Quick thought on the Right Cross
The right cross begins in a very similar fashion to a Northern Style Gong Fu punch. The front hip joint will close which creates a horizontal force vector. From the perspective of the person throwing the punch, the energy travels from right to left. At the same time, The rear foot grinds off the ball of the foot. This is how the boxer puts his weight into the punch, it adds a back to front vector to the punch. When we combine the two vectors, we get a spiraling energy. Pretty much a Gong Fu punch in principle. The means are slightly different, but the ends are the same.
To me, the big difference is in what the arm is doing. In my punch, the arm is “flung out” by the rotation of the body and lands with a “thud”. It produces less penetration than the cross, but more of an explosive feeling in the punchee’s body. Closer to a black jack. Hence, it is important in CMA to keep the elbow down.
In a right cross, the body creates an additional spiral in the body. The arm is “launched” in a similar manner to my Taiji punch, as the arm comes out, it begins to spiral. The elbow turns from a bottom down to a bottom up position. At the end of a right cross, the thumb is usually pointing down. What makes the cross unique is this spiral in the arm movement. It gives the punch less of an explosive feel, but increases penetration. To me, a solid right cross feels more like getting hit with a bat than a black jack.
Maybe we have a boxer who could get into it more?