Good to see some posts on here about guys who don’t get mentioned a lot. I can always enjoy a Tapia fight This content is protected
Johnny Tapia is one of my very favorite fighters. How could ya not love watching him fight? As gifted as he was in anticipation, reflexes and defense...a more passionate fighter willing (and eager) to get inside and mix it up you’ll rarely see. A true fighter. Great work off his jab in this fight. But he’s so varied in the way he gets inside. In this clip alone he leads w a straight right, a left hook, and his left uppercut to both the head and the body. Sublime footwork, superb work upstairs and down. And man, what a chin this guy had. Awesome clip. Hanzagod always does a such a phenomenal job w his videos.
Johnny had elite skills when he chose to demonstrate them. He was one of my very faves of the 1990's. Not mentioned enough anymore.
In his prime his punch selection was 2nd to none. Always looking for a fight, I thought he should have gotten the nod in at least one of those Ayala fights. Underrated fighter for sure.
His boxing performance against Konadu was great. People still forget just how skilled of a boxer he is despite his tendencies to brawl a bit too much. At his sharpest he was a joy to watch.
His insane life story overshadows the top shelf goods that he had. He was unbeaten until 32 years old and 48 fights into his career.. and not comprehensively beaten until he met a much younger Barrera. There was a lot of substance there, not just Mi Vida Loca....
I actually think that Johnny Tapia's story and his personality is compelling enough to actually be made into a Hollywood movie IMO.
I always liked him. Not sure if I'm confused or not b I remember him quitting in a match after a head clash or a thumb or something. My pops and I were huge fans of his till that fight. He was young and undefeated at the time. I think.
