Agreed. Best to ever do it IMO too. However, to avoid derailing the thread, I have to say that Duran hasn't been mentioned enough in this thread for his stellar defence. He understood every single method of defence; distance, blocks, rolls, parries, head-movement and positioning. He could do it all. At any distance. Vs any fighter.
That last line “..vs any fighter..” sticks out to me. This is pretty accurate and you could also add this line to any weight he fought at. One thought. I hate to put this out there but, my feeling tells me that Hearns, despite his chin...is somehow Durans kryptonite. Hearns handspeed, range and power is always a problem for Duran. Duran can make Hearns miss some but because he is going to look to make the fight with Hearns, I think sooner or later Hearns catches Roberto with something that hurts him. (I think Robinson, to a lesser degree would give Duran the same issues.) Robinson is not as fast or hit as hard as Hearns but...Robinson’s timing is probably only second to Louis. Duran has a better chance with Robinson who will look to box...but Hearns will always throw the kitchen sink and that is a lot of speed and power and range for Duran to overcome...because despite Duran’s genius his aggressive/defensive play right into Hearns style. Thoughts?
The pendulum has swung the other way now. He was overrated for a long time, now he's getting underrated. Put him in a fantasy fight and the go to answer is "If it's in Argentina, Locche wins. Anywhere else he loses a decision."
I liked Benitez's defensive style, especially off the ropes. It was exciting to see him slip dozens of blows and then counter.
I think Robinson's speed and power is all sorts of wrong for Duran. Duran's aggression plays right into Robinson's hands. A guy who can counter punch so hard, box so well, and put combinations together vs a smaller guy? Yeah, that's not gonna go well. Hearns is similar of course, but I don't think Robi blows Duran away like that. Robinson was never so aggressive and even if he was, he wasn't as devastating as The Hitman was. I think Robinson treats it like LaMotta VI, and only turns it up when he's in danger. And agreed re: Hearns' style is a nightmare for Duran. I think the crux of it isn't the power and speed of Hearns (although that obviously matters), but more that Hearns' jab was able to match Duran's ability to control distance. it meant Hearns could snap his right hand in and get out before Duran could do anything. I wrote this for my Tommy Hearns, The thread a bit ago. Tommy Hearns vs Roberto Durán Since I've read a few of Zach's/Escudo's fight breakdowns, I've loved the idea of writing one myself, and obviously this is a Tommy Hearns, The Thread, so why not? Anyway, in round 1, after an intense staredown between two of the baddest men to ever set foot in the squared circle, Tommy comes out poised, twisting at the hip and looking for something to counter. Hearns was feinting with his lead, and stuttering his shots by freezing for a split second and then throwing his shots. It may seem pointless, but its actual effect is very disconcerting. If a break in rhythm occurs, who can predict what happens next? The millisecond it happens, Hearns' rapidfire jab was slashing into Durán's face and Durán didn't know any better. Durán, on the other hand, slowly shuffles back whilst occasionally popping a half-assed straight shot to Hearns' body. Hearns let a few slip, then countered a lead cross with a sharp left hook and Durán's efforts ceased for a good minute or so. Hearns stalked, moving in and out on a bounce every beat and stepping in range at 45° angles as to cut off the ring, this had the added effect of making it easier to set himself for punches, as well closing Durán up against the ropes. Hearns' offensive footwork was excellent. Added to the smart angles he'd engrained in himself, the smooth, subtle half-steps he took which kept him in range and cut off more opportunities for his opponent were awesome. Something him and Manny clearly worked on for a long time for it to be so smooth and natural. Keeping his flicker jab in Durán's face, Hearns went to work with his right hand, finding Durán's ear. A flicker jab is designed to be out as quick as possible, and in at an angle which pulls down the left arm, so a right hand can exploit the opening. This didn't work with Durán persé, since Roberto liked to party things and used his own brilliant reflexes, but it did keep his hands busy, so it had a similar effect. After moments more of this, with the odd left hook to the body encapsulating the audience, Hearns spun off and jabbing on the back-foot, letting Durán out. Tommy used this extra room to set himself, feinting to pry open the guard and KABOOM! Hearns' right hand sailed in and caught Durán on the point of the chin. Durán was down, and hurt bad for the first time in his career. Up on shaky legs, sneer on his face, he looked Tommy in the eye like the animal he was, and then backed off like a pup whilst Hearns came in with such ferocity that I'm surprised Durán made it to the second round. I'm sure if Hearns had another 30 seconds or so, he wouldn't have. In fact: Durán was so shook he meandered to the wrong corner in-between rounds. As Hearns' footwork and aggression backed him straight up to the ropes, he let loose two wincing body shots which made Durán levitate before the bell rang and Durán got some respite. Uneducated fans, or those with an 'anti-Durán' agenda, like to accuse Manos De Piedra of being cowardly/no-heart/quitter ect. For those people, I simply ask: "would someone who was this outmatched (overweight, 20lbs above his best weight, giving up a good 6" in height and more in reach and having been dropped in the round before) rush out with a grin on his face and menace in his shots, against the baddest puncher in the world? No. Is a man who'd do that a coward? Yeah, that's what I thought. Anyway, that's what happened. Durán came out looking to chin Hearns, failed like, but he tried. Hearns' extends his hand in respect, Duran complies and then it gets rough for Roberto. Again. Hearns put Durán's fire out with a blistering 1-2 and followed up, backing Durán in a corner. He let loose endless combinations. Jabs, crosses, hooks, all thrown upstairs and down; were welcome. Durán offered little offensive after his ballsy body shot and lead hooks in the first 10 seconds. He was just a punching bag who clinched a couple times. The last time he did so was forewarning the end. Hearns shook him off and backed him up against the ropes, dipped low and feinted to the body with a half extended jab. With a quick level change, a shift inwards and a snap of a perfect right hand, Durán toppled and landed face first on the canvas. The man, the myth, the legend had been crushed. The man offered less resistance than an empty can of Pepsi does to a foot. He was stomped out, and this was a guy who'd given Marvin Hagler the hardest fight of his career in his previous outing.
He robbed 1 or 2 people of a victory in Argentina. Obviously by the sounds of it he should've lost to Carlos Ortiz, and from the footage Dominigos Barrera looks like he was unlucky to not get something out of the fight. People love to forget that Locche was probably robbed of a victory against Laguna, in the footage Locche looked much the better fighter, that was in Argentina too. People overstate his protected status, and I genuinely believe he would be rated higher if he had a couple more losses on his record. Was never here for him being overrated, but the average English person doesn't even recognize the name, so he'll always be underrated to me.
Guys who can make you miss by a millimetre. So: Duran, Shibata, Saldivar etc alongside all the well recognized proponents of that style. I also like guys who can use their feet to just get out of range, like Watanabe or Harada. I also have a soft spot for the cross arm guard.
