That’s a rabbit punch and no you can’t do it. I’d tell them to watch out for my neck.

He sounds a bit of a dick. I’m just learning too and I’d much rather spar the way you wanted to.

When it’s open sparring and they’re hitting hard I don’t feel in control yet. I can’t really plan or practice any moves because they don’t come to me quick enough as I’m preoccupied with defending. I know this will come but I feel I learn quicker if you actually get to practice things in a more controlled environment when there’s less danger to be concerned about. You can then add moves to your repertoire allowing you to use them with less thought later on.

I try to change what I’m working on depending on what the other person is doing. If the sparring partner is hitting very soft I’d try to be sharper and quicker on my feet, slip punches and counter. Many of the things I’m not really ready to apply if someone is wailing away at me.

If they do hit too hard I would try practicing blocking harder shots without breaking my guard or being knocked off balance, moving my feet and head and to trying keep looking where I’m supposed to despite the punches. I’d keep my offence simple and if my technique is ok maybe it doesn’t matter if it’s predictable and easy to block. When I get better I can mix it up with other punches and it won’t be.

People seem to have different views on what they want to get out of sparring. Some like to simulate the aggressiveness of a real fight without being 100% there while others want to practice the technical side with moving targets. Personally I'd rather feel comfortable with the moving targets before I do too much of the aggressive stuff.