Nicolino Locche - Where Do You Rank Him?

Top 5 JrWW maybe top 3.
somewhere between top 60 and 80 pound for pound.
And the best defensive fighter ever.

 

Among Argentinian greats:

1. Carlos Monzon
2. Pascual Perez
3. Nicolino Locche
4. Victor Galindez
5. Horacio Accavallo
6. Santos Benigno Laciar
7. Eduardo Lausse
8. Justo Suarez
9. Oscar Bonavena
10. Gustavo Ballas

 

top 3 at 140

 

Now we all know Whitaker is the best defensive fighter ever. He did after all have footwork lol

 

Top 5 at 140.

 

Which is what made Locche's defense all the more impressive.

And to answer your question Pete, I'm not sure. I know he'd be well within my top 100, though.

 

Impressive? certainly. The best though? nope, Thats Pernells (Pep a close second). Watchin Whitaker is like physical poetry. A combination of pure instinctual physicality and methodical, technical mastery.

 

Locche's upper body defense was second to none. Every defensive trick in the book he mastered. His head movement, awareness of punches, ability to completely barricade his body, to counter out of the positioning his rolls and slips allowed, etc. He could parry and catch with the best of them. He knew exactly when to clinch and how to tie his opponents arms up while leaving them vulnerable to a counter at the same time. His ability to completely shut down an opponent's offense while standing right in from of them, whether it be in center ring or on the ropes, was unparalleled.

Whitaker had the better feet and the better offensive output, but technically he was not quite on the same level as far as defense was concerned. He also had a tendancy to get more careless and therefore take more unnecessary shots than Locche did.

Also, one thing that often gets undermentioned about Whitaker was his fundamentally flawed footwork, which was the primary reason for most of his flash knockdowns. He knew how to use the ring brilliantly to his advantage, but a lot of the time he just seemed to think he could get away with whatever his feet were doing just because of his upper body movement. Locche wasn't the most mobile in the film we have of him (though he certainly looked a lot more mobile in the footage against Carlos Ortiz when he was younger and more athletic), but his feet were almost always positioned correctly, allowing for optimum balance. This was a flaw in Pea's game. Fortunately it was one that not too many fighters were able to expose because of his nearly flawless repertoire otherwise.

Pea was definitely one of the top 5 defensive fighters of all time, and I will say that he was the best overall fighter of the defensive masters, but I can't say he was the best when speaking purely on his defensive mastery. That would be Locche in my book.

 

In an alltime P4P top 100 I'd probably have in the bracket 60-80. Not sure where.

 

Fantastic post.

 

Well his display against Fuji is certainly one of my fav technical showcases. But i feel everything Loche could do, Whitaker could also. If you could accuse whitaker of anything it would be his occasional sloppiness. Anyways, thats just my opinion lol How'd you reckon Loche would do against JCC at 140? Is he slick enough to stand, slip and land frequently enough to win a decision? or do you think JCC wears him down over the stretch? p.s. that draw with Whitaker was bull lol

 

I'd probably favor Chavez just slightly over Locche, though it would be a disputed fight. I can't be sure though, because there's little footage of a prime Locche in existence. As I said, he certainly looks a lot more mobile on his feet, as well as slimmer and more athletic in the footage against Ortiz than in any other fight available.

Either way, I believe Whitaker was a better fighter than Locche, as I said. he was able to beat Chavez based not only on his defense and ring generalship, but his ability to hang with him anywhere in the ring offensively, and keep Chavez from getting set with his constant jab. Locche lacked the offensive tools that Whitaker posessed, which could see him lose to a guy like Chavez who'd be able to close the distance whenever he wanted. A fight between Nicolino and Julio would come down to how well Locche was able to contain and nullify Chavez's inside firepower. That usually isn't the way to go against Chavez, which is why I'd take Chavez's offensive output to give him the edge on the scorecards.

I was just saying that based purely on technical defensive mastery, Locche is the best I've ever seen. Whitaker was a more well-rounded and ultimately more effective fighter, though.

 

I also think the key factor is work rate. Like say Mayweather he tends to throw single counter shots as opposed to combinations. JCC was excellent at cutting the ring off and worked incessantly to both head and body. So i'd favour Julio i guess.