I would pick Mills Lane. He was such a gutsy referee for such a little guy. He didn't take any crap from anybody including Mike Tyson in the famous ear biting episode. He was always on top of the action without being too conspicuous. I always enjoyed hearing him say "Let's get it on!"
Mercante could referee matches between boxers who spoke different languages than he did, giving him an edge over Lane in my book. Having said that, Mills did do an excellent job with Holmes/Cooney.
steve smogger is beggining be the more and more default referee in gritty, ugly, hard to referee fights which involves a man that is understanding of situtions yet strong in his own judgements. steve smogger is my favorite referee followed by ron lipton, who i believe did a great job in morrision vs ruddock.