Rear Uppercut

Last updated: May 25, 2026

What is a rear uppercut?

The rear uppercut is the back-hand version of the uppercut, one of the six fundamental punches in boxing and MMA. For an orthodox fighter, it is the right-hand uppercut. For a southpaw, the left.

It belongs to the family of close-range power punches. The punching arm stays bent at roughly 90 degrees, the fist travels straight up through the centerline, and the target is usually the chin, ribs, or solar plexus. Of all the punches, the uppercut is the only one that rises vertically, and that vertical path is the source of its tactical value. A guard built to stop jabs, crosses, and hooks is not built to stop a punch coming from underneath.

The rear hand carries more power than the lead hand because it has further to travel and because the fighter’s full hip rotation is loaded behind it. That is true for the cross, and it is just as true for the rear uppercut. The trade-off is range. A rear uppercut can only be thrown effectively at close distance, which some trainers call phone-booth range. From any further out, the arm starts to swing rather than rise, and the punch loses its bite.

In the boxing numbering system, the rear uppercut is punch number 6, paired with the lead uppercut at number 5. Odd numbers are lead-hand, even are rear.

How the rear uppercut works

The mechanics of the rear uppercut share most of their DNA with the cross. The same back hand fires, with the same rear-leg push and hip rotation behind it. The difference is direction. Where the cross fires forward in a straight line, the rear uppercut redirects that force upward.

Most of the power comes from the lower body. The fighter drops slightly by bending at the knees, then drives upward through the legs and hips while the fist rises through the centerline. The arm itself contributes little; a rear uppercut thrown from the shoulder alone has almost no power behind it.

Research supports the leg-and-hip emphasis. A 2020 biomechanical study by Dinu and Louis in Frontiers in Sports and Active Living found that the shoulder is the most active joint during the uppercut, more than in the cross or the hook. A 2024 comparative study by Xu, Mao, and Xi, also in Frontiers, found that the maximum angular velocity of the shoulder is the single most influential factor in peak uppercut speed across both boxing and Sanda athletes.

Range is the limiting factor. From outside punching distance, the rear uppercut loses its upward trajectory and becomes a looping arm punch with little force. At close quarters, it can end a fight.

Rear uppercut vs. lead uppercut

Both punches travel the same vertical path, but they occupy different points on the power-and-speed trade-off.

The lead uppercut comes from the front hand. It covers more distance and reaches the target faster, which makes it the better option for breaking through a tight guard or setting up combinations. It is harder to load with full power because the lead side is not coiled back the way the rear side is in a standard stance.

The rear uppercut comes from the back hand. It travels a shorter distance to its target but carries more force, since the full rotation of the dominant hip drives the punch. The trade-offs cluster on the defensive side. It is slower than the lead uppercut, easier to read if telegraphed, and demands tight range. Fighters mostly throw it as a finisher at the end of a combination or as a counter, rather than as a lead-off punch.

	Lead uppercut	Rear uppercut
Hand	Front	Back
Punch number	5	6
Speed	Faster	Slower
Power	Less	More
Typical use	Set-up, breaking guard	Finisher, counter
Effective range	Close to mid	Close only

Rear uppercut vs. cross

The rear uppercut and the cross are the two main rear-hand punches in a fighter’s arsenal, and they share more than they differ. Both fire from the back hand, both draw their power from rear-leg drive and hip rotation, and both are classified as power punches.

What separates them is trajectory and range.

The cross travels horizontally, in a straight line parallel to the floor, aimed at the chin or chest. It can be thrown from mid-range and works well at the end of long combinations or as a counter to a jab.

The rear uppercut rises vertically. It must be thrown at close range to keep its upward arc intact. It targets the chin from below, slipping between the opponent’s hands rather than going around them.

Because the kinetic chain is so similar, fighters often pair the two punches in the same combination. A jab-cross sequence sets the opponent up to lower their hands; a follow-up rear uppercut goes through the gap the cross created.

	Cross	Rear uppercut
Punch number	2	6
Direction	Horizontal (straight)	Vertical (rising)
Optimal range	Mid-range	Close
Guard bypass	Punches through high guard	Splits the hands
Shared mechanics	Rear-leg drive, hip rotation, back hand	Rear-leg drive, hip rotation, back hand

When the rear uppercut is used in MMA

Three situations tend to bring the rear uppercut out in MMA.

The first is close-range exchanges in the pocket, where two fighters are too close for straight punches but not yet in a clinch. The punch fits naturally into that distance and can finish a hook-heavy combination on a level the opponent is not covering.

The second is along the cage. When one fighter has another pinned with their back to the fence, the limited movement and forward pressure put both fighters squarely at uppercut range. Short uppercuts on the inside are a common cage-control tactic for grappling-heavy fighters.

The third is against a level-changing opponent. A wrestler shooting for a takedown lowers their head into the path of a rising rear uppercut. Commentators sometimes call this “shooting into the uppercut,” and it is one of the punch’s most distinctive uses in MMA, with no clean equivalent in pure boxing.

The trade-off is exposure. The hand drops below the chin to throw the punch, leaving the face open to a counter cross. The wider stance MMA fighters tend to use, designed in part to defend against takedowns and kicks, can also make loading a clean rear uppercut harder than it is in a tighter boxing stance.

Frequently Asked Questions

What number is the rear uppercut?

The rear uppercut is punch number 6 in the standard boxing numbering system. Lead-hand punches use odd numbers (1 for the jab, 3 for the lead hook, 5 for the lead uppercut), and rear-hand punches use even numbers (2 for the cross, 4 for the rear hook, 6 for the rear uppercut).

Is the rear uppercut more powerful than the lead uppercut?

Generally, yes. The rear uppercut benefits from full hip rotation and rear-leg drive, the same kinetic chain that powers the cross. The lead uppercut covers more distance and lands faster, but with less force behind it.

Can a rear uppercut counter a takedown?

It can, and this is one of its signature uses in MMA. A fighter dropping their level to shoot a takedown moves their head into the path of a rising uppercut. Timing has to be precise, since the puncher is also opening themselves up to being grabbed if the punch misses.

Why is the rear uppercut considered hard to throw?

Two reasons. It needs close range to keep its upward trajectory, which means the puncher has to be in striking distance of a counter at the same time. And it drops the rear hand below the chin during the throw, leaving the face open if the punch misses.

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Sources

1. Dinu, Daniel, and Julien Louis. “Biomechanical Analysis of the Cross, Hook, and Uppercut in Junior vs. Elite Boxers.” Frontiers in Sports and Active Living, 2020.
2. Xu, QingLou, Ruiqiu Mao, and Changjin Xi. “A comparative analysis of punching in boxing and sanda: kinematic differences based on the cross and uppercut.” Frontiers in Sports and Active Living, 2024.
3. Encyclopædia Britannica. “Uppercut.” Accessed May 22, 2026.

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