I recognise a lot of the names on his resume. But in terms of timelines I get confused. How good were his best wins? Where they against a bunch of prime or past there best fighters, or a combination of the two? Thanks
He had a lot of high quality wins. Ruben Olivares was formidable but had seen better days, at bantamweight. Some of his inconsistency was probably due to him not having the best training habits. Arguello turned the fight around with one of the shortest left hooks you'll ever see. Diego Corrales was another tall puncher who could generate a lot of power from a short distance. Chico was a couple levels from El Flaco but he sure was a dangerous short puncher. Alfredo Escalera was a very good fighter. Arguello's 2nd win over him was probably Arguello at his peak. Escalera did get a gift though against Tyrone Everett, and I would have loved to see Arguello fight that tranny-lover. Everett had the style and talent to give him fits. Bazooka Limon, Bobby Chacon, Jim Watt, Cornelius Boza-Edwards, Jose Luis Ramirez, etc...all top quality fighters and terrific wins. Ray Mancini probably got overrated (or overhyped) at the time due to his popularity, but over time seems to have gotten underrated. I often hear people talk about him as an Arturo Gatti type, but he was a level or two above Gatti. Arguello probably could have been a 4-division champ if he had, like a lot of fighters, taken on the weaker titleholder at 140 in Saoul Mamby. But instead he took on Aaron Pryor and lost a classic. Arguello was an ATG, a very intelligent boxer with a monstrous right cross, great short left hook, and a wicked uppercut to the body which helped set up his bigger shots upstairs. His offensive arsenal was stacked, and he wasted little motion. He had modest hand speed, but helped make up for it with brilliant combinations. His foot speed was his biggest weakness and could have trouble with the mobile slick boxers, which is why I wouldn't pick him over a Whitaker or Mayweather.
Very well put I agree with most of your post. U described Alexis very well one of my very favorite fighters of all time
There is a famous Boxing magazine photo from the late 70's, of Roberto Duran pointing at a photo of Alexis Arguello, and Duran has his fist up and sneering. That was the real fight that everyone wanted to see..but never happened.
I remember it,,,,nobody said Alexis was stupid, he just waited for Duran to leave the lightweight division
