With everything factored in i like Ali's jab. In the 60's it was virtually impossible to counter and it was used to great effect against almost everybody.
Had a great jab, very effective and punishing. Larry Holmes had one of the greatest heavyweight jabs imo but Liston's wasn't far off.
Here's some banter on the Ali jab, which for mine has actually become a bt underrated over the decades hard as that is to believe. KO: You also exchanged jabs with three of the greatest jabbers of all time: Ali, Foreman, and Holmes. Who was the best? Ken Norton: Ali. His jab was quick and it was deceptive. Ali was Ali. His combinations were crisp and sharp. His jab was crisp and sharp. His right hand lead wasn't really powerful, but it was very accurate. There will never be another Ali. Best I Faced : George Foreman Best boxer: Muhammad Ali. He was so gifted technically and his jab was the best I ever faced in the ring. Ali could jab going backwards or to the sides and that shot would always find you. He would catch me with the jab as I was coming forward and it was so difficult to counter that punch. He would spin that jab over and over. Best jab: Sonny Liston and Muhammad Ali. Sparring with Liston is the most dangerous thing that I ever did in my entire life. As I said earlier, no matter what I tried against him, it was me who had to revert back to boxing. Nobody made me box like Sonny Liston did and that happened every time we worked together. He taught me many things, including the importance of the jab. I just couldn’t get mine straight and every day he had me working on it. There were times when he could have knocked my head off but he didn’t because we were pretty good friends. I saw the way he stared at people and I took on some of that behavior to intimidate opponents. That was where some of that “Bad George” came from, hanging around with Sonny. That was gym work but in the professional ring it was Muhammad Ali because he would just spin that jab into my face. Boy he had an educated left hand. Norton had a good jab but he made the mistake of trading power punches because he’d heard my defense would let me down. If he’d boxed like he did with Muhammad I wouldn’t have gotten him so easily. Kenny had the wrong tactics that night. Joe Bugner Best boxer: Ali. I take pride in the fact that a lot of people in Las Vegas thought our first fight was closer than the judges had it, but Ali definitely won. Speed wise he was on the ball and technically he was just awesome. I tried to out jab him but once he had you on the end of his own left hand he could bring out all these combinations, from nowhere, leaving fans, and opponents, in awe. Best jab: I was very lucky in that I had learned so much from him in 1969 and practiced over a four-year period, before we faced each other. I learned from the best and the jab was one of the main things I tried to emulate. That gave me something that I could use in our fight. Alfredo Evangelista BEST JAB Muhammad Ali: No doubt about it. Larry Holmes had a good jab too, but Ali was the best. FASTEST HANDS Ali: The left hand was invisible. He wasn’t a slugger, but he was crushing you with the speed. George Chuvalo Fastest hands: Muhammad Ali again. His jab was quicker than any punch I ever came across. Floyd Patterson is a close second, but Ali definitely edges him in terms of hand speed. Best jab: Muhammad Ali. He had the best jab, but this area shows the difference between fights one and two. In the rematch I was able to use my jab against him and I had real success with it. Dundee said he was surprised I stopped throwing it in the second half of the fight, because I was matching Ali at times. Bob Foster BEST JAB – Muhammad Ali – It wasn’t that powerful but it kept you off balance. It’s hard to get away from a fast, snappy jab. Ali was the only guy I fought who had a good jab.
Looks like a jab-out for 2nd place between Sonny and Wlad here...Larry's romping this, it's a landslide- and that's the 'real truth'.