Who do you think had the better, more graceful footwork between the 3? And how would you compare their use of footwork?
I would have to say just on the fact that he was a HW that moved like a WW, Id have to say Ali had the superior footwork..
No way Willie Pep at his prime had the best footwork in the history of boxing not knocking SRR or Ali but they couldn't do the things he did in there i've heard Burt Sugar even Angelo Dundee say Willie Pep had the best footwork ever, nobody could do what he did with his feat. Economical perfect placement ''couldn't hit him in the ass with a handfull of buckshot'' all because of his footwork
In my golden glove days I worked untold hours emulating each of these greats footwork, well except most of Pep's. His was almost surealistic; gymnastic, clever, incredible, and almost impossible to copy unless one was Willy Pep. Ray's was text book perfect with the nuances only a great like him could include with all his other weaponry. Ali's footwork in his prime was just not possible for a heavyweight except for Muhammad Ali. When he slowed down later his moving style didn't work so well as it wasn't technically right, but at his athletic best it was unmatched and unbelievable for a heavy.
Great footwork doesn't equate to skipping around the ring, contrary to popular belief. It was said about SRR, early in his career, and Ali, and probably Pep, too. A lot of wasted motion.
I like Ali but I think he wasted a lot of energy with his dancing and it really showed in his fights after his exile. As for footwork, Roy Jones' footwork in his prime was absolutely ridiculous, better than Ali's or SRR's.
Eh, at this level we're splitting hairs. And they wasted energy but it never seemed to bother them, at least in their prime.
Robinson for me, just. The ability he had to be balanced and through this able to then get leverage into his shots at almost every moment in the ring, whether moving backwards, forwards etc is superb and what separates him for me
If you have the energy to waste, it would be a waste not to waste it! Seriously, if you have the energy to burn, why conserve? Sure, you could be efficient and end the fight with a half-tank of gas, or you could accelerate and increase variance. It's fighting positively, and that's a good idea if you have better stamina/willpower than your opponent. Then you fight Frazier, and it bites you in the ass, but hey, who knew.
If they could do it...move and dance and all for 15 rounds and win fights, then it wasn't wasted motion.
Lets say it like this Pep could of moved his feet like Ali and Sugar Ray easier than they coulda moved like him, can you even imagine Ray or Ali trying to do what Pep did, Peps movements were unbelievable but not energy consuming he could get completely out of the way of everything without wasting alot of energy, unbelievable conservative movement it should be called.
Pep. I don´t think it´s close tbh...I mean, I´m not saying that Ali and Ray didn´t have amazing footwork, I just see a good advantage in Pep regarding this attribute when I watch the guy.....
Exactly Vic. Pep's footwork was an integral part of his overall seamless magic. He was special. Remember, until he came along, there was no one else remotely like him. He seemed to just fall out of the sky with that style of his. Another one I'd like to nominate is a particular favorite of mine...that other Willie,.. [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=czBnNDb3lXc[/ame]
