10 greatest defenses

1 sweet pea..2 Willie pep..3 Niccolino locche..4Benny leonard..5 wilfred Benitez..6 winky wright..7.spadafora.. cant think right now..jus some names

 

James toney..langford..

 

deleted.

 

This list includes fighters I've actually seen a good deal on film, so it excludes guys like Jack Johnson, Benny Leonard, Young Griffo, and Duilio Loi.

Nicolino Locche
Wilfred Benitez
Willie Pep
Pernell Whitaker
Floyd Mayweather Jr
Winky Wright
Miguel Canto
Bernard Hopkins
James Toney
Marlon Starling

 

Why did you put Spadafora?

 

Because i said just some i was throwing out there..He probably doesnt crack top ten..But in myopinion he IS among the great defensive fighters..Doesnt use alot of foot movement..just upperbody..GREAT defensive fighter..whether u like him or not

 

Great list Brooklyn.

Roberto Duran and Mike Tyson had great defense for their style but they're not remembered as defensive masters.

 

Duran's defence in the close quarters range (in his prime) was top-notch imo

 

Jimmy Young deserves a mention.

 

Great list. I'd put Muhammad Ali on the list as well, although it's a tough call as the others deserve their placing. I'm talking about the prime Ali up until the Folley fight.

 

I think Jones was better defensively. Neither were textbook, so it call came down to effectiveness, and Roy rarely lost rounds in his prime, while Ali got downed or stunned often after flurrying and backing up with his hands down, even to much lesser fighters. Very technically flawed, as great as he was. I don't consider Ali a top defensive fighter.

 

Herol Graham comes to mind...

 

I never meant a great defensive fighter technically. But in his prime his movement, reflexes, and ring generalship were pretty awesome. I reckon his movement and ability to slip punches even with his hands down means he deserves a mention, but only during his prime.

His defense wasn't as complex as Whitaker's for example, but it was just as effective at making opponents hit thin air. Ali's technical flaws were clearly shown up when he came back from exile. His lack of inside basics defensively and offensively caught up with him in the end. Frazier was the first fighter to exploit this weakness to a high degree.

I was smart enough to put "prime" on my last post. Because if I hadn't then people would rightly assume I meant his defense was superb throughout his entire career.

It probably means he's outside of the fighters listed. Not the best, but far from the worst defensively. His defensive career was like two sides of a coin. Post and pre exile.