Good post Scrap/Chris

I think you're both saying the same thing. You get around boxing long enough you tend to get a 6th sense about it. You can sort just feel it. It is important to watch the body and as Trainer Monkey says, every fighter has his own little things that tip off his punches and other movements. But watching the body can only get you so far. One must also consider your opponent's intentions. That is, understanding what he is thinking and what he is trying to accomplish at a strategic level. You need to understand his strategy as it is this that always comes before the punches. If you understand that, then the punches are easier to see. For example try to watch Roy Jones' body movements and you may likely eat something in the process because he is so tricky. Try to understand how he intends to hit you and he becomes much more predictable.

Also I have a personal theory that great fighters see everything their opponent is doing in relation to them. By this I mean that they see their opponent AND themselves. Fighters never do anything without having been influenced by the other fighter in some way. Every move your opponent makes is made with you in consideration. Thus in order to fully understand your opponent you must also have some idea of how you look to him.

Basketball greats like Bird or Jordan could see everything happening on the court and through this they had absolute control over everything and anything that set foot on the court. Only the greats had that. Boxing is the same way.