# What makes a good chin?



## MarkHuntsNoggin (May 8, 2009)

For a few years I have been tryting to find attributues that make a good chin.. At first I thought it was a big head but now I think that has barely anything to do with it. I am now thinking that having a big thick neck and back are more to do with it, as well as self confidence.

For example fighters with big heads that seem to not be able to take a good shot

Brock
Arlovski
Gonzaga
Kimbo
Houston Alexander
Sean Salmon
Klitschko

Fighters with small heads that can take a shot
Fedor
Junior Dos Santos
Frankie Edgar
Bart Palaszewski
Thiago Alves

There are plently examples of fighters with big heads that can take a punch, and small heads that can't also.. I am just struggling to find the correlation between head size and being able to take a punch.... 

I beleive it has to do more with neck size.. For example alot of fighters with good chins have big thick necks

James Toney, Holyfield, Tyson, Chris Leben, Mark Hunt, Shane Carwin, Thiago Alves

And fighters with lanky necks that can not. Stefan Struve, Kendall Grove etc...

Any opinions??? Looking for your opinion


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## beardsleybob (Jan 3, 2010)

Surely it's got something to do with skull density. Why would a strong neck stop your brain getting smashed?


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## MarkHuntsNoggin (May 8, 2009)

http://www.rossboxing.com/thegym/thegym15.htm

It helps the brain from rattling back and forth... A sturdy neck helps keeps your head from violently thrashing around when getting hit...

Dos Santos is the best example, he has a small-medium sized head, a thick neck and an excellent chin

I for one have a giant head and a skinny neck, so I will be working on my neck


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## Spec0688 (Sep 9, 2007)

Brock has a good chin, don't know what you're talking about. He has taken the hardest shots from everyone and has only been really rocked once, by Cain. That shot he received from Cain would stun anyone because it hit the perfect spot to make your equilibrium go off. 

The problem with Brock is not his chin, it's how he reacts to shots.


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## kantowrestler (Jun 6, 2009)

I think it has more to do with just how your chin is then anything else. Some people have strong chins and others have weak chins. It might have to do with genetics more then anything.


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## oldfan (Mar 14, 2010)

Joe lewis told me it's all a strong neck. he also told me when fighting people with big strong necks to hit them in the nose first. Nobody has a strong nose. and a broken nose tends to weaken the chin.


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## kantowrestler (Jun 6, 2009)

You talked to Joe Lewis? This was before he died right? But the nose things made sense.


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## oldfan (Mar 14, 2010)

kantowrestler said:


> You talked to Joe Lewis? This was before he died right? But the nose things made sense.


you might be thinking of Joe Louis.


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## anderton46 (Apr 23, 2010)

Seeing as most one punch ko's are hooks that snap the neck right or left i'd assume its just that, the necks ability to stop the head rotating quickly. So the bigger the neck the less the neck is going to snap.


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## kantowrestler (Jun 6, 2009)

Well does that mean Chuck had a thicker neck before? You have to remember that age also is a factor. And wearing overtime.


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## MarkHuntsNoggin (May 8, 2009)

I agree ^^^

I do believe that that age has a factor as well.


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## MarkHuntsNoggin (May 8, 2009)

Another fighter with an excellent chin, not a big head and a thick neck is Nate Marquardt.. He has only been stopped by Anderson by TKO


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## kantowrestler (Jun 6, 2009)

Yeah, and I think that loss was more psychological than anything else. Just because a fighter can't take a punch doesn't mean he has a weak chin. It's more a matter of they don't like getting punched.


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## Hammerlock2.0 (Jun 17, 2009)

Not getting hit on the chin makes a good chin.


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## MarkHuntsNoggin (May 8, 2009)

^ Not getting hit is definitely the main objective

Having a big head might let the impact of the blow be spread over a larger surface thus weakening the blow slightly, but a strong neck keeps the head in place and keeps the brain from rattling back and forth violently.

