Kid Gavilan .Vs. Jose Napoles

Toss up

 

Such a close call this fight, I may have to slightly favor Napoles though.

 

Gavilan.
Napoles' power wouldn't mean anything.

 

I'll take Gavilan at his best in this fight...but I'm impressed with Napoles though.

 

That's the worst analysis I've ever seen on any topic.

Maybe not quite, but I'm irritable right now. That analysis sucked though.

 

Napoles would struggle with top speed fighters, fight could be interesting.

 

..same to you.

 

Sweet Pea, you can be a harsh guy at times!!! But you are right.

 

I gave no analysis, I simply favored one of them slightly. Your point made no sense at all though and showed you clearly don't know too much about the fighters at hand. You basically made it seem as though Napoles was just a puncher.

 

..same to you again-that includes when you get off the rag-and sign up for a remedial reading class.

 

Napoles' power would mean a thing actually. I don't care how solid your jaw is, a well timed punch can upset your rhythm, knock you off balance or even deposit you on your arse. Carmen Basilio showed us that and so did Ike Williams when he knocked Gavilan down.

It's a hard fight to analyse because both fighters are strong in most areas; it's not like Dick Tiger versus Joey Giardello where there are clear differences in styles and attributes. This one is much closer and comes down to style intricacies and subtleties...

... Such as the differences between the two when involved in a fierce exchange. Watch Napoles in one, then watch Gavilan; I'm all for Gavilan, one of my favourite fighters, but Napoles was undoubtedly more consummate and efficient under pressure. Gavilan was a physical force and athlete enough that he could afford to go mental and waste punches, even jeopardising his balance and chin, but then he wasn't fighting Napoles, who is known as one of the premier counter punchers. When in heated battles, Napoles, at least in his prime, just looks more 'boxer' than Gavilan; he looks like a professional and Gavilan looks like an eager kid from the streets.

Not that it's a knock on Gavilan, he found massive success with his style and who am I to criticise? But Napoles would find or create gaps and openings where he could exploit these mistakes just as he did with Emile Griffith.

 

Not sure I agree at all with this part as it is very context dependent. Gavilan opened up wildly on foes that he felt he had an edge over like Turner or Buker, or even Bratton in their second fight. But there were others that he fought in a much more contained style such as the first Bratton fight, the Hairston fight, or even for most of the second Janiro fight. He was very adept at knowing who he was in against and what they could handle in his fights, a very intelligent fighter. That being said I don't think your charachterization of him applies to being in there with Napoles.

 

It goes for all Gavilan exchanges. He was a wilder fighter, simple as that; you could say he fought more passionately. As I said, he could afford to do this with tamer foes, but against Napoles he'll be caught out. Maybe he would fight more cautiously, but then he's going to still lose because Napoles is the better boxer. But as you said, Gavilan was an intelligent fighter so he should know to pressure Napoles if he wants to win.