopped due to a cut on Leija.
Win	37–10	Emanuel Augustus	UD	10 (10)	2001-07-13	Hampton Beach Casino, Hampton Beach, New Hampshire	2001 Ring Magazine Fight of the Year.
Win	36–10	Steve Quinonez	KO	1 (10), 3:03	2001-05-18	Foxwoods Resort, Mashantucket, Connecticut
Loss	35–10	Antonio Díaz	UD	10 (10)	2000-08-19	Foxwoods Resort, Mashantucket, Connecticut
Win	35–9	Shea Neary	TKO	8 (12), 2:55	2000-03-11	Olympia, London	Won WBU Light Welterweight title.
Win	34–9	Reggie Green	TKO	10 (10), 2:40	1999-10-01	Icenter, Salem, New Hampshire
Win	33–9	Jermal Corbin	TKO	5 (10)	1999-07-16	Hampton Beach Casino, Hampton Beach, New Hampshire
Win	32–9	Jose Luis Mendez	TKO	3 (?)	1999-03-17	Boston, Massachusetts
Loss	31–9	Zab Judah	UD	12 (12)	1998-06-07	Miccosukee Indian Gaming Resort, Miami, Florida	For interim USBA Light Welterweight title.
Win	31–8	Mark Fernandez	KO	3 (8), 1:57	1998-04-14	Foxwoods Resort, Mashantucket, Connecticut
Loss	30–8	Vince Phillips	TKO	3 (12), 2:49	1997-08-09	The Roxy, Boston, Massachusetts	For IBF Light Welterweight title. Cut eye stoppage.
Win	30–7	Alfonso Sanchez	KO	7 (10), 1:53	1997-04-12	Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas, Nevada
Win	29–7	Manny Castillo	SD	10 (10)	1996-12-06	Lawlor Events Center, Reno, Nevada
Win	28–7	Louis Veader	UD	12 (12)	1996-07-28	Foxwoods Resort, Mashantucket, Connecticut	Retained WBU Intercontinental Light Welterweight title.
Win	27–7	Louis Veader	TKO	9 (12), 1:28	1996-04-13	Fleet Center, Boston, Massachusetts	Won WBU Intercontinental Light Welterweight title.
Win	26–7	Alex Ortiz	TKO	1 (6)	1996-03-15	Wonderland Ballroom, Revere, Massachusetts
Win	25–7	Alberto Alicea	TKO	3 (8)	1996-01-26	Wonderland Ballroom, Revere, Massachusetts
Win	24–7	Edgardo Rosario	TKO	1 (4)	1995-12-30	Wonderland Greyhound Park, Revere, Massachusetts
Win	23–7	Genaro Andujar	KO	3 (10)	1994-09-10	Lowell Auditorium, Lowell, Massachusetts
Win	22–7	Luis Castillo	TKO	5 (10)	1994-06-17	Sheraton Inn, Lowell, Massachusetts
Loss	21–7	Ricky Meyers	UD	10 (10)	1991-10-15	Harrah's Trump Plaza Hotel, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Loss	21–6	Tony Martin	UD	10 (10)	1991-05-02	Trump Taj Mahal, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Loss	21–5	Charles Murray	UD	12 (12)	1990-10-18	Rochester War Memorial, Rochester, NY	For USBA Light Welterweight title.
Loss	21–4	Harold Brazier	UD	12 (12)	1990-04-26	Resorts International, Atlantic City, New Jersey	For IBF Inter-Continental Welterweight title.
Win	21–3	David Rivello	SD	10 (10)	1990-02-03	Hynes Convention Center, Boston, Massachusetts
Win	20–3	Clarence Coleman	TKO	5 (10)	1989-05-23	Showboat Hotel & Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Loss	19–3	Frankie Warren	UD	12 (12)	1989-01-15	Caesar's Hotel & Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey	For USBA Light Welterweight title.
Win	19–2	Francisco Tomas da Cruz	TKO	3 (10)	1988-12-13	Resorts International, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Loss	18–2	Mike Mungin	UD	10 (10)	1988-09-09	Resorts International, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Win	18–1	Marvin Garris	TKO	2 (?)	1988-07-09	Sands Casino Hotel, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Win	17–1	David Silva	UD	10 (10)	1988-05-19	Resorts International, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Win	16–1	Joey Olivera	UD	10 (10)	1988-02-19	Bally's Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
Win	15–1	Joey Ferrell	TKO	1 (10)	1988-01-15	Resorts International, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Loss	14–1	Edwin Curet	SD	10 (10)	1987-09-25	Resorts Hotel & Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Win	14–0	Derrick McGuire	TKO	4 (8)	1987-08-25	Ballys Park Place Hotel Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Win	13–0	Kelly Koble	TKO	4 (8)	1987-04-06	Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada
Win	12–0	Hilario Mercedes	SD	8 (8)	1987-02-24	Resorts International, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Win	11–0	Carlos Brandi	KO	2 (10)	1986-10-24	Lowell Auditorium, Lowell, Massachusetts
Win	10–0	John Rafuse	UD	8 (8)	1986-08-29	Lowell Auditorium, Lowell, Massachusetts
Win	9–0	Rafael Terrero	TKO	2 (6)	1986-07-04	Resorts International, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Win	8–0	Ken Willis	PTS	6 (6)	1986-06-15	Atlantic City, New Jersey
Win	7–0	Luis Pizzarro	TKO	3 (6)	1986-05-30	Trump Casino Hotel, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Win	6–0	Darrell Curtis	TKO	5 (?)	1986-04-18	Trump Casino Hotel, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Win	5–0	Jesus Carlos Velez	KO	6 (6)	1986-02-21	Trump Casino Hotel, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Win	4–0	Mike Peoples	UD	4 (4)	1986-01-24	Resorts International, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Win	3–0	Chris Bajor	TKO	3 (4)	1986-01-10	Resorts International, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Win	2–0	Greg Young	TKO	4 (4)	1985-08-27	Memorial Auditorium, Lowell, Massachusetts
Win	1–0	David Morin	TKO	1 (4)	1985-06-13	Roll-On-America Skating Rink, Lawrence, Massachusetts	Micky's Professional Debut

