I'm watching Michael Spinks at light heavyweight now and learning more about him. He looks nothing like the heavyweight fighter that fought Holmes and Tyson What was he known for in terms of his skillset He seemed to have good power and a very awkward herky jerkey style. His defense seems to be more about his athleticism and legs but I wouldn't call him a defensive wizard I think he has a great punch selection and seems to throw every punch well. Anyways what were some good and maybe not such good parts of his skillset? I'm still new to him.
Spink's is easily one of the hardest punchers in history at 175. He also has a superb chin at the weight and loads of skill. He can get a bit complacent there (175) as i think even against many rated contenders he could just coast along lazy and then turn it on and finish the fight in virtually no time at all. Quite a few times i watched him just go thru the motions until he was woken up by a big punch and then BOOM the fat lady is singing. But power, it's HUGE and in both hands tho his right hand, nicknamed the Spinks Jinx, was quite famous. He wasn't that much behind Bob Foster fr power IMO. Probably a little harder right hand while Foster hit a bit harder with the left.
Michael was a truly amazing fighter. When I think about what made him great, a few things in particular stand out. Controlling distance and pace, timing and he was an amazing finisher when he got you hurt. His greatest asset was his versatility and how he would find a way to win regardless of style. If you look at a lot of careers you will find champions that were successful against a certain style but Spinks was the type of guy that beat anyone. If you wanted to fight on the inside he make you fight outside and vice versa and if he hurt you, you were in trouble.
One of his better punches that you don’t see in a lot of people was the left uppercut, which was powerful enough to stop someone (a la Marvin Johnson). He had a strange, awkward rhythm and threw from odd angles and could knock someone out with a single punch with either hand. He also had an ATG shotgun jab.
This. Spinks didn't get hit cleanly all that often. The OP said he wasn't a defensive wizard, and that's all relative. While he wasn't Whitaker or Canto in terms of defense, he blocked/parried/ or rode with most punches, and he was very adept at shoulder rolling. So, it's incorrect to say he only used his legs and athleticism. He had legitimate defensive skill.
Spinks was as complete at 175 as any fighter in history. He had the total package, and no glaring flaws. One of the best jabs in history, one punch KO power in either hand, great handspeed, a great chin, incredibly accurate and fluid combination puncher, could attack coming forward or fight off the back foot with equal efficacy, was a superb infighter, great at feinting, a great finisher, and i already spoke about his defensive skill. He had everything. Everything you could want in a fighter he was at 175.
From what I e always seen Michael spinks was a guy who could fight effectively at all different ranges and could hit you with punches from unusual angles that most men couldn’t. He was pretty good defensively and while he was generally a slower starter he conserved his energy for the mid and late rounds. Very intelligent fighter who’s career was likely cut short due to his ascent to heavy
Thanks Clint!!! I should have added Futch considered him one of the three best defensive fighters of the early 80's at one point.
Well Spinks was his fighter. It's also a lot more straightforward (for an ATG like Futch) judging fighters in certain categories than trying to pick H2H. Who would you have from say, 1983 as your top 3 defensive fighters?