SO idealy you would want a Big head, Thick neck, great movement, and self confidence. But i believe the biggest factors are neck strength, movement, and a little self confidence.


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## MarkHuntsNoggin (May 8, 2009)

Todd Duffee has a hughe head and a huge neck so he ruins both criteria lol..


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## kantowrestler (Jun 6, 2009)

Well I personally don't think it solely has to do with big heads or bit necks. I think there is a combination of various factors that contribute to a knockout. A big head or strong neck can help someone but it won't be a foolproof plan.


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## MMAnWEED (Aug 8, 2010)

Not sure if i buy into the whole self confidence thing. No idea how that has to do with anything. It may appear people with high self confidences are harder to knockout but they probably have high self confidences in the first place because well... they are hard to knockout and therefore are more aggressive. 

Physically, I think it has to do with the size of the head, neck, and traps. Wear and tear and age are also fairly big factors along with the fact that some brains have higher tolerances to being shut off. 

JDS does not have a small head btw


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## slapshot (May 4, 2007)

Its posture, your stance has everything to do with how you absorb a punch. Some fighters have a better chin than others but generally speaking, you can throw a strike that would absolutely KO me but if Im in the right stance I can absorb it.


Hands up chin down, Jim says he cant watch most MMA events because few fighters in the UFC use their stand up correctly and I agree.


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## Life B Ez (Jan 23, 2010)

Nothing to do with the actual size of the skull. It has to do with neck and shoulder muscles that can hold your head in place when struck and prevent it from snapping back and forth throwing your brain against your skull.

Nothing can "improve" your chin, but you can help it along, but the biggest thing that goes into creating a great chin is head movement, it doesn't matter who you are, if you get hit clean you're going out. 

Now recovery time from getting hit is a whole different ball game. For example, Henderson doesn't have great head movement but when he is hit he recovers very quickly, meaning if if he is wobbled, guys don't jump on him because he isn't out of it long enough.


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## kantowrestler (Jun 6, 2009)

Yeah, just because someone has a big head means nothing about your chin. Head movement is definately the only way to determine not getting knocked out. I also agree Henderson has amazing recovery time.


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## Dr Gonzo (May 27, 2010)

It must also help to have no chin. A la BJ Penn. When I say no chin, I don't mean a weak chin. I mean his chin doesn't petrude from his rock head too much.


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## xeberus (Apr 23, 2007)

I have one special trick to increase your chin immensely. With this one trick mike tyson would break his hands on your head and you could just point and laugh. You could take a baseball bat to the face and not get knocked out.

This will cost you around 200$ usd, buy a racecar helmet = instant iron jaw son.

lol

But seriously don't get hit you won't need a good chin


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## kantowrestler (Jun 6, 2009)

I don't think that will work out. Is the Mike Tyson thing serious though? That would be an interesting thing if you think.


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## Squirrelfighter (Oct 28, 2009)

The reason people get KOed from being punched on the chin is rather complex. There are a lot of factors/effects that being punched on the chin cause. 

Firstly at the point where the mandible connects to the tempular region connects to a series of nerves that can cause the shutdown of the brain, which means one manner in which a person can be knocked out is by shocking the condylaris mandibulae. This is most commonly done with straight punches or hook punches. 

A second method is by directly shocking the mandibular nerves (which run throughout the inside of te jawbone). This is the done usually by directly vertical attacks like knees or uppercuts. 

The question then becomes what kinds of physical properties prevent this from happening? It comes down to genetics. If someone has sensitive nerves in their skull they are easier to knock out. If the nerves are less sensitive they are harder to knock out. Its that simple.


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## MarkHuntsNoggin (May 8, 2009)

I have been dropped twice in a fight. Once in highschool I was sucker punched hard from a kid who ran at me full force from behind and jacked me square in the back of the head. I dropped, I got back up continued fighting and ending up on top of him some how ( I cant remember the fight though I was in zombie mode) Then at a bar last year I was tackled by a bouncer during a fight and cracked my head on the floor. I got back up and again was in zombie mode, 

So basically Ive had two or three concussion.. Am i more likely to get Koed now because of these incidents? Or have I healed up?


