Most of the time I see a lot of people mention that his boxing skills was poor but his incredible punching power helped even out the odds. Just how good of a boxer was Jackson? Was he really just a limited brawler who just threw power shots hoping to KO opponents, or was he an underrated technician whose skills often gets overlooked because of his offensive mindset?
Power definitely defined his style from what I've seen. Compared to the big boys I guess his boxing style wasn't overly complicated or mastered but he obviously had high leel training and coaching
I sound like an ESPN idiot but look at his highlights lol. No serious. Guy gets the proper torque in his punches despite having the freakish power he did. I think that added to that and from what I've seen he was a decent technician as he placed his punches well but wouldn't consider him a "technician". Much better skills than given credit for its just that it gets overshadowed for his dynamite for fists. Wasn't a brawler by any means the guy took advantage of times to strike and wasn't reckless most of the time. Haven't really followed his career much but hope someone else can go more in depth.
that's a pretty good summary :good respectable handspeed and solid fundamentals. he also had the benefit of knowing what kind of fighter he was and being supremely confident in it: he was a boxer-puncher who would work forward and always look for the knockout. as you said, he wasn't typically reckless and worked well behind the jab. a very solid fighter who knew that his right hand was his bread and butter
He was a good basic boxer-puncher, no worse technically than someone like Carbajal was in his early days. He didn't quite have the same educated finesse to his punchpicking of textbook shots that the likes of Louis, Zarate, Arguello etc had, but he wasn't a million miles away either to be honest.
Bump. Always saw Jackson as the prototype Felix Trinidad but less durable. Good basic textbook skills but predictable and one dimensional. But his timing, accuracy, and KO power makes up for that. Anyone know any fights from Jackson where he actually displayed good boxing ability and systematically beat an opponent? I thought his fight against Buster Drayton was a good display of his skills.
Drayton. Watch how he works the body. He was alot more refined then people think esp at jr.middle . at middle he turned all slugger .
And Drayton had gone 15 with Hilton and 12 with Norris . Granted past his best but Jackson took him out with ONE punch. Would have loved to see a more seasoned Jackson rematch Mccallum .
Below average boxer. Mediocre defense. Equalizing power. Without his power he may never have even got in the top 10.
Absolutely wanted to see that rematch. The first fight was stopped early in my opinion. Jackson got dropped, but, it looked more like a flash knockdown. The first round had furious action. Jackson buckled the legs of the iron-chinned, McCallum. McCallum still probably would have prevailed in a rematch. But, Mike was getting a little older, and Julian had gained quite a bit of experience since the first fight. I know Jackson was calling for the rematch. It would have been a WAR!
McCallum was better than Jackson in every department except power. His great chin equalized that. At 160, it would have been a bit more competitive but I think McCallum wins a wide UD or late rounds TKO. It's like Hagler v Hearns. Both Hagler and McCallum got slightly hurt, then took care of business quickly. But because they got rocked, some people think the loser would somehow win a rematch. In both cases, the rematch probably would have been more competitive, but the winner ultimately the same.
I agree with you. McCallum is an ATG in my opinion. But, I think the rematch would have been a great fight. Hell, the first two rounds of the first fight was like Hagler-Hearns.
Ok boxer but quite easy to hit and one paced .Cut and swelled up as well .The power was the big thing obviously.A fight with Benn in 90 would of been incredible !!!! Don't blink
FWIW, in the December 1989 issue of KO, Jackson got the "KO Closeup" of the month (p.35). Here's an excerpt: "Style: A pure puncher. Doesn't waste any time setting up his foe by outboxing him because he doesn't possess an abundance of boxing skills. Will advance behind a jab, looking to land his heavy artillery. Isn't a facefirst brawler, but doesn't have much defensive ability and is hit frequently. Will drop his bombs to the body in order to soften his opponent for shots to the head. Strengths: His power, which cynics might say is his only strength. His punching prowess is aided by the fact that he has good hand speed, and delivers his blows very quickly. His power can turn or end a fight at any time, which has saved him on numerous occasions. [...] Weaknesses: Defense, defense, defense. It's not that he is a reckless fighter, it just seems that he doesn't know how or want to execute any defensive techniques. Slipping, blocking, countering seem to be foreign techniques to him. His offense is actually his defense, since he knows he won't get hit as long as he's doing the hitting."