all time, head to head, etc. very fun fighter to watch, I watched Vargas-Trinidad for the first time today and I couldnt help but be impressed
Wow- I can't believe you'd never seen that fight... Vargas had some balls on him... I can't think he ranks with the all-timers, I think he belongs just below the elite. He shows he belongs in the fight, but still loses. B+ level. He beats everyone but the top dogs at the weight.
Interestingly Vargas was more of a boxer mover in the amatuers and olympics. I think he wanted to me more of a machismo type pro fighter, but he had some really good boxing skills as a youngster. I think he was a very good fighter, probably rushed a bit and burned out early (another Shelly Finkel managed fighter), but overall I think he was a B B+ level junior middle.
He sure made some exciting fights and was a great spoil for DLH and Tito... I remember having both fights at my house with a roomful of buddies... Good times. Especially the Tito fight. One of my favorite fights to this day. I can remember the shock of that first left hook that hit Vargas and the sound it made, the momentary silence immediately after, and then the resounding gasps from the live crowd and my guests, followed by Vargas' reaction to the punch, and the look on his face of confusion and fear or I don't know what- maybe not fear, but shock... As he held the side of his head with his glove and proceeded to be knocked to the canvas... My mom (big fight fan) was present, drinking her Busch beer, and loved Vargas so dearly, was just mortified, looking at me like I should be able to do something about her "fave" being potentially blown out in the first round... High drama in the Dave household that night...
I was a huge vargas fan back in the days. I prefer the delahoya fight over the trinidad fight, it was just back and forth in that one lol if he was more durable i think he woulda won. He was the type of guy u either love or hate.
Pre-Tito Vargas gets a pretty bum rap around here and other sites. He was a very solid and very watchable fighter. To tell you the truth 154 has a fairly rich history for one of the newer super/jnr divisions..I think Fernando may struggle to even round out the 10 there.
Vargas was an awesome fighter. like everyone else said, not the top tier but below that, and imo above gatti type level. tommy, if you liked tito vs. vargas i think you would absolutely love vargas's fight with ike quartey. one of fernandos finest fights.