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## xeberus (Apr 23, 2007)

kantowrestler said:


> I don't think that will work out. Is the Mike Tyson thing serious though? That would be an interesting thing if you think.


Well I was making a joke  but yea it probably would work in that exact same situation. I mean mike would probably just go to the body and it would be OV. That or he takes off your helmet but lol 



MarkHuntsNoggin said:


> I have been dropped twice in a fight. Once in highschool I was sucker punched hard from a kid who ran at me full force from behind and jacked me square in the back of the head. I dropped, I got back up continued fighting and ending up on top of him some how ( I cant remember the fight though I was in zombie mode) Then at a bar last year I was tackled by a bouncer during a fight and cracked my head on the floor. I got back up and again was in zombie mode,
> 
> So basically Ive had two or three concussion.. Am i more likely to get Koed now because of these incidents? Or have I healed up?


Yes, I think it would be fair to say that when your body stops growing your chin can't really improve and all the damage you take will be diminishing over time. That being said its not an end of the world for you to have had a couple concussions. If you get hit just right regardless of how your chin is or ever was you'd still go out. I mean you do recover to an extent but never back up 100% as it was. Squirrel would you agree with that statement?

edit: also i'd like to add ive had 2-3 concussions as well and I've not noticed a difference in my ability to take a punch.


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## BrutalKO (Oct 5, 2006)

...I think jawbone structure plays a part. Most of the fighters with great chins have rounded, thick facial structures. Anderson, Rampage, Leben and of course Cabbage to name a few. Yes, avoid getting hit on the button is the other half of the equation!...lol

*" You can go to the chin all day but once you get cracked downstairs, it's a different ballgame" Antonio Tarver*


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## MarkHuntsNoggin (May 8, 2009)

its hard to say if some fighters have good chins or just dont git hit on the button often.. 

like Miguel Torress, GSP, Jake Shields, Frankie Edgar, Mark Hominick, etc....


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## kantowrestler (Jun 6, 2009)

Well we know for sure that if GSP gets hit right he'll get clocked. Matt Serra proved that to all the world. Also we know that Jake Shields can get clocked as we saw in his fight with Dan Henderson, but we also know he has a quick recovery time.


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## MarkHuntsNoggin (May 8, 2009)

So whats the consesus? Small Head= Weak Chin?

Big Head= Good Chin?

My formula.. lol- Thick Upper Back and Neck, Confidence, Chin Down Hands up

Dont be Jardine


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## kantowrestler (Jun 6, 2009)

I can definately agree that one should not fight like Jardine. But I don't think there is a strong consensus here. The size of the head really has nothing to do with the chin.


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## MarkHuntsNoggin (May 8, 2009)

What about the shape and width of the head?
If your head is wider and more round shaped It would give the brain more room to move without hittin the skull Wall. If you have a very thin head the brain would hit the wall much easier. Alot of these fighters have much squarer jaw lines as well. Can you prove this wrong by thinking of any fighters with solid chins and thin heads? Or Round heads and suspect chins?

Bj penn, Anderson Silva, Chris Leben, David Tua, Mark Hunt, rampage all Have round wide heads.


Jonathan Goulet, Kendall Grove, Amir Khan etc... Have thin heads.


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## MarkHuntsNoggin (May 8, 2009)

I wonder if there is any truth to this article

"Fistic Medicine"
Taking a Punch

http://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/Fistic-Medicine-The-Biophysics-of-Taking-a-Punch-22134


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## kantowrestler (Jun 6, 2009)

I don't think that the shape and width of the head have anything to do with that. The thing is that Hunt has developed a suspect chin. Anyways Silva has always had a good chin.


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