Is Roberto Duran The Most Talented Fighter Ever?

No he didn't lmao...

 

Hey scarecrow, you ever watch Mickey Walker's fight with Tommy Loughran? Mickey was the 5'7" world welterweight champ but somehow he's hanging in there with one of the best light heavyweights ever. He looks child sized next to Loughran and then he goes up and KOs heavyweights. He's another top 10 great.

 

He was one of the most complete I've ever seen. In his prime, he could box as beautifully as Robinson and end a fight just as brutally. Don't let his caveman looks fool you. He could of and should of called it a career after the Montreal fight he simply wasn't the same fighter anymore. Tommy Hearns best career win IS against a career LIGHTWEIGHT, that should tell you how great Duran was. Hearns would have lost against Montreal Duran at 147. Yes Duran was 1-5 against the Fab 4, but he was the smallest and oldest and still has the best win of them all, the only man to beat a prime Sugar Ray Leonard. Had Duran been the same size and in his prime, I'd assure you he wouldn't be 1-5 against them.

 

You could certainly make a pretty compelling argument that he was the most talented fighter ever, yes.

 

From 135 and under I'd say yes. But that is all subjective. Who could beat him at 135 and under?

 

While it may be a fun exercise determining who is absolutely the greatest ever is folly. Realistically, it is impossible to definitively determine who is the greatest pound-for-pound. It is hard enough to determine who would win without having to take into consideration different areas, different weight classes etcetera

However, if there was a legitimate Boxing Hall of Fame any divided into floors, Roberto Duran would be a top floor guy.

 

Greb is a newspaper fighter but there is plenty of tape showing how great Robinson and Armstrong are. For Robinson we have at least 19 fights on film.
Robinson vs. Pender
Robinson vs. Basilio I-II
Robinson vs. Fullmer I-IV
Robinson vs. Turpin I-II
Robinson vs. Graziano
Robinson vs. Lamotta VI
Robinson vs. Olson I-IV
Robinson vs. Dykes
Robinson vs. Maxim
Robinson vs. Moyer I-II
Everything is there. Everything. Speed, strength, skill. Boxing perfection. I stopped typing to go watch the Graziano fight again. God that man could circle, spring, strafe, and swarm. His jab is like a viper, but it's more than just a point scorer, every strike is meant to hurt the opponent, and when he closes in and throws those bombs, he's got to hit harder than Golovkin and he's so ****ing fast! His combos are amazing. He can do it all block, slip, counter. He's a delight to watch. It's the kind of fighter I imagine Floyd Mayweather could have been if he'd only been interested in knocking people out as much as he was interested in not getting hit. The athleticism is off the charts.

As for Armstrong we have 7 fights.
Henry Armstrong vs Arizmendi IV-V
Henry Armstrong vs Ross
Henry Armstrong vs Garcia I-II
Henry Armstrong vs Roderick
Henry Armstrong vs Ambers II
When you watch him he's like a machine. He just never stops or slows down. I've never seen a fighter keep up that kind of work rate over that prolonged a period. The man was tireless. It's ridiculous.

Greb is a phantom, and Langford isn't much better. In fact, the footage we have of Langford isn't that impressive. But with Robinson and Armstrong you watch them and your mouth falls open like "Wow!"

 

After the Montreal fight? Duran got like 1.5 for the first Sugar fight. He stood to make over close to 10 mil or more in the rematch lol... He was not going to call it a career lol.

 

Yeah, he might have the most complete skillset ever. Plus he was crafty as hell. There's a reason he could compete with much bigger men way past his prime and often out of shape.

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I'd pick James Toney as the most talented fighter I've ever seen.

 

Duran and Leonard are the most complete fighters ever.
I have no argument with anyone who says Duran is the best ever, prime.

 

Tony's problem was his cement feet. Other than that he was super skilled and a killer finisher. His highlights and tribute reels on youtube are some of the most badass you can watch. Toney and Duran are the slickest inside fighters of all time and two of the best finishers of all time. Duran was more complete than Toney because of his mobility and ability to also box great on the outside.