Between 4 of the craftiest pressure fighters who do you think was the most skilled on the inside? How would you compare their technical skills when they fight up close?
I haven't seen enough film of Armstrong or Qawi so I would probably say Duran was the craftiest fighter on the inside. He was very difficult to hit properly on the inside because of his ability to control his opponent. Lee Wylie has several videos on YouTube demonstrating Duran's tactile reflexes along with his sneaky set up of offense on the inside. I am not sure you would find any boxer out there who was definitively better than Duran on the inside Chavez was also excellent on the inside. He had a more straight forward approach on the inside and would pile up the damage very quickly. Chavez's strength was his ability to string compact combinations up close while being able to control his opponent on the inside as well. Chavez's defense on the inside was pretty good especially in his prime.
They were all terrific inside fighters. James Toney is missing from the list. When on his game, he was the best techncian and defensive fighter on the inside ever.
Toney is a great mention. Your name reminds me of Toney's utter schooling of Barkley on the inside. What a performance!
Yep a masterful performance on the inside :good. Against Jirov and Prince Charles Williams he fought also great on the insight.
Toney's also a great inside fighter, but this thread is mentioning "pressure fighters" only. Jung Koo Chang and Jeff Fenech deserve a shout out.
My mistake. Preasure fighters off the top of my head in no particular order. Chavez Armstrong Fenech Duran when he wanted too. Dempsey Frazier Tyson Marciano Braxton Just off the top of my head
Great shout on Fenech. Wasn't the hardest puncher, but was relentless. The excellent Aussie posters on these boards reminded me a few months back.
Fenechs preassure was amongst the best i ever saw. He was so relentless and knew how to cut the ring off. Imagine if his hands werent so brittle and a little heavier.
Tough one. The title question seems different to me than the question in your actual post. Qawi may have been as technically skilled on the inside as anyone I've seen. But Chavez hit much harder and Duran was much better at overwhelming guys with non-stop, physical pressure (Chavez too), so I wouldn't say Qawi was a better in-fighter than either of them. Can't comment on Hank.
Duran,Chavez, Qawi in that order, Armstrong was a windmill, but took alot of shots coming in, To me Armstrong defensive liabilities doesn't compare to the other fighters on this list. Toney was excellent inside and out, but wouldn't consider him a pressure fighter.
I very much enjoy watching Lee Wylie's video's on Duran, especially the Palomino fight. He really showed his technical abilities in a way that might not seem apparent until you realise the purpose of his every move. :good
Side note: Not trying to take anything away from Duran-- he had fantastic skills and reflexes on the inside--but I've often noticed that Lee Wylie tends to exaggerate how purposeful every little motion and movement is in his clips. I remember first noticing it in his Froch and Foreman videos, I think.
