Coolest boxer/boxing style you've ever seen?

To use terminology from the late 60's early 70's--"Smokin Joe" definitely had a "hip" "mod" style!! (Always looking sharp!!)

 

George Foreman.

Powerful, powerful puncher with such an unorthodox, crafty timing and set of techniques. Great ring geometry, fantastic finisher, cinematic grappling which plays to his general-in-the-ring persona. Every time he controls joints, pulls, off-balances and strikes to the heart -- I can't help but think damn, that's cool.

Also the crossguard in his second career, and parries and hand fighting in the first. Just a breath of fresh air. Cooney-Foreman and Holyfield-Foreman are fantastic bouts with such unique moments (the walking uppercut in particular) and knowing George was trained in the art of the crab by Archie Moore himself only adds to the mystique.

Sandy Saddler.

A hawk probing, touching, jabbing and sweeping in to catch his prey. Can never get bored of this long, lanky, ugly duckling leaping in with that left shovel hook and working with that rear hand that screams converted southpaw. The same technique later used by Foreman to take away the jab and force a more immediate collision.

.. and you actually get used to this dirty, unapologetic inside fighting of Sandy. His mythos is further enhanced by the fact that out of the trio of Foreman, Saddler, and Moore, Sandy actually got the better of his most iconic opponent (out of Ali, Charles, and Pep) and in a devastating fashion, leaving him bloody and bruised the only time Willie got the better of him. Kudos to Archie though, as he was an important training partner and mentor figure for Sandy, who helped create the gameplan for Saddler-Pep.

Archie Moore.

The Grandmaster, the old mongoose in a sport where mongooses don't get to live long, a true ambassador to the sport, and a true example to follow in his post-boxing career (Any Boy Can program, being a cornerstone for the new generation, a humanitarian.) His style was everything: the sublime, perfected crossguard, the bend at the waist, the leaping hook, the battering ram of a right cross, the inside game, the jab, the everything. The everything.

Just an ocean of knowledge and a titan of a man.

Ken Norton.

Known for the crossguard of Archie Moore (seemed particularly inspired by Archie when fighting Henry Clark), he brought such an unique mix of awkward timing, creative combinations, stiff, rhythm breaking jab, and dedication to assaulting the body among others. Him endlessly marching towards Larry Holmes will never not live rent free in my head (Larry said it was his toughest fight, and compared Norton to a peekaboo fighter because of his commitment to aggression that night.) Similarly he had that 'walking' crossguard style against Larry Middleton where he wanted to get inside as fast as possible.

Fantastic athlete, great guy (refusing to do all those pre-bout stares), and a beautiful creature. Also, at times did those mongoose-like changes of angles when on the assault, shifting like a ghost to find a new punching lane to strike at the body. Archie did the same and so did Mike Tyson, and it's never not cool.

Marvin Hagler.

Switch-hitting ingrained itself as the art in my view of boxing, unfairly perhaps, along with strange awe of southpaws and and equally strong desire to beat them at their own game. Still, Hagler changing and creating those new labyrinthine angles mid-combination or after a leaping jab is so sublime, and this mixing in with his more seek-and-destroy, boxer-puncher style creates the coolest juxtaposition. Hagler launching those left hands against Mugabi and finally breaking the Beast is one of the most glorious moments in boxing I've ever seen. The one final war.

Ron Lyle.

Not pretty, but along Ibeabuchi, his do-or-die mentality and trenches warfare against Shavers, Foreman, and Bugner was a mentality I aspire to. To get off the operating table and hoist yourself up to the top of the heavyweight division is the definition of heart in my book. Also fearsome, determined puncher who refused to break under pressure. His right hand to the body hurt George like I've never seen him hurt before, and the counter right cross upstairs is still the punch I try to emulate. Smooth right-uppercut-left-hook combinations as well, with uppercuts being noted by the man himself to be his favorite/best punch.

 

Dempsey and Chavez.. great pick s

 

Robbi
Prime Ali slipping inside and outside jabs
Prime Louis
Duran Vs Palomino
Prime RJJ
Prime PBF
Sweet Pete
The best of Ezz
Rigo and Loma
Mantequilla

Any of these could be argued.

 

This guy:

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