Sal Sanchez, one of the truly great ring generals

Nice post McGrain. Hey I'm biased but for good reason.

1- I rate his ring generalship extremely high. I'll be so bold as to mention him in Monzon's class for ring generalship. Always seemingly in control and sure of the outcome. That's what I remember about these two guys.

2 - Arguello? Although Arguello lost a couple fights late (Marcel, Pryor), he never seemed to lose his composure. I think Sal's late fight composure was as good as any body.

3 - Very good fighter. Certainly could have been champ in a different era. Not a big featherweight, he seemed tiny against Chavez.

 

I can't speak highly enough in respect of the late, great Salvador Sanchez. For me, he was truly a remarkable fighter & they certainly do not make fighters like him any more. Most definately a rare breed, a special boxer!

Sanchez, to this day, is still the most composed fighter I've seen over the course of fifteen rounds whilst being under immense pressure at times from his opponents. Somehow, Sanchez always remained calm, composed, as if he knew it was a matter of riding the storm & then make his punches count, which he did time & again!

For a guy who was so young, 22, Salvador was highly experienced. If he was around today, he would dominate 126lbs & 130lbs in my view.

Sanchez was a big feather, 5'7, & it was no secret he didn't find making weight easy towards whatg would turn out to be his last few fights at Featherweight.

A move up to 130lbs would have happened. In respect of a bout against Arguello - I'm not sure that would have even happened because Arguello's days at SFW were long gone.

Sanchez-Arguello would have been a great fight, but in the end, I think Arguello would have been too big, too strong. Arguello was a fantastic fighter aswell.

Damn, the guys around now aint **** compared to guys like Sanchez & Arguello. Different class completely!

 

Not me, I fully agree. I can't think of many boxers with movement that fluid either.

 

Not at all, Sanchez had incredible rhythm while never seeming to panic or get worried or out of pace.

 

I'll add also that his coolness in the pocket against legendary punchers (Lopez, Gomez) is of Terminator-like proportions.

 

Well said, which leads me to yet another description.

Incredible confidence and self belief.

 

Sanchez was a natural

 

He was so well conditioned that his heartbeat would return to its resting rate in the corner between rounds. He actually knew just how to box to bring his heart rate to a specified level during training sessions. He may have been the most cardiovascularly well trained athlete during his generation. (John Madden certainly thought so.) His body was a true precision instrument.

I don't know how well he would have done during the moribund 12 round era, but he was the definitive 15 round competitor. He was the most confidently patient champion since Monzon that I had the pleasure of watching. Danny Lopez was known for his endurance as well as his punching prowess. Sal inexorably ground him down twice. Not as fluid as Gomez, yet he destroyed him in stunning fashion. With his youth and dedication, who knows how long he could have continued? (My guess is that he might have gone on until the disastrous abolition of the 15 round distance.)

 

i have this fight on dvd havent watched in a while so will fish it out and watch it and tell you about it

i thought he was a brilaint ring general and so patient and mature for his years

 

Shanchez was well on his way to boxing immortality when he died. The distinct thing that i remember about salvador was his coolness in the ring. He always had that poker face (like joe louis) and never seemed to get excited or become distracted from his fight plan. While he didn't do any one particular thing great he did everyting well. His abilities were spread pretty evenly across the boards and this combined with ring itelligence made him what he was.

One more thing about him was his exceptional stamina. He would look as fresh after 15 rounds as he did when the fight first started. I don't know if this was because his lungs were naturally larger than most ( Boston celtic great john havlecheck had this trait) or if he was just a master of pacing himself. Whatever the case, it was truly amazing.