How good was Felix ''Tito'' Trinidad ?!

I was a maaaaaaaaajor Ike fanboy back in the day. Probably my fave of that class, ahead of SSM, DLH, Tito and El Feroz.

There are other fighters I've written about more extensively but Bazooka has always been held near & dear.

https://www.boxingforum24.com/threads/bazooka-quartey.585/
https://www.boxingforum24.com/threads/29-years-ago-today-isufu-bazooka-ike-quartey-vs-moisés-rivera.705541/

In the running for all-time p4p jab, but it wasn't like he was a one punch pony, either.

 

He’s definitely an ATG in my book

 

What is his path to beating Hearns? It is not at all obvious to me.

 

I suspect you misinterpreted my post.

I'm not suggesting I would make Trinidad favourite in that fantasy match up, only that it is painfully obvious to me that Trinidad not only possessed the offensive ability to compete, but the power necessary to hurt and stop Hearns. As we know, Hearns was far from infallible when the time came for him to weather his opponent's artillery.

I think to dismiss Trinidad entirely in such a match up would be a bit silly.

 

Anything is possible but Trinidad was a slow starter with defensive liabilities, not a great beard and liked to engage in firefights. I can’t think of a worse combination of habits a boxer facing Hearns could have. I don’t think Tito would see the third round but that’s just my opinion.

 

As close to great as one can get without actually being it.
Trinidad was a offensive powerhouse. He had excellent
power with either hand, with every punch.
Excellent jab, feints, counters , above average hand speed,
brilliant combo puncher.
What drops him down was his could be a little robotic,
defensive lapses ,average
chin and a tendency to follow instead of cutting off the ring ,
which may be more an issue of foot speed.
Heck of a fighter though. Top five mid-late 90's.

 

Trinidad's punch resistance is overplayed because of how many times he suffered knockdowns, but he was seldom in big big trouble. He was a bit like JMM in that sense. Not that I expect him to take Hearns' right hand very well, but that's certainly not a slight on Trinidad.

Hearns would be favourite, but there's question marks over his punch resistance too and Trinidad was a HUGE puncher.

 

Classic has usually gone with Hearns by KO against Tito as the overwhelming pick, and something of a given inside the first half of a modern scheduled distance.

e.g.
https://www.boxingforum24.com/threads/trinidad-vs-tommy-hearns-at-147.706266/

There's a case to be made however for it reaching the later stages, and with some parity on the scorecards, I think.

 

I understand why it's something of a consensus among Boxing fans, but I think we overrate Hearns as H2H force and underrate Trinidad. I guess this has a lot to do with his failings up at higher weights against the likes of Hopkins and Wright, but we mustn't forget just how chillingly dominant he was as a Welterweight, which is where this hypothetical match up would be contested presumably.

What do you think was Trinidad's best showing mate?

 

Hard to pin down. I think his best year was '94.

It might seem counter-intuitive and throw fuel on the skepticism around his chin, since in back to back fights he was put down in round 2 by Campas and Carr - but he tellingly got up off the canvas to wind up stopping both very solid and previously undefeated fighters.

As the cherry on top, you have clearly outpointing a prime Macho Camacho which itself puts him in rare company.

Numerically maybe the best stretch of competition Tito ever had. A combined 131-2 were those three when they fought him.

DLH and Sweet Pea in '99 is more jam-packed with name value, but the former was controversial enough to warrant the asterisk, while Whitaker wasn't exactly daisy-fresh.

 

An all-time great. Legendary power in both hands in addition to beautiful punching technique and great shot selection. On top of that, while not a great defensive fighter, he kept his hands up, wasn’t just some wild banger. He was a patient stalking fighter who applied pressure and did so backed up by his relentlessness, great stamina and heart.

He’s become very underrated which is odd as he was a relatively modern superstar with a huge following. Was THE man at 147 & 154 at a time both divisions were hot, had a long reign (15 defenses) and consecutively was world champ for over eight years, mixing in with some major competition. Took an all-time great middleweight who held a big size advantage plus stylistic edges over him to beat him. Losses after that matter nothing, as he’s burned out, then went into retirement.

Still beloved in Puerto Rico where it seems everyone adores him. Had the pleasure of spending time with him and he’s about the nicest and most humble superstar I’ve ever met. A truly wonderful human being and pleasure to be with. Makes you proud of the sport.

 

Really really wanted to see a different trainer for him---get one of the greats to work with him. His father got him in shape for fights but his work during a fight and between rounds was nothing special and fortunate to be mediocre.

Would have liked to have seen Manny Steward working with him.......polish the diamond a little bit more. He was a terror on the way up and you could plainly see the development pre title bouts.

 

He's routinely rated a top 4 puncher at 147 alongside SRR, Hearns and Cuevas in here.

 

Of those WW's that we have footage of, these would be my 4.

Based solely on records, BJW would have an argument for top 4, imo.

 

Same here Greg. The lack of footage keeps Walcott out for me too.