Combo 01 / One-two
Jab + Cross
Action
The classic one-two, and it is driven from the floor up. First the lead jab snaps out from the guard with a small step-in, the lead shoulder high, the rear hand at the chin. Before the jab is fully back, the rear foot pivots on the ball, the rear hip turns through, the rear shoulder comes around and the rear fist travels on a straight line past your own chin — that crossing line over the body is what gives the cross its name. The jab retracts while the cross extends: the two punches overlap, one rhythm, and both hands come home to the guard before you re-set.
When to use
The first combination every fighter learns and the one that still lands at world level. Throw it when you need to close distance behind a blind, when the opponent reacts to the jab with a parry or a flinch, when she is against the ropes, or as the opening two beats of a longer combination. In this demo the defender takes the combo on her guard and is rocked backward, then both fighters return to idle.
Advantages
Two chances instead of one: the jab steals a beat of vision so the slower, heavier cross arrives unseen, and the cross carries the whole body — rear leg, hip and shoulder — so it is the hardest straight punch you have. The rhythm is easy to extend into a three or four-punch combination, and both punches keep you in stance and able to move after them.
Limits
Two punches mean two openings. If the jab does not occupy the guard, the cross becomes a wide, telegraphed shot that a counter-right beats to the target. The big hip rotation squares your shoulders and briefly takes you off your base, so the rear hand must come back to the chin — a dropped rear hand after the cross is the single most common knockout you will eat.