MMA
Wrestling vs Jiu-Jitsu in the Cage: How to Read a Grappling Matchup
Takedowns and top control against guards, sweeps and submissions. How we read a wrestler-versus-grappler fight, and how the cage and judges tilt it.
Boxing and MMA, round by round
Fight previews, breakdowns and rankings that explain styles, matchups and how boxing and MMA fights are actually scored. Our scorecards are our own, and we always say so.
Latest from the ledger
Technique
Orthodox vs Southpaw: The Battle for the Outside Foot
When an orthodox boxer meets a southpaw, the fight is often won by whoever keeps their lead foot outside. Here is why, and how each side fights for it.
MMA
MMA Judging Explained: The Criteria, the 10-8 Round and the Myths
How MMA judges score a round under the Unified Rules: the criteria hierarchy, what earns a 10-8, and why takedowns and control time alone do not win.
Rankings
Pound-for-Pound Explained: What the Lists Measure and What They Can't
Pound-for-pound lists ask who would be best if everyone were the same size. Here is what that question measures, where it fails, and how we read it.
MMA
Fight Week Explained: From Open Workouts to the Walkout
Open workouts, media day, early weigh-ins, face-offs and the rules on missing weight. A clear, day-by-day guide to how a typical fight week works.
Fight previews
How We Preview a Fight: The Five Questions We Ask Before Every Card
Style, range, pace, paths to victory and the judges. The five questions behind every Ringside Ledger preview, plus the template we fill in for each fight.
Technique
The Jab: Why Boxing's Simplest Punch Still Wins Fights
The jab is the first punch every boxer learns and the last one they master. Here is how it works, its five main variations and why it still decides fights.
Results & scorecards
How a Boxing Round Is Actually Scored: The 10-Point Must System
10-9, 10-8, deductions and split decisions: how pro boxing judges score each round and how three cards combine into a result.
Results & scorecards
Leonard vs Hagler, Rescored
We rescore Sugar Ray Leonard vs Marvelous Marvin Hagler, 1987, round by round, and explain why three judges saw one fight three different ways.