In popular culture[link]

The story of Ward's comeback and rise to fame was made into a 2010 feature film, The Fighter, starring Mark Wahlberg (who was nominated for the Golden Globe for Best Actor) as Ward. Wahlberg confirmed to Spike TV that The Fighter 2 is in the works, which will focus on the legendary fight trilogy between Ward and Arturo Gatti.^[9]

The album The Warrior's Code by the Dropkick Murphys features Ward on the cover, and is the subject of the title song. The live version is played in the film, The Fighter.^[10][11]

The game Fight Night Round 3 (2006) features Ward and Gatti on the cover (PS2 and Xbox versions only).^[12]

A book – Irish Thunder: The Hard Life and Times of Micky Ward – about Ward's life and boxing career was written by Bob Halloran in 2008.

References[link]

External links[link]

	Biography portal
	Massachusetts portal

• Official Micky Ward Web Site
• Team Micky Ward Charities
• Professional boxing record for Micky Ward from BoxRec

Further reading[link]

• Halloran, Bob. Irish Thunder: The Hard Life & Times of Micky Ward (Lyons Press, 2010) ISBN 978-0-7627-6986-5

• Cooley, Will. "'Vanilla Thrillas': Modern Boxing and White-Ethnic Masculinity," Journal of Sport and Social Issues 34:4 (November, 2010), 418-437.

Shea "The Shamrock Express" Neary (born in 1968, Liverpool, England)^[1] is a former light welterweight boxer.

Pro career[link]

Neary posted a 23–2 record during his professional career,^[2] including 16 knockouts. In 1995, he won his first title by beating Nigel Bradley at the Everton Park Sports Centre to claim the Central Area Light Welterweight belt. In 1996, He beat Darryl Tyson to claim the WBU light welterweight title. He retained the title 5 times by beating Jeremiah Malinga in 1997, Andy Holligan, Naas Scheepers and Juan Carlos in 1998 and Mike Griffith in 1999. He eventually lost his title to Micky Ward,^[1] which was dramatised in the 2010 movie, The Fighter.^[3] Neary won his comeback fight, but retired after losing a controversial^[4] points decision against Eamonn Magee in a Commonwealth title fight.^[1][2][5][6] Shea was embraced as both an Irishman and a Scouser during his professional career.^[7]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Professional boxing record for Shea Neary from BoxRec

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